Oklahoma Freedom Gets ‘Gut Check’ and Roars Back to Life at PBR Team Series Championship
By: Justin Felisko
LAS VEGAS – Derek Kolbaba sat back in his chair inside the Oklahoma Freedom locker room around 11 p.m. with a big grin across his face.
“I guess we had to take the long, scenic way about it, but it all worked out,” Kolbaba said.
The Freedom bounced back from it’s 264.75-176 loss to No. 8 Nashville on Friday night to defeat No. 6 Missouri and No. 7 Kansas City in the Last Chance Game with an outstanding 4-for-5 performance at T-Mobile Arena to advance to Round 2 on Saturday night.
Kolbaba said the Oklahoma locker room was not panicked after being upset by the Stampede, but they certainly were not thrilled with the situation.
“There was a little bit of pent-up frustration, but everyone shrugged it off and knew there was another job to be done and what happened before doesn’t matter a damn now,” Kolbaba said. “We had to go into it with the same mentality and get them rode. I thought we did a good job doing that.”
Oklahoma was not good in the Last Chance Game. Rather, they were close to great as they ripped off four consecutive rides in the team’s best performance of the season to date.
The Freedom did not waste any time in the Last Chance Game with Trevor Kastner (91.5 points on Alakazam) and Kolbaba (91.25 points on Fearful) putting up back-to-back, 90-point rides. Oklahoma simply never looked back. Briggs Madsen then tagged on an additional 87.25 points aboard Uncle Gangster, and Eli Vastbinder chipped in an additional 89.5 points on Homer with the victory already clinched.
“Our motor was running, that is for sure,” Kolbaba said. “It was dang sure a gut check after our first one against Nashville. Either you pull it out of your ass, or you are going to go home and we really didn’t want to go home.”
Oklahoma Freedom assistant coach Kody Lostroh was thrilled with his team’s resiliency on Friday night in Las Vegas.
From day one, Lostroh and the Freedom leadership group have been preaching a similar message to its riders.
“One thing we have been preaching since day one is you are never out of the fight,” Lostroh explained. “It doesn’t matter if we have already lost the game or won the game, we still approach every bull with an all or nothing mentality. Sometimes there are falters here and there, and the guys screw up.
“The bottom line is tonight, losing that first game lit a fire under them where they were determined to not let it happen twice. We saw stuff tonight in the loser’s game that I expected to see all season. Golly, it makes me love this sport so much.”
The only adversity the Freedom faced in the Last Chance Game was an early deficit to Missouri after Adriano Salgado began the three-team battle with an 88.75-point effort on Brusta.
Kastner, who was subbed into the Last Chance Game for Casey Roberts, was unfazed and easily converted on Alakazam.
Lostroh and Kolbaba both expressed how much confidence they had in Kastner for that moment too.
“Trevor is a heavy hitter who has flown under the radar and, unfortunately, we didn’t get to use him all season because he was doing so well in the PRCA. We just let him pursue that goal. He is near the end of his career, but he is still just as good as ever.”
Kolbaba added, “There was no doubt in my mind. That is a veteran move and he shows up and gets it done day in and day out. That is why he has the records he does, and it was no surprise to see him get it done tonight.”
Kastner had not competed for Oklahoma since the season-opener in Cheyenne, Wyoming, three months ago, but the Freedom coaching staff still wanted Kastner in Vegas for the playoffs now that the PRCA regular season was over.
The 34-year-old had a resurgent season rodeoing, and Kastner qualified for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo as the No. 6 rider in the PRCA bull riding standings after winning six rodeos per ProRodeo.com.
“I have kind of seen every situation,” Kastner said. “It wasn’t too bad, but it was good, but we knew we could bounce back. Tomorrow, we have to do the same thing, stay on.”
The ante certainly will be higher on Saturday night when the No. 3 Freedom take on the No. 4 Carolina Cowboys (11 p.m. ET CBS Sports Network).
Carolina has two World Champions in Cooper Davis and Daylon Swearingen, as well as World Finals event winners Boudreaux Campbell and Marco Eguchi.
Does that matter to Oklahoma?
“We just have to have the same mentality that we had 10 minutes ago (for the Last Chance Game),” Kolbaba said. “It doesn’t matter who we are going up against. We just have to ride what we have underneath us. The numbers will come. It seems like each and every one of these guys here has the ability to be 90 plus and that is what we have to focus on.”
Lostroh agreed.
“The message never changes,” Lostroh said. “We don’t care what those other teams do. We really don’t. what they do and what we do are totally separate, and we will let the judges determine who the winner is, but our plan is to ride five every time.”
However, there may have been another development on Friday night for the Freedom.
Lostroh believes that maybe Oklahoma’s slow start on Friday night may actually be a good thing as the team attempts to win the inaugural PBR Team Series Championship.
The fire was lit, and now it is burning hot.
“It sure could have been a blessing in disguise,” Lostroh concluded. “I sure definitely prefer to not have it go that way. But there is always something a guy can take out of it. You can let it beat you down and discourage you or you can use it as a springboard to something better.
“Those guys really take that to heart, the mentality going forward is even fiercer than when it started. I love it.”
Follow Justin Felisko on Twitter @jfelisko
Photo courtesy of Todd Brewer/Bull Stock Media
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