PRORODEO Sports News - Sept. 9, 2026

SPORTS NEWS DIGITAL MAGAZINE 9 September 2026

THE COWBOYS’ CHOICE SINCE 1952

JIM SUTTON APRIL 20, 1935 - SEPTEMBER 3, 2026

PHIL LYNE

JANUARY 18, 1947 – AUGUST 14, 2026

PRORODEO MOURNS PASSING OF BELOVED HALL OF FAMERS

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HOW THE WEST IS WORN

RYDER WRIGHT 2024 WORLD CHAMPION SADDLE BRONC RIDER

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FLINT RASMUSSEN P. 17 RASMUSSEN IS BACK AND DOING IT HIS WAY BY ALEX DODD PSN HQ MANAGER OF COMMUNICATIONS AND MEDIA Tracy Renck MEDIA REPORTER Alex Dodd DIGITAL PUBLICATIONS MANAGER Lisa Cush 4 PHIL LYNE ONE OF THE BEST IN PRORODEO HISTORY World Championships in 1971 and 1972 and the 1990 PRCA Steer Roping World Championship. BY TRACY RENCK ProRodeo Hall of Famer Lyne’s decorated career in PRORODEO was highlighted by winning the All-Around and Tie-Down Roping

CONTENTS

PRORODEO SPORTS NEWS DIGITAL MAGAZINE

Phil Lyne visits with young rodeo fans. PRCA file photo

LUKE CREASY P. 20 FROM RODEO TO LAW SCHOOL

HE SAID •SHE SAID P. 24 WHO KNOWS JACOB LEES BEST?

ON THE COVER WILL EDDLEMAN AIMS TO MAKE HIS MARK IN PRORODEO BY KENSIE DARST-TODD 12 THE COWBOYS’ CHOICE SINCE 1952 SPORTS NEWS DIGITAL MAGAZINE 9 September 2026 COWBOY GRILLE P. 26

BY KENSIE DARST-TODD

BY KYNNLEY HERRINGTON

PASSING

HALL OF FAMER JIM SUTTON Sutton started the Black Hills Stock Show and Rodeo in 1978. To draw attendance to the rodeo, he created the Wrangler Bull Fights, the Bailey Bail-Off, World Championship Wild Horse Race, Bull Poker, and Teeter-Totter. Sutton’s pageantry and showmanship earned him National Finals Rodeo Opening Ceremony credits in 1995 and 1996. BY PRCA STAFF

Phil Lyne and Jim Sutton both helped define rodeo. Both were inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame, Lyne as one of the few contes tants to excel in every rodeo event and Sutton as a stock contractor who developed a breeding program that remains one of the best in the business. PRCA file photo

Jim Sutton was drafted by the Minneapolis Lakers and attended their training camp. However, he believed following his father and grandfather in the ranching business made more financial sense than a basketball career. It definitely impacted the rodeo world. PRCA file photo

JIM SUTTON APRIL 20, 1935 - SEPTEMBER 3, 2026

PHIL LYNE

JANUARY 18, 1947 – AUGUST 14, 2026

PRORODEO MOURNS PASSING OF BELOVED HALL OF FAMERS

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LEGENDARY PRORODEO HALL OF FAMER PHIL LYNE PASSES AWAY By Tracy Renck

Phil Lyne on Beutler Bros & Cervi’s Cloudburst at the Sidney Iowa Rodeo in 1970. PRCA photo by Burgess

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September 9, 2026 PRORODEO SPORTS NEWS DIGITAL MAGAZINE 5

P roRodeo Hall of Famer Phil Lyne, considered one of the best cowboys in PRORODEO histo ry, passed away Aug. 14 in Cotulla, Texas. He was 79. Lyne’s decorated PRORODEO career was high lighted by him winning the Rodeo Cowboys Asso ciation – the precursor to the PRCA – All-Around World Championships in 1971 and 1972 and the Tie-Down Roping World Championships in 1971 and 1972 as well. Then, he captured the 1990 PRCA Steer Roping World Championships. He also shined when the spotlight was the brightest at the National Finals Rodeo and National Finals Steer Roping. He won the tie-down roping average in 1971 and 1972, the 1972 bull riding aver age and the NFSR average in 1983 and 1986. Lyne was the 1969 RCA Overall Rookie of the Year, and he also won the Linderman Award - an honor given to select cowboys willing and able to

perform at both ends of the arena - in 1970, 1971, 1972 and 1976. “We crossed paths quite a few times – and I sure thought a lot of him, and he was definitely a hero of mine,” said ProRodeo Hall of Famer Ty Murray, a nine-time PRCA World Champion to the PRO RODEO Sports News. “He’s absolutely one of the greatest to ever play the game and the most versa tile. Then, you look at the span between his world championships, it’s a big span. He was a Hell of a competitor, and it’s crazy to me to see somebody that can do it that good and for that long. I had so much respect and admiration for Phil.” Bobby Steiner, the 1973 RCA Bull Riding World Champion, became friends with Lyne in the late 1960s and was well aware of how talented Lyne was in the arena. “I first started on a permit in, like, 1968. And Phil was college rodeoing – and there was talk of him then. You know, he was just that guy,” Steiner said.

