Team Wrangler Ends on High Note With Win Over Team Yeti, Finishing No. 4 in Division A
By: Darci Miller
PUEBLO, Colo. – There was no playoff spot on the line for Team Wrangler when it took on Team YETI in its final game at the Monster Energy Team Challenge, presented by U.S. Border Patrol.
With each team owning a 1-4 record, the Top 3 positions in Division A were already out of reach.
But what was on the line was pride.
After going 0-3 on the first weekend of competition, Team Wrangler battled its way back in by winning two of its final three games.
Team Wrangler capped off its Monster Energy Team Challenge run with a 176.25-88.25 victory over Team YETI (1-5).
Wrangler concludes with a 2-4 record and an aggregate total of 863.25 points.
The aggregate total points to the strength of Team Wrangler, despite its win-loss record.
Following Team Union Home Mortgage’s loss to Team Can-Am in the final game of Division A, Wrangler’s higher aggregate (863.25 to UHM’s 771.5) bumped it Wrangler to a final division ranking of No. 4.
When all was said and done, despite playing its final game to avoid the basement of the division, Wrangler ended up just one spot out of the playoffs.
“I feel like we kind of got off to a rocky start, and it was just kind of tough from the get-go,” Team Captain Colten Jesse told CBS Sports Network’s Kate Harrison. “But the team, we’ve got a tough set of guys, and none of them ever quit.”
The Monster Energy Team Challenge features 12 teams, and two Divisions (A & B). The Top 3 teams in each division, based upon win-loss record, qualify for Championship Weekend and a single-elimination tournament in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, on July 10-12 in front of fans.
Division B competition will be held on June 19-21 and 26-28.
On Sunday, Wrangler got on the board first when Roscoe Jarboe rode Jungle Can Do for 87.25 points. That lead lasted only until the very next ride, when Team YETI captain Derek Kolbaba rode Acting Crazy for 88.25 points.
Jesse then clinched the win for Wrangler early in Round 2, riding Short Pop for a crucial 89 points.
“Hey, that was a heck of a ride right there! Where has that been?!” two-time World Champion Justin McBride exclaimed on CBS Sports Network. “Short Pop takes off at the last second, but this is rank right here. That’s not a good ride on an easy one that everybody’s going to ride. You could hear everybody on the back of the chutes. Whether you’re on his team or not, that fires you up early in the morning.”
Wrangler was largely carried by strong performances from Jesse, the No. 8-ranked rider in the world standings, and Jarboe.
Prior to suiting up at the Pendleton Whisky Let ‘Er Buck Saloon at the South Point Arena, Jarboe’s PBR experience came primarily before 2017, when he was a regular on the Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour and in PBR Canada. Since then, he’s been competing on the rodeo circuit, qualifying for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo three times (2016-18), and is currently ranked No. 34 in the PRCA world standings.
In Las Vegas, Jarboe is ranked No. 2 in the race for the Built Ford Tough MVP award, going 5-for-12 for 434.75 points. He trails only world No. 1 Jose Vitor Leme, who went 9-for-12 and 779.5 points for the undefeated and Division A-winning Team Cooper Tires.
Jesse, meanwhile, ranks No. 5 in the MVP race after going 4-for-12 for 347 points.
Following its 0-3 start to competition, General Manager Ross Coleman made a roster change for Team Wrangler, dropping Joseph McConnel after he suffered a knee injury and bringing on Brazilian youngster Leandro Machado.
Rounding out Wrangler’s roster was world No. 34 Brennon Eldred, who went 1-for-7 after suffering a rib injury in the first game.
“I’m so proud to be on this team,” Eldred told Harrison. “I didn’t contribute much to it, if any, so my hat’s off to these guys for cowboying up and getting the job done. And there’s not any other team I’d rather be on. I just wish I could’ve picked up a little more slack. But it is what it is.”
Wrangler fell to Union Home Mortgage, Can-Am and Team Las Vegas in the first weekend of competition, and Cooper Tires on Saturday night. However, two wins against YETI – the first, on Friday night, a narrow 259.5-254.25 victory – ended Wrangler’s run on a high note.
“I feel like we capped it off pretty good,” Jesse said. “I’m not pleased with it, but can’t complain.”
Professional Bull Riders – Team Challenge – Game 16
Las Vegas, NV, 2020
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. Colten Jesse, 0-89-89.00
2. Derek Kolbaba, 88.25-0-88.25
3. Roscoe Jarboe, 87.25-0-87.25
Cole Melancon, 0-0-0.00
Brennon Eldred, 0-0-0.00
Eli Vastbinder, 0-0-0.00
Leandro Machado, 0-0-0.00
Jordan Spears, 0-0-0.00
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