Wrestling for a World Champion Title

An Interview with Jacob Talley

Rodeo Life: You are entering the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo (WNFR) in first place in the World Standings, how are you preparing for your runs at the Thomas and Mack Center this coming December? What would it mean to win your first World Champion title? What is your ultimate goal for your rodeo career?

Jacob Talley: I'm going to do what I've done the last handful of years: fine tune little things, do a lot of dummy work, practice, and stay in the gym every day. I treat it just like any other professional sport. I'm going to be working at it all day, every day until we get ready to leave and go out there.

That's why we do what we do. That's why we travel all year and go all year. That’s been the game plan from day one.

I would say right now, my ultimate goal is to get that first gold buckle.

RL: You have a decade of PRCA competing experience under your belt, what is the greatest thing you’ve learned in your time being a member of the PRCA?

JT: It's all been a learning curve. It's a lot different than other sports. You don't have a coach telling you when to be at practice, you don't have somebody to help you prepare, there is no set time to be at the gym or do anything, so you learn a lot of discipline. Because if you don't practice, you're not going to accomplish what you want to, but nobody is there telling you, “Hey, you better go out there and do it.”

RL: How has rodeo changed over the past ten or so years? What do you foresee the future of rodeo looking like?

JT: For the most part, it's the same. It’s growing more. There are more guys coming around and the money and stages are getting a little bit bigger.

I hope it keeps growing. It's hard knowing with everything going on. You see all these bigger rodeos taking place, rodeos like the American and San Antonio, being able to add money toward making the WNFR. It makes it tough. If a guy has a strong year and doesn't make the NFR, he doesn't even break even. The only time you make money is if you are making the WNFR. So, it would be nice for guys to be able to rodeo for a living and if they have a hard year or get hurt still be able to go the next year and not have to go get a job for a year and a half just to catch back up.

RL: How has dealing with COVD-19 changed the course of rodeo over the past two years? Was this year more manageable than last year?

JT: The course of rodeo in 2020 was a lot different. We were going to little rodeos that we would normally never go to just to try and go somewhere. Surprisingly, it's been fairly normal this year. All the rodeos that we normally go to we've got to go to and there's fans in the stands. There haven’t been very many restrictions that we've seen. It's been pretty awesome to get back to a little bit of normality.

RL: As more of a veteran of the sport, have you taken any rookies under your wing? What advice do you/would you give someone just starting out in rodeo?

JT: Not really. I traveled this year with Luke Branquinho, Justin Shaffer, and Tucker Allen. Tucker was the youngest one in our truck. He's gone rodeoing a couple years with Luke. Tucker's a younger guy, but he has experience and he's been traveling Luke, so he knows what's going on.

My main advice would be to be disciplined, practice, and put the effort in. Don't just show up to the rodeo on the weekend and expect to win money, you have to work at it. And my next advice would be don't give up or quit. It's tough to get out there on the road and win money and if you get in a slump or have a bad week, it builds up quickly, so my advice is to just keep going and be persistent.

RL: What is the best advice you’ve received about competing and living the rodeo lifestyle?

JT: From the very get go, when I went to Mr. Tom Carney’s bulldogging school, he said that I can accomplish anything I want it just depends on how much I'm going to put into it. I'm somebody that doesn’t like to lose. I really want to be the best at whatever I'm doing. So, if I can outwork everybody else that's what I’m going to do. I feel like that is how I am where I am at today.

RL: You have some huge career rodeo wins under your belt, especially this year winning The American, are there any rodeos outside of the WNFR that you hope to win in your career?

JT: Reno is one I want to win. I’ve finished everywhere from second through eighth in the average there over the years, but I've never got the win. I love all the big indoor rodeos in the winter. I love going to San Antonio and Austin. I'd say San Antonio and Reno would be the two that I'd like to win next.

RL: What has been your favorite rodeo to date and why?

JT: Excluding the WNFR, I would have to say the American. I like the big stages and stadiums. I like the pressure. So, I'd have to say the American. Obviously the WNFR too, but as far as rodeo outside of the WNFR, it would be the American.

RL: Your younger brother also competes as a Steer Wrestler; do you guys compete against each other often? Do you guys help each other out or is there a healthy dose of competition?

JT: We did a little bit. He has a family and doesn't go too far from home. If we go somewhere close to home, we will. It's been a while since he’s been out on the road. We're both pretty competitive. We both go to the gym together when I'm at home. He helps me practice and it's good having family like that in your corner.

RL: You’ve had a few notable injuries in your career. How do you deal with injuries? What is the recovery process like? What keeping you getting back up on the horse?

Wrestling for a World Champion Title

JT: I went to physical therapy every day when I got hurt. I've only had one surgery. But recovering is just like practice: it’s about being persistent. I really worked on coming back stronger and I came back faster. You can either sit there on the couch and wait to heal, or you can work at it and be back faster, stronger, and ready to go. I treat it like practice just like for my rodeo career. Like anything else, I'm going to work to try to come back stronger.

Just wanting to win and being competitive keeps me coming back. I love the sport. I love rodeo in general. I’ve had big wins but I haven’t accomplished everything I want to quite yet so I’m just going to keep working until we do.

RL: How hard was it to choose between pursuing a career in football vs. rodeo? Do you still get out on the field when you aren’t dominating in the arena?

JT: It wasn’t hard, I didn't play college football or anything, I just played high school football. I had some pretty extreme coaches that coached in the NFL and they played the NFL in college. I love sports and I love playing football but, I wanted to try something different. Before I made my decision whether I was going to pursue football or going to pursue rodeo, I knew rodeo was something wanted to try. I tried it then I fell in love with it. I feel like you're in a little bit more control of how much you win and lose instead of relying on ten other people. In rodeo, you still have to have a hazer, but you're in a lot more control.

No, that time in life is in the past. I've stayed working out in the gym and that's about as close as I get to anything with football anymore is watching it and staying in the gym like we used to. My favorite college team I would have to say is LSU and my favorite NFL team is the Saints – I like to keep it in my hometown.

RL: After growing up around horses and rodeo what finally piqued your interest in trying bulldogging?

JT: My dad rodeoed a little bit when I was growing up. But my football coaches were really strict, they didn't want us doing anything but football, so I didn't want to try it when I was playing football. My dad steer wrestled, so I knew that was the event I want to do. Plus size wise, that's what I needed to do. I’m a good size for bulldogging and not anything else.

RL: Is there anything about Steer Wrestling or the rodeo industry that you would like people to know?

JT: I think a lot of people outside of rodeo get a bad taste in their mouth about rodeo regarding how the animals are treated and how everybody is towards their animals. But people don’t see day in and day out how we interact with our animals. These animals are not just tools to us, they are a part of our family. They make our living, but there's a bond that we have with these animals. People just don't understand that. We don't use them and throw them out or treat them badly. When you're hauling up and down the road, you form a special bond with these animals and they become your family too. I think there are misconceptions on how rodeo animals are treated a lot.

PRCA Photo by Clay Guardipee