Phil Lyne with other cowboys PRCA file photo

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Phil Lyne on Flying U Bull, Lehi, Utah June 30, 1972. PRCA Photo by James Fain

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“I’m just glad he was really more seri ous about his calf roping and didn’t go as hard in bull riding because he was just one of the toughest guys to get on the ground ever. He was just that tough, so you knew you were going to have to beat him. “I’m glad he took roping more seriously and the all-around fit in his plans with bull riding. He never dedicated himself to being the champ in bull riding. You know what I mean? He was a champion calf roper, but he could kick your ass in a bull riding. The top three cowboys (of all-time) in my book are Larry Mahan, Ty Murray and Phil Lyne.” Lyne qualified for the NFR six times – tie-down roping (1970, 1971, 1972, 1973); and bull riding (1971, 1972). He added 10 more qualifications to the National Finals Steer Roping – 1979, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, and 1990. “I was never one of those people who set goals,” Lyne said in “A Com plete History of the First 50 Years of the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo”. “I just wanted to do my best every time I went out there. I always thought that when you set a goal, you gave yourself a stop ping point. I just always wanted to be the best I could be from the day I started rodeo in high school. I loved doing it. I started calf roping and eventually started riding bulls. Everything just fell into place for me all along the line. “After a while, I would get to an airport pretty loaded up with stuff, but I liked doing it all. I had friends in every event, and they

helped me out a lot. When I was steer wrestling, I rode horses that belonged to Jim Smith and Roy Duvall.” Lyne was inducted into the 1979 inaugural class of the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in Colorado Springs, Colo. Lyne grew up in George West, Tex as. He started out in the Texas Youth Rodeo Association, then the National High School Rodeo Association, and the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association at several Texas colleges starting and ending up with Sam Houston State University in Hunts ville, Texas, with stints at colleges in Uvalde and San Marcos. By the time Lyne entered PRORODEO in 1969, he had won 42 saddles and quite a bit of prize money. “He was a hero of mine. I mean, he is to a lot of people,” said fellow ProRodeo Hall of Famer Guy Allen, who won a record 18 PRCA Steer Rop ing World Championships. “And he was a super, super great guy. I mean, as honest as the day is long. He’s one

of the best guys you’d ever know. I think what made him so great was his desire to win. He wanted to win. He didn’t want to just compete and hear his name called. He wanted to win. What made him so successful was the effort that he put into practice. It was full contact with him when he prac ticed. He wasn’t out there just to pass the time. He was out there to rope and win. He practiced, and he practiced hard. That’s what made Phil Lyne great, the practice and the work ethic that he put into it.” Allen and Lyne traveled together for five years in the late 1980s. “We used to also enter some rodeos in team roping together,” Allen said. “I was heading and he was heeling. I didn’t have a (steer roping) horse for one year, and he had a backup. So, I rode his backup horse, and he rode his good one. Then, I’d head on his good (steer roping) horse, and he’d heel on his backup. We had an inline trailer and a station wagon, and we drove around to rodeos.” When Lyne won his 1990 PRCA Steer Roping World Championship, it was Allen who finished second. The title was decided in Round 10. Lyne, 43 at the time, turned in a disappointing 19.3-second run after he missed with his first loop and was forced to throw a second. Allen answered with a quick 12.7-second performance – but a broken barrier pushed that time to 22.7 seconds. That allowed Lyne to capture the title with $39,854 by a mere $85 over Allen.

Phil Lyne with his 1971 World Champi on Calf Roping gold buckle and saddle. PRCA file photo

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LYNE WAS A HUMBLE LEGEND As talented Lyne was what set him apart was how humble he was about his accomplishments. “Phil was just a cowboy. I mean, nothing ever went to his head at all. He was a hunter and a cowboy, and that’s what he was every day,” Steiner said. “There are not many people who you can say that about, but he was just a talented guy who in his mind was just a basic cowboy. He would talk to you and stuff, but he never was about, ‘Man, I did this,’ or, ‘I did that.’ You’d never know (about his accom plishments).” Murray also appreciated Lyne’s demeanor. “He was such a gentleman. He al ways gave me a lot of praise and every time I would see him, I got my picture taken with him. Every time,” Murray said. “To me, he just seemed like a world-class human being. He was not a flamboyant guy. He was not a guy who was seeking attention. Larry (Mahan) was a lot more flamboyant and a lot more out there with the me dia. And I think Phil always just kind of shied away from that. I think Phil mainly just liked doing cowboy stuff. “I just thought he was always such a classy guy every time I was around him. It also felt like he and I totally understood each other.” Green summed up his grandfather’s legacy perfectly. “You almost had to pry the rodeo talk out of him. He really didn’t talk about it very much,” Green said. “He’d rather talk about coyote hunt ing or something like his cow dogs.

“We were traveling together and we were winning first and second,” Allen said. “I was ahead of him going into the (NFSR), and then we roped there. He was still in the average, and I’d went out of the average. It’s kind of a funny story, really. His wife, Sarah Kay, came up to me and said, ‘God let him win.’ I said, ‘Sarah Kay, I’m not going to let him win.’ I broke the barrier and probably could’ve won, but it wasn’t on purpose. I’ll promise you that.” Tanner Green, Lyne’s grandson, and PRCA tie-down roper and team roper, relished the time he spent with his legendary grandfather. “As a kid, I - it was very hard to learn from him because he was very natural at everything. So as a kid, it was pretty hard because he really

didn’t break stuff down,” Green said. “But now that I’m older, I see what he was doing and I understand it better. He’s the reason I am the way I am, and I will never do what he did in the rodeo world, but he taught me how to be humble and not let the highs get too high and the lows get too low. “He was the reason I did it, and he’s the only reason I could go. He taught me everything. I lived with him for all my life, 28 years, and he taught me everything. He was a dad to me, is what he was. He was my dad.” Legendary country music singer George Strait posted the following about Lyne. “Phil Lyne, we’ll never forget you. All of our prayers are with you and your family. May God bless them. You

left your mark on South Texas and of course all of the rodeo world. A true cowboy in every sense of the word. I’m proud that I

got to call you my friend. I’ll see you down the road someday amigo.”

