406 to the 405

A Montana day in 2015, the phone rings, shifting focus to the noise resounding in the air. Upon answering, a familiar voice comes through the speaker. After ending the call, hope and excitement surged inside him. Jason McEndoo was just offered a coaching position for the Oklahoma State University Cowboy Football team by Head Coach, Mike Gundy. While slightly different than most, this is the start of the McEndoo family’s journey to Oklahoma.

Just mere days after the offer from Gundy and McEndoo’s acceptance, Jason and his wife, Ruth, packed up all of their belongings with their four children. They soon headed east to Stillwater with everything but the kids’ market steers they sold that weekend at the local county fair.

Two natives of the northwestern United States, the McEndoo’s were leaving the area they all knew to be home. However, Jason and Ruth both agreed that wherever they may be, their involvement in two seemingly different worlds will remain constant: athletics and agriculture.

Before meeting Jason at Washington State University, Ruth grew up in the Pacific Northwest with deep roots in agriculture.

“I have always lived on a small farm or ranch, so I had never known anything different,” Ruth said. “I simply don’t know my life without agriculture in it.”

Further west, Jason was brought up in a sports world surrounded by a passion that very quickly became his own: football. From his days of high school football, to college, all the way to the Seattle Seahawks drafting him in the NFL, and later his many years spent coaching, Jason says football has always been a significant part of his life.

While at Washington State University, Jason and Ruth’s two worlds collided. After they married, their passions combined and each was exposed to the two essential playing fields they found were actually more similar than different, Jason said.

“That’s why when I got offered the chance to coach D-1 football in Stillwater it was a no-brainer,” Jason said. “OSU was a great chance for us to continue living in and raising our kids in a place that is very ag-centered but also provides competitive football.” each other and others, and certainly the importance of tradition and education.”

Ainslee (left) Luke, Ruth, Jason, Libby and Aubrey McEndoo on Gameday in Stillwater.

Once settled in Stillwater, it seemed that everything fell right into place, Ruth said.

“People in Oklahoma were very kind and open in the way they embraced and included us,” Ruth said. “They proved the ag community is deeply connected and made settling into a new state easy,” she added.

Luke (21), Libby (19), Aubrie (17), and Ainslee McEndoo (14), though just young children at the time, made Oklahoma home and seamlessly established their spots in both worlds as well. All four children got involved in showing market steers and playing sports at their local schools.

Every year since their move to Stillwater, the McEndoo children have exhibited steers at a number of shows across the state. They have also competed annually at the Oklahoma Youth Expo and, since its 2021 inception, the Cattlemen’s Congress.

Libby McEndoo showing her steer at the 2022 OYE.

Consistently being in the barn and traveling to these shows deepened their love for showing and the livestock sector of the agriculture industry, Libby said.

“It’s the most perfect thing to show with your family,” Libby said through a smile. “There are moments that happen and memories made in the barn that you cannot get anywhere else. The chores, the early mornings, the conversations, and the time spent together enjoying it all – those are the joys no one can ever take away from you that are so special,” she added.

Also in the livestock sector, Ruth found her role in the Diamond Hats organization, an all-female group where women from all parts of the state are united in an effort to elevate young people in Oklahoma agriculture. From helping with the annual Diamond Hats Gala or assisting in the OYE Sale of Champions Silent Auction, she has been engaged from the start and proudly continues to do so today.

“Having a foot in both industries is a part of our family I wouldn’t trade for anything,” Libby said. “For us to be able to be part of both communities from the beginning, whether it be at a show or being on the playing field, it’s definitely a special experience.”

In the years that came, the McEndoo family continued to pour into their passions, strengthening their identity as both a football and agriculture family, Ruth said.

“We absolutely, 100 percent see ourselves as an ag family that is fortunate enough to have football on the side,” Ruth said. “Ag is so important to the fiber of everything we talk about, how we treat

each other and others, and certainly the importance of tradition and education.”

Both worlds bring much to the lives of the McEndoo family, from priceless memories to life lessons, Libby said. That is why she and her siblings all decided to show cattle, get involved with their local FFA chapter, and join different athletic teams at school, she added.

Jump forward to the present day, and the McEndoo’s love has only grown as their involvement has broadened. Luke and Libby are both students at OSU, Luke studying agribusiness and Libby double majoring in animal science and agricultural communications. Luke is also on the football team in Stillwater, proudly playing for the OSU Cowboys as a fullback.

Still in high school and junior high, Aubrie and Ainslee are continuing to show market steers and are both involved in athletics. When not on the field cheerleading or playing on the volleyball court, the two can be found out in the barn or in Boone Pickens Stadium cheering on their dad and brother.

Aubrey McEndoo competing at the 2022 Oklahoma Youth Expo.

“I think the greatest thing about marrying the athletic and ag worlds is that they are really one in the same,” Jason said. “The work ethic, the determination, the grit and fortitude, the things you do when no one is looking… Whether it’s the gym or the barn, it’s all the work you put in behind the scenes that serves as the essence, the fabric of what makes people great.

“It’s why I love recruiting kids from ag backgrounds,” Jason added. “They have values, morals and know how to work. The intangible things that are difficult to put your hands on are what the 4-H and FFA kids have, and it makes them better when it comes to the game.”

Ainsley McEndoo following in her siblings footsteps and showing at the 2022 OYE.

Glimpsing to the future, the McEndoo’s said they have full intentions of staying active in their current pursuits of Oklahoma football and agriculture, together as a family.

Aubrie and Ainslee plan to continue showing steers until they graduate from high school and said their goals are to keep utilizing the advice passed down from their older siblings while building upon the lessons they are learning now.

Luke and Jason McEndoo playing the game they both love.

“No matter where our kids go, the information they are learning now and the experiences they are living will translate into whatever career path they choose in life, sports or agriculture,” Ruth said. “I am confident that the work put forth while in the barn or the discipline learned in the weight room will mold and shape them, and we are looking forward to watching and supporting them in the years to come.”

– Written by Emile Mittelstaedt