Team USA Wolves Stumble Out of the Gate on First Night of Global Cup
By: Darci Miller
ARLINGTON, Texas – As the Team USA Wolves gathered in their locker room at AT&T Stadium ahead of the first night of competition of the 2020 WinStar World Casino and Resort Global Cup USA, presented by Monster Energy, head coach Ted Nuce, assistant coach Bo Vocu and honorary team captain Ryan Dirteater stood to give a final motivational speech.
“They said we’re the best native bull riders the world has ever seen,” Colten Jesse said. “And that kind of struck a nerve with me, because I look at myself as potentially going to be one of the greats the world has ever seen. So to kind of have somebody already see that in you, it kind of fired me up and just makes me want to do my best for myself, my team, my people, and my country.”
While the Wolves stumbled out of the gate in Arlington, going just 1-for-8 through two rounds of competition, Jesse was the one to get a score on the board.
In Round 1, Jesse hung onto Harold’s Genuine Risk for 85.25 points in a gritty – if not the most aesthetically pleasing – performance.
“That bull, I’d only seen a video of him,” Jesse said. “And it turns out a buddy of mine owned him. I’d probably seen him before and didn’t realize it. He’s a good one. Felt good right out of there, and felt really sharp, actually, and then he kind of worked me out of there. Or I let myself get worked out of there, and was kind of hanging off the side at the end.
“(PBR Director of Livestock) Cody Lambert was here in the locker room earlier, and was like, ‘The first rule of bull riding – the only rule, really – is staying on.’”
It was a performance that impressed Nuce on what was otherwise a disappointing evening.
“Colten’s been kind of riding really well,” Nuce said. “He’s really on top of his mental game, and you’ve got to have that. You’ve really got to believe in yourself. Your confidence has to be high. If you don’t have those two things, then your chances of making a qualified ride are slim to none.”
While Nuce knows his team is capable of better, he was pragmatic about their performance.
“It’s a pretty tough night for us. We only got one bull rode, but that’s bull riding,” he said. “And that’s why you have to be so mentally tough to do this game, is because there’s nights like this, and the only way you’re going to bounce back is if you keep believing in yourself, and you believe that you’re supposed to be here, and you are the best.”
Even amidst all the buckoffs, Nuce was able to find positives in the effort his riders put out, naming Dakota Louis as one in particular that he was particularly proud of.
“I was really impressed with Dakota Louis on his first bull (BootDaddy.com),” Nuce said. “He put out a lot of effort on a bull that nobody really wanted to get on, and he almost rode him. I was really impressed with that. And everybody put out the effort. It just didn’t work tonight. So we’ll go back to the drawing board, and try to put it together for tomorrow.”
Jesse has drawn Crossfired (3-1, UTB) for Round 3.
Fans can watch the conclusion of the Global Cup on CBS Sports Network at 8 p.m. ET and on RidePass at 2:45 p.m. ET.
Jesse’s ride may have been rough, but he was determined to make it to the 8-second whistle at all costs.
“It was instinct, first, because that’s my job,” he said. “This is what I love to do. And then for my country and for my team also. I’m dang sure not going to step out there and half-ass anything for my team.”
The Wolves hope to improve on a third-place finish in 2019, but currently sit in sixth place. However, Team Mexico (89 points), Team Brazil (90.25 points) and Team Australia (169.75 points) are all well within striking distance.
With potentially two more bulls ahead of him, Jesse is ready to get back to work.
“I was obviously glad to get the ride down, but I was also asking myself for more, because I know I could’ve rode that bull better,” Jesse said. “It was a sense of relief, but we’ve got to keep pushing, first and foremost. Hopefully it builds a little bit of momentum for everybody else. I’m ready for the next one, and I hope these guys are, too.”
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