Lyne with his horse in Colorado Springs, Colorado in 1971. PRCA file photo

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Phil Lyne visits with young rodeo fans. PRCA file photo

He wasn’t big on talking about rodeo and himself. He did what he wanted to, and he hung it up and never went back and never looked back. “There will never ever be another Phil Lyne. I don’t think there will ever be a man as tough, as humble, or as handy as him ever again. I’m not say ing that because he was my granddad. I mean, that’s the toughest human being I think I’ve ever seen.” Lyne is survived by his wife, Sarah; and daughters, Amanda and Saman tha, who qualified for the 2014 NFR in barrel racing and is married to world champion bull rider JB Mauney.

Phil Lyne: 1986 Steer Roping Average Champion

PRCA file photo by Ives

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PRORODEO HALL OF FAME STOCK CONTRACTOR JIM SUTTON JR. PASSES AWAY By PRCA Staff

Jim Sutton watching over his stock. PRCA file photo P roRodeo Hall of Fame S.D. He was 91 years old. The South Dakota native ran Sutton Rodeo Company with his father, James H. Sutton Sr., beginning in 1968, and transformed the outfit into one of the top firms in PRORODEO. When asked how he’d want to be remembered during Rodeo Rapid City (S.D.) this past February, he gave a stock contractor Jim Sutton Jr. passed away Sept. 3 in Pierre,

simple answer. “Probably the way it is,” Sutton said to the PRORODEO Sports News ahead of his 91st birthday. “All the family is involved, and it looks like they’re going to continue to be involved for quite a few years.” The Sutton family hosted the first rodeo on the family’s ranch in the river hills of Sully County in 1926 and sought to see which local ranch had the best cowboys.

Edwin Sutton, Jim Sutton’s grand father, saw potential in the rodeo business and sought to grow the com pany from a family pastime to a profit center. He quickly partnered with George Fairbank and began a successful tour ing rodeo before the Great Depression slowed operations until the 1940s. Jim’s father, James H. Sutton Sr., launched the next iteration of the firm in the 1950s by partnering with fellow

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One of the state’s finest shooters, Sutton led Onida to the 1953 state Class B prep championship. In high school, he earned four let ters in basketball and track and three in football. He qualified for the state track meet in the 880, discus and pole vault as a junior and senior, placing high in the 880 and winning the pole vault. Sutton was recruited by sever al NCAA Division I schools to play basketball (including Kansas State, a national power at that time), but went to South Dakota State in Brookings instead. At that time, freshmen could not play on the varsity, but he started as a sophomore. A co-captain his junior and senior years, the 6-foot, 170-pound Sutton was the second player in SDSU history to score 1,000 career points. He was selected all-conference in 1956 and 1957 as State won North Central Con ference championships. In college, Sutton gained recogni tion for his long jump shots, and he led the conference in field-goal percent age in 1956 and ‘57. As a free-throw shooter, he may be the best the state has ever produced. In 1957, he shot 92 percent on free throws (127 of 138, including 32 in a row), a national record at the time. He still holds SDSU records for free-throw percentage for a game (100, 12-for-12), season (92) and career (86.3). Sutton played basketball competitively until age 44, helping Onida win the state amateur champi onship twice. Sutton, a 1957 South Dakota State University graduate with a Bachelor of Science degree in animal husbandry, was the first South Dakota State player drafted by the NBA, going to the Min neapolis Lakers in the ninth round. Sutton attended the team’s presea son camp and made the first cut for the team while trying out with legendary Hall of Famer Jerry West but ultimate ly decided to return home to work the family ranch with his father, James Sutton Sr., and grandfather, Edwin Sutton. Jim Sutton Jr. was inducted into the South Dakota Sports Hall of Fame in 2001.

“It just gave you something to think about,” Jim Sutton said of knowing his calling from a young age. “You didn’t have to worry about anything to do. It was all right there.” Two years later, Sutton-Korkow, in partnership with the Korkow family, hauled their stock to the first National Finals Rodeo in Dallas, Texas. Sut ton-Korkow was one of the first stock contractors to join the Rodeo Cowboys Association – the predecessor of the PRCA. James and Jim formally partnered in 1968 and launched Sutton Rodeo Company, transforming the contractor into one of the top firms in the PRCA. They supplied stock from their Onida, S.D., ranch to rodeos across South Dakota and the Northwest. By the late 1970s, Sutton was raising more than 90% of his own bucking stock and developed a breeding program that is one of the best in the business. The program has produced three PRCA Horse of the Year winners: saddle bronc horse Deep Water (1979), bareback horse Big Bud (1985), and saddle bronc horse Chuckulator (2012). Chuckulator also won Top Sad dle Bronc Horse of the National Finals Rodeo in 2012. Their horses and bulls won all three categories at the Bad lands Circuit Finals Livestock of the Year Awards in 2011. The program has also earned Sutton four nominations for PRCA Stock Contractor of the Year. James Sutton Sr. was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 1982 and received an award of merit from the RCA in 1970 for his contributions to the sport. James Sutton eventually passed management responsibilities to his son Jim. But remained intimately involved in PRORODEO until his death, Feb. 1, 1991. Jim’s wife, Julie, also took on a lot of responsibility in Sutton Rodeo. In addition to helping support operations, she served as an NFR timer in 1970 and passed the skill on to her daugh ter-in-law, Kim Sutton. Jim and Julie took the company to the next level with a focus on produc tion and innovation.

