Arena to Capitol: Rodeo club advocates for sport

The Utah State University Rodeo Club recently saddled up for an important trip to the Utah State Capitol, joining other collegiate teams to advocate for state support of college rodeo. Their presence was more than symbolic — it was a strategic step toward securing funding for a sport that demands significant resources. At the same time, the team has its eyes set on qualifying for nationals, pushing through a tightly packed season of high-stakes competition.

“Starting last year, the Snow College Rodeo Team got us hooked up with a deal that’s funding through the state, and so all the colleges that have rodeo teams in the State of Utah all got to go down to the Capitol building and just meet with some people there in the Congress and just kind of represent college rodeo for the State of Utah,” said Payt Goodey, third-year student and vice president of the team.

“They actually made an exception for us — hats aren’t allowed on the center floor, but they bypassed that rule for us so we could wear our cowboy hat on the floor,” Goodey said. “We also wore the vests that we’re required to wear with the Utah State logo on it.”

The Capitol presentations are part of a broader push by Utah’s rodeo programs to secure funding through the state.

“Last year, we got about $15,000 from the state, which is a big difference for us as a club sport,” Goodey said. “We’ve got fuel and hotels and entry fees and stalls and trucks and trailers and horses, so there’s a million different expenses that we have to cover. The more that the club can cover, the less it is out of the pocket of the students.”

While the Snow College coach handled the official presentation, representatives from each school stood front and center.

“Three of us were from Utah State: the men’s captain, women’s captain and myself,” Goodey said. “We set a lot of big goals we want to see happen with the Utah State rodeo. We want to be able to fund our own truck and trailer — our own boarding facility.”

The horses of the Utah State University’s equestrian team stand in a line during practice on April 7.

Goodey said setting these goals helps the students so they don’t have to pay an extreme amount of money to keep their horses nearby.

Back in the arena, the team is grinding through their season with a clear goal: qualifying for the College National Finals Rodeo, or CNFR.

“We really only have 10 rodeos a year or season to secure a spot,” said Grace Wittstrom, women’s rodeo team captain. “We’re just making every rodeo count.”

Wittstrom, third-year student majoring in agricultural systems technology and agribusiness, never planned to do college rodeo until she brought her horse to school and got talked into joining by teammates.

“It’s the best decision I ever made — just the fulfillment I get of traveling with my team, and it’s just awesome,” she said. “It’s so much fun.”

As captain, Wittstrom emphasizes mental preparation as much as physical training.

“Rodeo is 80% mindset and 20% skill,” she said. Visualization is a big part of Wittstrom’s routine. “I visualize that whole process of what it feels like, what the sky looks like, what my calf looks like.”

The team’s mental game is a shared priority. Weekly team podcasts focus on rodeo and mental toughness, while practice sessions often stimulate competition pressure.

“So, a lot of times what our coaches do is [say], ‘Hey, you’ve got to catch the first three in a row, and you guys will get soda, or if you miss or you don’t do this right, you have to go do sprints or push-ups,” Wittstrom said. It’s about “getting those nerves up and replicating those feelings of competition.”

Standout performances this season include first-year Maddie Rockwell and Brooke Morris, who’s found early success in barrel racing.

“We’re just really proud of all of our teammates but specifically the young ones who just joined our program,” Wittstrom said. “Everything’s new and exciting, so the fact that they could step up their first year and really be a competitive aspect of our team has been really impressive.”

Rodeo at USU isn’t just an individual pursuit — it’s a tight-knit team.

“Compared to other teams, we’re relatively small, but with that, there’s kind of this intimacy within our relationships or within our team that we get a lot of one-on-one mentorship and a lot of stuff that you wouldn’t get from other rodeo teams.,” Wittstrom said. “Our team has over doubled in size in the past couple of years, and I think that we’re going to continue doing that.”

That growth includes community visibility. Each fall, USU hosts its own rodeo, a longstanding tradition that connects the team with the local community and serves as a showcase for their skills and commitment.

According to Wittstrom, whether in the arena or at the Capitol, the USU rodeo team is proving it’s a force to be reckoned with — determined, disciplined and not afraid to make their voices heard.