BY BRETT NIERENGARTEN
Caddo Lewallen was the 2004 Tie-Down Rookie of the Year, but never broke through to the sport’s biggest stage.
At age 37, he finally has.
Lewallen, who returned to the rodeo trail four years ago after a five-year hiatus, is going to his first career Wrangler NFR in 2020.
“If you’re gonna rodeo, you be all in,” he said. “Do everything you possibly can while you’re young and take advantage of every situation someone offers you.”
LeWallen, who won about $47,000 this year, got over half of that RFD-TV’s The American, where a second place finish lead to a $25,000 payday.
CADDO LEWALLEN - 8.25 IN THE SEMIFINALS OF THE AMERICAN
Lewallen’s other big payday of 2020 came in San Antonio, where he was sixth overall. Lewallen placed on three of his last four runs, two of them 8 seconds or faster, to win about $9,000 at the rodeo.
Lewallen’s only rodeo win of 2020 came at a Big Timber Weekly PRCA Rodeo in Montana on Aug. 26, but he comes into the Wrangler NFR in good form, having won $1,335 against the best of the best at the ProRodeo Tour Finale.
The Oklahoma cowboy’s best finish since returning to rodeo full time in 2016 is 39th in 2019. He won just over $40,000 that year.
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