South Dakotan Erv Korkow to form Sutton-Korkow Stock. Sutton-Korkow was one of the first contractors to join the Rodeo Cowboys Association. Jim, who was born April 20, 1935, in Hughes County South Dakota, was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 2020 in Colorado Springs, Colo. The South Dakotan was raised in the stock contracting business, but it wasn’t his only option as he also was a star basketball player.

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To draw attendance to the rodeo, the Suttons hosted the inaugural match of the Wrangler

ProRodeo Bull fighters Tour at the Black Hills Stock Show and Rodeo in Rapid City in 1979. They also hosted the

Bailey Bail-Off, World Champi onship Wild Horse Race, Bull Poker, and Teeter-Totter. Sutton’s pageantry and showmanship earned him Nation al Finals Rodeo Opening Ceremony credits in 1995 and 1996. The Suttons have had stock at every single National Finals Rodeo. “I guess for me, to the end, Jim was always very proud of his inno vative rodeo productions,” Kim said. “He and Julie both were laser-sharp on production. They would get the

Jim Sutton stands with his prized stock. PRCA file photo

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Sutton at his 2020 induc tion into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame with fellow South Dakotan Jordan Tierney, Miss Rodeo

America 2020. PRCA file photo

best stock, hire the best contract per

sonnel and run the best production. He ingrained that into all of us. “Jim also was just a great person. Whatever you needed he was there for you.” Jim and Julie received the Donita Barnes Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017. Julie Sutton passed away July 21, 2021, at the age of 85 – four days before Jim was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame – after a prolonged battle with cancer. Jim and Julie were married for 68 years. “This is terrific to be recognized for an award like this at this stage of the game,” Jim said about receiving the Donita Barnes honor. “The best part of the whole thing is our entire family is involved in our farming and ranch operation.” Jim Sutton continued to hit the road

for Sutton Rodeo’s biggest produc tions, including Rodeo Rapid City, which he started in 1978 as the Black Hills Stock Show and Rodeo. The rodeo has been nominated 25 times as the PRCA Large Indoor Rodeo of the Year, winning the title seven times (2002-03, 2020-21, 2023-25). “I wish I had a few more years,” Jim Sutton said. “This show in Rapid City, there are no better rodeos anywhere. We always get the top cowboys and try to bring the best stock we can. That’s just the way it is. “All my life, we’ve tried to get rodeos like this and keep them going. Rapid City is (the result) of what we’ve been trying to do for years. It’s all kind of

fallen into place.” Today Jim’s son, Steve Sutton, serves as the president of Sutton Ro deo Company with his wife, Kim, and their children, Brent, Brice and Amy are all partners in the business. Public visitation for Jim Sutton Jr. will be from 10-11 a.m. (CT), Sept. 14, at the Onida School Gymnasium, followed by a celebration of his life at 11 a.m. In lieu of flowers, Jim asked that do nations be made to the basketball and rodeo teams at South Dakota State, the Casey Tibbs Rodeo Center Museum in Fort Pierre, S.D., and the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in Colorado Springs.

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Flint Rasmussen performs at the 2026 Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo. PRCA photo by Click Thompson

FLINT RASMUSSEN IS BACK AND DOING IT HIS WAY By Alex Dodd

D uring the Cheyenne (Wyo.) Fron tier Days Xtreme Bulls barrel man Cody Sosebee called out a special guest. To the surprise of the packed grand stand and a lot of personnel near the bucking chutes, the legendary Flint Rasmussen ran out to join his friend on the dirt. It marked Rasmussen’s second appearance at a PRCA event since he departed for a full-time gig with the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) in 2006. His initial return was under the radar, when he served as an entertain

er at the Ute Stampede Rodeo Xtreme Bulls a month earlier on July 8 in Nephi, Utah. These appearances weren’t a one off, and while Rasmussen doesn’t plan on loading up with a full rodeo schedule, he’s back in the mix – de spite retiring from in-arena work after the 2023 PBR season to work at their corporate offices. Now Rasmussen’s eager to get back in the arenas where he fell in love with entertaining PRORODEO fans. “Everybody asks me how retirement was, and I wish I could tell everybody

about all of the golf courses I’ve been on and all the beaches I’ve been on, but I’ve been working,” Rasumussen told the PRORODEO Sports News. “I’ve been going to work every day, and it really taught me where my heart lies and what I’m passionate about. “It made me take a breath and look back and go, I want to get back to some of the places that made me fall in love with all of this in the first place.” Even when Rasmussen was away from PRORODEO, he stayed close

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sen, a native Montanan, said. “I love watching bareback riding and steer wrestling. That’s been important to me, to maintain friendships and maintain relationships. When I left a lot of those rodeos, I did it the right way, so that I still have that relation ship.” Rasmussen wants to get back on the road, but not every weekend. He has bigger goals for this next chapter of his storied career, which includes taking care of his physical and mental health at 58 years old. He’s booking public speaking gigs,

and maintained his relationships with committees and fans across the country. He hosted his stage show Beyond the Barrel with Flint Rasmussen during the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo every year, and his contract stipulated that he gets those weeks in December off each year. He also made sure to attend the St. Paul (Ore.) Rodeo regularly – which named him to their hall of fame in 2014 – and hosted a pre-show in one of their beer tents. “I grew up around rodeo,” Rasmus

hosting events, expanding his digital presence and returning to the arena. This past weekend, he appeared at a Banana Ball game on behalf of the newly formed Indianapolis Clowns in Oklahoma City. “I’d love a balance of all those things to keep my brain moving,” Rasmussen said. “Through all my 20 years doing my Outside the Barrel talk show at the NFR, that was to set myself up for when I was done in the arena. I just didn’t have everything in place to be able to do that, so I worked for two years at the PBR corporate

