NMJC (M-Rodeo) Finishes Day 1 in Casper

The Thunderbirds men's rodeo team competed at the first day of the College National Finals Rodeo Monday, June 15. 

Treyden Gonzales got things going in Casper with a 11.7 second run in the tie down roping. He sits in 13th place after the first go. Gonzales will be back in the arena Tuesday morning at 8 a.m. MDT and in the performance Tuesday night at 7 p.m. MDT. 

"Treyden got by a really tough calf right there," NMJC men's rodeo head coach Stewy Kinley said. "The only thing he needs to do differently is draw better! There's a lot of really good calves in there so hopefully he'll be able to do that in the second round. Everything else looked sharp and Trey hasn't let the hype of this rodeo phase him one single bit."

Team Roper Teagan Taylor-Roukema and Jacob Walters finished the first go round with an 8.0 run. They received +5 due to roping one leg and are in 29th place with a time of 13.0. They will rope again in the second go at 1 p.m. MDT in the 14th event of the morning slack. 

"An unfortunate situation for these guys but they're not out of it by any means," Coach Kinley said. "Usually if you can get by a bad one, you'll draw good in the other rounds but I'm not counting on that with this set of steers. They've got work to do and I'm not going to make many excuses for them. They'll show everybody they can claw their way back into this rodeo by the time it's all said and done. If anyone can do it, it's them!"

All performances of the CNFR starting Tuesday through Saturday, June 16-20th, 2026, will air on ESPN+.

ESPN+ is available by using the ESPN app, and also available on your computer.

12 teams/individuals make it to the CNFR Short Round with the national champion being the top team roping pair or tie down roper with the best four-round average. The final takes place Saturday, June 20 at 7 p.m. MDT inside the Ford Wyoming Center.

To see the women's CNFR recap click here.

The draw is here and the schedule is here. Results will be posted after each go round here.

Stay up to date on the T-Birds journey in Casper at the CNFR by following the NMJC rodeo socials on Facebook (New Mexico Jr. College Rodeo) and Instagram @nmjc_rodeo.