Montana State University (Bozeman, Mont.)

The Montana State Rodeo team was founded as a student club by four men intending to put on a contest for fellow MSC students in 1947. Eugene Pederson, Stuart Hauptmann, Bob Chambers, and Ralph Nichols took their ideas to the college agriculture (or "Little International) club and got $100 in sponsorship money. Those funds went towards repairing the Fairgrounds plumbing to make it usable for the public. Donations from stock contractor Rich Richter and dude rancher Buck Chenny gave the group enough animals to outfit the rodeo and student committee members took the roles of announcer, clowns, and pickup men. The events consisted of the standards of the day: bareback and saddle bronc riding, wild cow milking, calf roping, steer wrestling, and a cowgirl cutting horse contest. Despite the fact that there were no qualified rides or great ability shown, the enthusiasm of the small crowd set in motion plans to continue what would become a Montana State tradition. The next year hosted the first intercollegiate rodeo in the West with the inclusion of students from the University of Montana and North Dakota Teachers College. MSU Rodeo's next big break came with the construction of the Fieldhouse and a new indoor rodeo arena. The rise of collegiate rodeo allowed the college to host the CNFR for 24 years. In 1981, the team transferred from the Agriculture Department to Athletics. Overall, Montana State Rodeo has combined for six national team titles and thirty-one individual championships.