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Rasmussen entertains the crowd in Cheyenne. PRCA photo by Click Thompson

Harrison, J.J. Harri son, Justin Rumford, Matt Merritt and others. And he’s not trying to cut in and steal the show. “This whole group of guys has changed with the times as well,” he said. “Ro deos and fans love them, and I’m acute ly aware of that. They’ve established themselves, and if I want to do this, then I’ve got to work my way in there and fit in with what they’re doing. . .I’m friends

“I’ve always been a guy who feels like life is about moments,” Rasmus sen said. “There have been some cool moments like running back out in Cheyenne. There’s a fanbase there that still knows who I am. . . There will be some homecoming moments that I won’t really reveal because we’re on the down low, but it’s been fun to do that.” Rasmussen also acknowledged the contract personnel on the road who have established themselves as fan favorites and built relationships with local committees, including John

with them.” Rasmussen has heard it all since he opened this new chapter. He said half the people he talks to tell him he’s crazy and the other half say he’d be crazy not to do this. Regardless of what everybody else has said, Rasmussen is back, and he’s doing it his way. “We’re all blessed with certain skills and traits, and I just feel like I should be using them,” Rasmussen said. “But the ultimate load I haven’t determined yet. Right now, I’m trying to hustle.”

office.” Rasmussen has done it all. He’s won the PRCA Clown of the Year award eight times and served as the NFR barrelman eight times. He’s per formed at the most iconic venues in sports from AT&T Stadium in Arling ton, Texas, to Madison Square Garden in New York City to the Staples Center in Los Angeles. As he’s gotten older, he wants to get back to his roots in a way, performing at the venues where he cut his teeth like Cheyenne, Wyo., and St. Paul, Ore.

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FROM RODEO TO LAW SCHOOL BAREBACK RIDER LUKE CREASY IS TAKING HIS NEW PROFESSION HEAD ON

By Kensie Darst-Todd, Special to PRORODEO Sports News

F or years, Luke Creasy made a living eight seconds at a time. The former Canadian bareback rider built a career that included a 2006 Canadian novice bareback championship and two Turquoise Circuit Finals titles. At his peak, Creasy climbed inside the Top 10 of the PRCA World Standings while chasing the sport’s biggest goal: a qualification to the National Finals Rodeo. Creasy learned to operate under pressure with his hand wedged into a rigging, his heart rate climbing and 1,200 pounds of bucking horse beneath him. These days, the pressure looks different. Instead of an arena, Creasy is learning his way around a courtroom. The transition from PRORODEO cowboy to law stu dent wasn’t a straight line. The idea of pursuing law first surfaced while Creasy was earning his bachelor’s degree in English with a minor in secondary education from Texas Tech University in Lubbock; at the time, PRORODEO rodeo was his priority. “I kind of thought about (law school) back when I was getting an English degree, but I just wanted to rodeo at that point,” Creasy said. “Law school wasn’t something I took seriously.” By 2017, Creasy was rodeoing full-time and living in the Dallas, Texas, area when he again began considering what life might hold after competing. He started studying for

the Law School Admission Test (LSAT), but when circum stances took his son, Cash, back to New Mexico, Creasy followed. Law school could wait, but being a father could not. “Being a father definitely shaped the way I’d rodeo,” Creasy said. “I organized my rodeo schedule around mak ing sure that I prioritized time with him.” Creasy instead turned to the secondary education minor he once thought he’d never use and began teaching. He eventually earned a master’s degree in education admin istration from Eastern New Mexico University in Portales, balancing coursework with teaching, fatherhood and rodeo. As Cash grew older, fatherhood also began changing the way Creasy approached his rodeo career. He built his schedule around time with his son and sometimes took him along for the miles between rodeos. When Cash became old enough to have sports and pursuits of his own, Creasy began reconsidering where he needed to be. In 2021, after winning at Laramie (Wyo.) Jubilee Days aboard Summit Pro Rodeo’s Game Trail with an 87.5-point ride, Creasy drove home to Hobbs, N.M., to see Cash. His next rodeos were roughly 10 hours away. For once, he didn’t want to make the drive. “This seems like a good way to end,” Creasy remembered thinking. He stepped away from competition and concentrated on

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Luke Creasy and wife and their horses. All photos for this story are courtesy of Luke Creasy.

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Bareback rider Luke Creasy is shown competing during his rodeo days. PRCA photo by William Kierce

