Brodie Godsey carried more than his own hopes into the arena at the 30th annual WRCA World Championship Ranch Rodeo. Under the bright lights in Amarillo, Texas, the 14-year-old carried the winning tradition of AgReserves’ Sooner Cattle Company (SCC) and a family legacy that runs deep in our ranching roots. Adding a chapter to a story generations in the making, Brodie helped the Hat Creek/Sooner Cattle team ride away with the 2025 Youth World Championship.
“It was a surprise,” said Brodie of winning the youth title. “I just knew that we had to go into it trying our best and doing what we can. It was special that we did end up winning it.”
The event, held Nov. 13-16, 2025, brought together top ranch teams from seven states. Saturday featured the fifth annual Youth World Championship Ranch Rodeo, where the next generation of cowhands took center stage.
Competing alongside Hat Creek’s Kasen Brewer, Branch Horn, Tripp Carney, and Rowdy Stierwalt, Brodie helped the Hat Creek/Sooner Cattle team excel in five challenging events: branding, sorting, doctoring, trailer loading, and the wild steer race. Their victory in the wild steer race helped seal the overall championship. Rimrock Ranch finished as Reserve Champion, with Twin Wells Ranch taking third place.
“There’s a whole lot of pride there,” said Brodie’s father, Will Godsey, a Cattle Unit Manager at SCC. “Very proud of all of those kids who compete.”
According to the rules, the combined age of each youth team’s five members must be under 65. The event not only celebrates the bright future of young cowhands such as Brodie but also highlights the traditions, skills, and values that define ranch life.
“I think it’s great that kids have the opportunity to showcase their skills on such a stage,” said Carrie Jansen, HR Manager at the ranch in Pawhuska, Oklahoma. “It’s neat to see our kids do so well. I think it speaks to the value that we as a company put on future generations. And, you learn from your parents, right? So, I think it speaks to the skill set that our cowboys have as well.”
For Brodie, this win extends a family tradition. In 2023, he helped a Sooner Cattle team that included his older brother, Dax, now 18, capture the championship at the third annual Youth World Championship Ranch Rodeo. That same weekend, Brodie and Dax also rode alongside their father as members of SCC’s winning Open Division team, a family achievement made even more memorable as the brothers became the first in the history of the WRCA to win both the adult and youth world titles in the same year.
The Godsey family isn’t done yet. Brodie’s younger brother, 10-year-old Rowdy, also made the Youth World Championship finals in November while riding for neighboring ranch team W.R. Bode, and next year he’ll be on the SCC team, according to dad. There’s also 12-year-old sister Saylor, who has been getting into breakaway roping.
Will gives a lot of the credit to his wife, Kate: “We couldn’t do any of this without her raising the kids. You know, she’s half the story. She’s been phenomenal support to me and the kids.”
The younger Godseys don’t have to look far for inspiration. Ranching isn’t just what this family does, it’s who they are. Their father, Will, manages cattle in Oklahoma, while his brothers carry on the tradition in other parts of the country: Marshall at Deseret Cattle & Citrus (DCC) in Florida and Ty at Navasota Ranch in Texas. Will’s father, Larry, worked at DCC and later at Florida’s Deseret Cattle & Timber and Utah’s Deseret Land & Livestock. His mother, Debbie, spent nearly 40 years at DCC before retiring. Uncle Joey also retired from DCC, after 44 years at the ranch. Even Will’s grandparents were part of the story: Billy, who passed away about 20 years ago, worked part-time at DCC, while Doris worked there full-time before retiring.
“It’s a family affair,” Will said.
The ranching tradition is in good hands with Brodie, who said he enjoys the outdoor work and helping out his father. “It’s always fun to do. I see a future in it for sure,” Brodie said. If he’s right, there will be a more chapters in the Godsey family story before too long.