BY BRETT NIERENGARTEN
First-time Wrangler NFR qualifier Jesse Brown got to share the stage with two veterans last night as he, Blake Knowles and Dakota Eldridge were all 3.9 in the first round of the 2020 Wrangler NFR.
“I couldn’t ask for anything more than that right there,” Brown said.
JESSE BROWN’S RUN
Knowles, a fellow Oregon cowboy, said the momentum he got from Thursday night will be huge.
“Rodeo is like any other sport,” he said. “When you can get things rolling, it brings confidence and confidence elevates you to do your best every night.”
BLAKE KNOWLES’ RUN
Eldridge, a mainstay at the NFR, was on a different horse than usual. He was on Clayton Hass’ horse Benz, leaving behind his good horse Rusty. Prior to Thursday night, Eldridge had ridden Rusty for 59 of his 60 NFR rounds. The only time he didn’t was Round 10 of last year’s NFR, when he was on Benz.
“I had a lot of confidence in him (Benz) going tonight, I rode him a lot through this year,” he said. “I’ll stick with him for 10 rounds and see how it goes.”
DAKOTA ELDRIDGE’S RUN
Stetson Jorgensen and Jacob Edler were right there with the trio at the top as both stopped the clock at 4 seconds flat.
NFR STEER WRESTLING RESULTS
First Round: 1. (tie) Jesse Brown, Dakota Eldridge and Blake Knowles, 3.9 seconds, $20,872 each; 4. (tie) Stetson Jorgensen and Jacob Edler, 4.0, $8,885 each; 6. Jace Melvin, 4.1, $4,231.
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