I would ideally like to see if there is a way I can help the sport grow and help the sport turn into that full-fledged pro fessional sport we are trying to make it.” Creasy sees opportunities to help structure deals, serve contractors and potentially advocate for rodeo when the sport faces legal challenges. Few attorneys could approach those cases with Creasy’s first hand understanding of what happens inside and outside the

teaching and fatherhood, but the idea of becoming a lawyer never complete ly disappeared. Years later, a move to Albuquerque put Creasy near the University of New Mexico School of Law and presented him with another opportunity. His wife Sommer encouraged him to take it. Creasy returned to studying for the LSAT while teaching and renovating a house to sell. This time, he followed through. Now in law school, Creasy is ap proaching his education much like he once approached rodeo. He has maxed out his allowable credit hours each semester, driven by curiosity and a desire to explore as much of the profession as possible. Despite the apparent distance be tween bareback riding and practicing law, Creasy has discovered the two aren’t entirely different. “There’s a fortitude that comes with rodeoing,” Creasy said. “A grace under pressure that is extremely vital in the legal profession.” Oral arguments can still bring

nerves, but Creasy is no stranger to performing under pressure. Years behind the bucking chutes taught him how to manage those moments and remain focused when the stakes are high. Rodeo also taught Creasy how to manage a business, finances and a schedule while interacting with every one from sponsors and stock contrac tors to fans and fellow contestants. Those lessons now translate to clients, attorneys and judges. Creasy hasn’t ruled out bringing his two worlds together. After enjoying his contracts cours es, he became president of his law school’s Business Law Society and developed an interest in commercial and corporate law. Ideally, he would someday use that knowledge within the Western industry, whether work ing with PRORODEO, representing those involved in it or helping defend the sport that shaped him. “Rodeo is a business,” Creasy said. “Being involved from a legal stand point should be more than helping a rodeo association settle a court claim.

arena, but his pursuit of a law degree isn’t solely about what comes next professionally. After years spent prioritizing sta bility for Cash, now 15, Creasy wants his son to see the value in pursuing something difficult simply because he believes he is capable of it. “If I go through life playing it safe,” Creasy said, “I feel like it teaches him that just cutting out a little place of stability is something one could prior itize more than achieving the great ness that one’s capable of.” Sommer helped give Creasy the confidence to finally take that chance. He said her support – from encourag ing him to pursue law school to carry ing more of the load while he studies – made the transition possible. Creasy doesn’t know exactly where the law will take him, but after a career built around climbing aboard without knowing precisely how the next eight seconds would unfold, he’s comfortable with that uncertainty. “I want to learn as much as I can about the law,” Creasy said, “because I’m not sure where I’ll be needed.”

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HE SAID • SHE SAID Who knows two-time Wrangler NFR bareback qualifier JACOB LEES better? His wife, CHELSEA LEES , or his traveling partner, 2024 PRCA Bareback Riding World Champion and three-time NFR qualifier, DEAN THOMPSON ?

Jacob Lees

Dean Thompson

Chelsea Lees

What is your favorite BRONC TO RIDE? Virgil Who is your favorite RODEO ATHLETE? Larry Mahan What is your go-to SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM? Instagram If you could meet any celebrity, WHO WOULD IT BE? Matthew McConaughey WHO WEARS THE PANTS in the relationship? My wife What is your favorite TYPE OF FOOD? Game Meat What is your DREAM VACATION? A Hunting Trip IF YOU COULD BE IN ANY MOVIE, which would it be? Fast and Furious Besides the NFR, which RODEO WOULD YOU LIKE TO WIN? Calgary Stampede What is your favorite NON-ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE? Milk

What is his favorite BRONC TO RIDE? Virgil Who is his favorite RODEO ATHLETE? Chris LeDoux What is his go-to SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM? Facebook If he could meet any celebrity, WHO WOULD IT BE? Evan Felker (Turnpike Troubadours) WHO WEARS THE PANTS in the relationship? Jacob What is his favorite TYPE OF FOOD? Game Meat What is his DREAM VACATION? A Hunting Trip IF HE COULD BE IN ANY MOVIE, which one would it be? The Patriot Besides the NFR, which RODEO WOULD HE LIKE TO WIN? Calgary Stampede

What is his favorite BRONC TO RIDE? Virgil Who is his favorite RODEO ATHLETE? Richmond Champion What is his go-to SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM? Facebook If he could meet any celebrity, WHO WOULD IT BE? Cameron Hanes WHO WEARS THE PANTS in the relationship? Me What is his favorite TYPE OF FOOD? Pizza What is his DREAM VACATION? A Hunting Trip IF HE COULD BE IN ANY MOVIE, which one would it be? Indiana Jones

JACOB’S ANSWERS

DEAN’S ANSWERS

CHELSEA’S ANSWERS

Besides the NFR, which RODEO WOULD HE LIKE TO WIN? Calgary Stampede What is his favorite NON-ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE? Milk

What is his favorite NON-ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE? Milk

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September 9, 2026 PRORODEO SPORTS NEWS DIGITAL MAGAZINE 25

COWBOY GRILLE

WILL EDDLEMAN W ill Eddleman, 25, of Santa Anna, Texas, is currently ranked 25th in the PRCA | Bill Fick Ford World Standings in steer roping with $25,914 in season earnings. He claimed the 2023 Resistol Steer Roping Rookie of the Year title and has continued to make his mark in 2026, highlighted by a 10.2-second run to win the second round at Cheyenne (Wyo.) Frontier Days and pocketed $6,486. His father, Don Ed Eddleman, is a longtime PRCA competitor and serves as the steer roping representative on the PRCA Contestant Executive Council. With Kensie Darst-Todd

How’d you get your start in rodeo? My grandpa didn’t grow up in rodeo, but when he went to college, he started. And so therefore, when my dad (Don Ed Eddle man) was nine or 10, he started playing with a rope.

in at home, and it was just me and him, and there was no one to team rope with. And one day he was like, “You wanna tie something down?” And I was like, “Yeah, sure. That sounds like fun.” And then, we look up two weeks later and I’m trying to tie steers on two of the horses I’m heading on. It’s very addicting in that way. I feel like a lot of people you talk to that steer rope are gonna say the same thing: once you try it once, it’s over. Did you compete in any other rodeo events growing up? Growing up, I did everything in the 10 and under. You (compete in) every event: barrels, poles, goats, everything. Then you go to the next. You do breakaway and ribbon roping and team roping and all that. I did everything. And then getting into high school, I bulldogged, team roped, broke calves, everything I could. The goal was always to win the all-around more than it was to win any individual event. What has been the biggest lesson you have learned this season? My dad preaches to me to take another swing, set my runs up, all that kinda stuff. There were a lot of times where we would come into a third round, and I’d have two down and was within a 10-second run of winning first. But I was only a 16-second run away from winning third. Learning each little lesson this year was more serious than it had been. I think what has put me in the position I have is not being that guy that’s okay with just settling down and win ning third, and I try to win. I tried to go at it and try to win first, and I would hurt myself in the process.

