Standings Shuffle: Heeler Jake Long Leaps to Sixth
Jake Long had a productive two weeks, that’s for sure.
The 37-year-old team roping heeler earned more than $20,000 between April 19 and May 3. He was one of four ProRodeo competitors to jump 20 spots in the PRCA | RAM World Standings over that two-week period.
Long, roping with header Clay Tryan, earned $16,159 between Guymon (Okla.) Pioneer Days Rodeo and the San Angelo (Texas) Rodeo. The two won the average and $10,862 each at San Angelo.
Long won another $4,220 at the Clovis (Calif.) Rodeo while roping with Jr. Dees. Long rocketed from 27th in the standings to seventh.
“Man, I think we just had some good luck, drew some good steers and were roping good,” said Long, originally from Kansas but who lives in Morgan Mill, Texas. “Everything is going well.”
Long is a 10-time National Finals Rodeo qualifier, including making the last seven. A run like he’s had recently could go a long way toward making it eight in a row.
“I think it was huge (winning that much cash),” he said. “We’d had a pretty slow turn of it through the winter. Anytime you don’t have to play catchup when rodeos are going good it takes the pressure off so you don’t have to get on such a roll as the summer hits.”
Having a slate of rodeos to choose from had Long enjoying the travel.
“It has been nice,” he said. “It’s fun to get back to fans in the stands where we’ve been going. There’s a sense of normalcy, especially between San Angelo and Clovis, flying back and forth felt like rodeoing again. It’s been a while.”
Long was one of 45 cowboys to move up within the Top 15 in the standings over the last two weeks. Below is a look at the other 44 movers.
20 spots
• Boudreaux Campbell jumped from 34th to 14th in bull riding.
• Jake Long jumped from 27th to seventh in team roping heeling.
• Clay Tryan rocketed from 27th to seventh in team roping heading.
19 spots
• Dawson Hay shot up rom 25th to sixth in saddle bronc riding.
17 spots
• Reo Lohse broke into the Top 15 by jumping from 32nd to 15th in steer roping.
13 spots
• Cade Staton leapfrogged from 24th to 11th in steer wrestling.
12 spots
• Chet Johnson jumped from 23rd to 11th in saddle bronc riding.
11 spots
• Westyn Hughes climbed from 16th to fifth in tie-down roping.
10 spots
• Cody Snow jumped from 21st to 11th in team roping heading.
Nine Spots
• Caleb Bennett jumped from 20th to 11th in bareback riding.
• Zach Hibler climbed from 21st to 12th in bareback riding.
• Cooper Martin moved from 19th to 10th in tie-down roping.
Eight spots
• Laramie Mosley jumped from 13th to fifth in bull riding.
Six spots
• Kaleb Driggers moved from 19th to 13th in team roping heading.
• Levi Lord jumped from 21st to crack the Top 15 in the No. 15 spot in team roping heeling.
Four spots
• Trey Benton III moved from 10th to sixth in bull riding.
• Jamie Howlett moved from 18th to 14th in bareback riding.
• Riley Minor climbed from seventh to third in team roping heading.
• Corey Ross jumped from 14th to 10th in steer roping.
• Kolby Wanchuk climbed from ninth to fifth in saddle bronc riding.
Three spots
• Cole Davison climbed from 17th to 14th in team roping heeling.
• Nick Guy climbed from ninth to sixth in steer wrestling.
• Haven Meged moved from 10th to seventh in tie-down roping.
• Rocky Patterson climbed from sixth to third in steer roping.
• Clint Robinson moved from 18th to 15th in tie-down roping.
Two spots
• Roger Branch moved from 16th to 14th in steer roping.
• Dakota Eldridge cracked the Top 15 by moving from 17th to 15th in steer wrestling.
• Brady Minor climbed from seventh to fifth in team roping heeling.
• Shane O’Connell moved from 10th to eighth in bareback riding.
• Garrett Shadbolt moved from eighth to sixth in bareback riding.
• Caleb Smidt climbed from fifth to third in tie-down roping.
One spot
• Clayton Biglow climbed to fourth in bareback riding.
• Parker Breding moved to 11th in bull riding.
• Defending world champion steer wrestler Jacob Edler moved to seventh.
• Josh Frost moved to fourth in bull riding.
• Roscoe Jarboe rose to eighth in bull riding.
• Sage Kimzey is up to second in bull riding.
• Tate Kirchenschlager broke into the Top 15, up from 18th in team roping heading.
• Will Lummus moved to fifth in steer wrestling.
• Junior Nogeuira moved up to fourth in team roping heeling.
• Jake Orman moved up to 14th in team roping heading.
• Scott Snedecor moved up from ninth in steer roping.
• Jess Tierney moved up from third in steer roping.
• Jake Watson moved up to 12th in saddle bronc riding.
Cowboys who’ve climbed into 16th are one spot away from being on the inside looking out. Below is a look at who climbed into the 16th spot recently.
On the bubble
• Chet Herren moved up from 19th and is $25 away from the Top 15 in steer roping.
• Steer wrestler Eli Lord moved up from 18th and is $1,462 away from breaking into the Top 15.
• Sage Newman rocketed 26 spots from 42nd and is $1,512 away from the Top 15 in saddle bronc riding.
• Nelson Wyatt climbed from 22nd and is $878 away from cracking into the Top 15 in team roping heading.
Courtesy of PRCA