And then it felt like it got better with each generation. As soon as I could walk, I was playing with a rope, and I think they said when I was five or six, we entered the first junior rodeos. When did you know you could make a career out of rodeo? When I was probably either 16 or 17, I was amateur rodeoing around home as much as I could, team rop ing. I had one week where I won like $8,000. I think we won first at two rodeos and placed at two or three other ones. I was just like, “holy cow, that’s a lot of money to win.” And that was rodeo. I had won lots of money jackpotting and every body, but to win that much at one rodeo in one week for me was a lot at that time, and I was like, “Oh my gosh.” Why did you decide steer roping would be your event? So it all started really in COVID. Ev erything was shut down and we were at home and my dad steer roped. He was practicing all the time. So we were locked

26 PRORODEO SPORTS NEWS DIGITAL MAGAZINE September 9, 2026

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28 PRORODEO SPORTS NEWS DIGITAL MAGAZINE September 9, 2026

Will Eddleman displays his steer roping talents. PRCA photo by William Kierce

Who’s someone you look up to in the rodeo business right now? In my opinion, Scott Snedecor is probably your best mentor or idol. But when you’re talking about guys that go to every roping, and I make sure I’m paying attention when they rope, you got Cole Patterson, Riley O’Ro urke, and there’s Taylor Santos – he is one of those guys in these last couple

Santa Anna, which is about 15 miles from our house. And I’m telling you, I was shaken the whole way there and the whole way back. I was so nervous. But I do remember that was the first time I ever drove without anybody else in pickup. Do you have a favorite candy? I always get the Red Bull Iced Vanilla Berry sugar-free and the smallest can they have because I can’t handle very much, and then I get all pink Starbursts. What do you enjoy doing when you’re not rodeoing? My family has a ranch here in Santa Anna (Texas), and I really enjoy ranching and doing cattle stuff and all that. For a side hobby or slash job, I guess if you wanna call it that, I do a little bit of order buying for people when I’m home. I put cattle together for people and do some stuff like that on the side just to kinda help make ends meet on the rodeo stuff. If it doesn’t involve a rope and steer or a horse, I feel like it shouldn’t involve me. What’s your favorite holiday? When you’re a little kid, your favorite holiday is Christ mas because you get stuff. But now that I’m 25, I just get underwear and a pat on the back – it’s not as fun any more. I would honestly say now that I’m older and I un derstand, I definitely like the Fourth of July. Just because I understand why we’re celebrating and also because a lot of times we’re going rodeoing or doing whatever. This year, we were at Belle Fourche, S.D., and we got to shoot off fireworks out there, and that was a lot of fun.

years, that has just gotten unreal with how good he has gotten. It’s hard to pick one guy. I wanna watch all the good ones. What’s one rodeo you want to win before your career is over? Well, with where I’m sitting at in the standings right now, I’m gonna say Pendleton, because if we can go ahead and get that, then that might change some stuff up for us. Pendleton is probably the coolest rodeo of all the rodeos we go to. What’s your favorite movie? John Wayne and the Cowboys. I’ve said that since I was around 10 years old, and I don’t think I should change it now. If I need motivation or anything, some people will watch Top Gun or something, but I’ll go watch John Wayne and the Cowboys because I don’t know how that doesn’t motivate you to be a man or be a cowboy. What’s your go-to restaurant before or after a rodeo? That’s a hard one, especially being a steer roper because nine times out of 10, we rope in the morning. It seems like everywhere we end up going is that local town’s nice restaurant. But if I had to pick one, I always say that we either end up going to Olive Garden or anywhere Italian. What’s the first vehicle you drove? My dad had a 1996 Dodge when I was around 14 to 16. I drove it one time while they were gone to the Allsups in

September 9, 2026 PRORODEO SPORTS NEWS DIGITAL MAGAZINE 29

MEET PRCA the

SCOTT DORENKAMP DIRECTOR OF CIRCUITS AND RODEO ADMINISTRATION

By Alex Dodd

R odeo runs in Scott Dorenkamp’s blood. His father, Fred Dorenkamp, rodeoed in the 1950s, competing in bareback riding, saddle bronc riding, steer wrestling and occasionally riding a bull. He also ran the Dorenkamp Rodeo Company. Scott followed in his father’s footsteps competing in PRORODEO, but after college, he started a career in teaching while still rodeoing on the weekends. After two decades of teaching, Dorenkamp decided it was time for a career change. “I taught school for twenty years and just couldn’t hack it anymore. I’d had enough,” Dorenkamp said. “I went and did something else for a year and a half, and the job came up at the PRCA. I applied and got it. I’ve been around rodeo my entire life, and mostly around the PRCA.” Dorenkamp started at the PRCA in 2019 as the stock

contractor coordinator. He wrapped up those responsi bilities this past year and became the director of circuits and rodeo administration. As a rodeo competitor, he never really thought about the possibility of working at the PRCA. But he’s learned a lot about what goes on behind the scenes since moving into the role. “You realize a lot of stuff has to be done that you never even had a clue was going on as a contestant,” Dorenkamp said. “There are deadlines and little day-to day things that have to happen to keep the organization going.” Throughout his career in education and his time at the PRCA, Dorenkamp has continued to compete on the weekends as a steer wrestler in the Mountain States Circuit. This summer, he competed at nearly two dozen

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Scott Dorenkamp celebrates at the Rooftop Rodeo. The Estes Park, Colorado rodeo is known as “The Rodeo with Altitude” as it is the rodeo held at the highest altitude in the United States. PRCA photo by Phill Kitts

“I’ve been around rodeo my entire life, and mostly around the PRCA.”

September 9, 2026 PRORODEO SPORTS NEWS DIGITAL MAGAZINE 31

MEET PRCA the

events mostly in his home state of Colorado, with his 27-year-old son, Wacey Dorenkamp. “It’s pretty awesome,” Dorenkamp said of the flexibility he has to still compete. “I’m an old dude and don’t do it nearly as much as I used to. Wacey (his son) is bulldogging a little bit, so I come to some of the rodeos he goes to here and there. I pick and choose. I’m old enough that I don’t have to go to the rodeos that I don’t want to go to.” Wacey Dorenkamp said he remembers when his dad took the job at the PRCA and said he’s in his element. “He was working on the railroad when I was in college down near me,” Wacey said. “Then the railroad said they were furloughing everybody and he happened to apply to the PRCA. I’ve never seen

him happier, I’ll put it that way. He absolutely loves his job.” Dorenkamp said his experience as a circuit cow boy helps in his current position but there’s a lot involved in running the PRCA Circuit System that he didn’t know prior to working at the PRCA. “I didn’t realize what was going on day-to-day and what had to be done as far as being the director of circuits,” Dorenkamp said. “People call and you tell them, ‘You have to have this and do this in order to make your circuit finals.’ There are criteria that have to be met and a lot of people don’t know things like that. For the NFR Open there are things that people have to do to be qualified and eligible. And I have to keep on top of all of that.”

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Scott Dorenkamp competes in steer wrestling, at the Rooftop Rodeo in Estes Park, Colorado. PRCA photo by Phill Kitts

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RANK 45 XTREME BULLS SERIES CONTINUES RAPID GROWTH JUST GETTING STARTED

BY ALEX DODD

34 PRORODEO SPORTS NEWS DIGITAL MAGAZINE September 9, 2026

Mike Moore acknowledges the crowd during the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas. Moore made history by winning the inaugural Xtreme Bulls Tour title in 2003. PRCA file photo

T he Rank 45 Xtreme Bulls Series has come a long way since its inception. What began with a pilot event in Ellensburg, Wash., in 2002 quickly spread across the PRORO DEO landscape. Over the last few years, that growth has exploded, with more than 50 events now taking place in nearly two dozen states. “The committees have done a fantastic job of promoting them. The stock contractors are bringing their best animals. The riders come there because of the money and energy,” Fred Boettcher, the PRCA Director of Xtreme Events, said. “It just keeps building. Nobody does a halfway job. “Everybody’s got their game face on. It’s like Monday Night Football. The whole world is watch ing. It’s the game of the week.” The first official PRCA Xtreme Bulls Tour launched in 2003 with 10 events, culminating in the inaugural Xtreme Bulls Championship. The tour sought to capture the energy and

excitement of bull riding, making it the center of attention during standalone events at established rodeos nation wide. The first year featured stops in San Antonio, Texas; Houston, Texas; Austin, Texas; Salt Lake City; Caldwell, Idaho; Ellensburg, Wash.; Omaha, Neb.; Waco, Texas; and Kissimmee, Fla.

Mike Moore of Kankakee, Ill., won the first Xtreme Bulls Tour championship, earning $68,590. As of Sept. 1, Noah Lee led the Rank 45 Xtreme Bulls Standings with $113,527, with key Division I events and the Pendleton Whisky Xtreme Bulls Finale still loom ing on the schedule. “When I started out, there were just a couple of big ones,” 2024 PRCA Bull Riding World Champion Josh Frost said. “Then you started seeing a lot of $10,000-added events. Now, it’s getting to where, in the Xtreme Bulls Tour, you can hang in there and make the NFR just by going to those events.

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“We’re pretty blessed to be able to ride for this kind of money. There’s just more and more pumping in every single year. We love the rodeos and committees that are putting (Xtreme Bulls events) on.” Two years ago, Cheyenne (Wyo.) Frontier Days, which had hosted a Professional Bull Riding event at night during the Daddy of ‘Em All for years, decided to host an Xtreme Bulls

during Frontier Nights instead. Cheyenne (Wyo.) Frontier Days Xtreme Bulls proved an immediate success with more than $100,000 in added money in each of its first two installments. It joined Bulls Night Out in Fort Worth, Texas, Ellensburg (Wash.) Xtreme Bulls and the Xtreme Bulls Finale as one of four Xtreme Bulls events paying out more than six figures.

The rapid increases in prize money and number of events have arguably made Xtreme Bulls events as im portant to a bull rider’s schedule as PRORODEO Playoff Series events. “They were kind of an addition when I first came around,” four-time Wrangler National Finals Rodeo qual ifier Clayton Sellars said. “Now they’re the big thing in between big rodeos. Everyone’s having fun, the crowd is

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