PUEBLO, Colo. – If you had to pick one of the many riders turned PBR Teams coaches who sticks out of the pack via their contagious energy and obvious love for the game, it’s hard not to automatically consider Ross Coleman; the spirited, ever-competitive mentor rocking red and yellow for the third summer now.
Between picking up some additional Portuguese in wanting to support and connect with his Brazilian riders, standing atop the chutes to cheer, yell and coach them to victory or his heart-to-heart chats before or following any given out, it’s clear that the Missouri Thunder skip is passionate for this group and the sport overall.
“It’s hard to think it’s year three already because we had such a blast already. Watching these guys do what they do, you know?,” Coleman shared at last month’s World Finals.
“I love UTB so much too, and it’s like every UTB event, we’re riding our chairs right along with them, you know what I mean?”
Which goes to show he’s not only tuned in to each of his squad’s cowboys throughout the individual season, but always anticipating his next opportunity to connect with and coach them.
Be it when he appears at a premier series event, calls them during the week or saves up a few chats for when he can talk to them face-to-face, it’s rather apparent he’s always looking to better his team members and their respective skillsets.
So, it shouldn’t shock you that a pair of his Thunder stars in Boudreaux Campbell and Andrew Alvidrez are two of the hardest-working and dedicated guys in the business.
Which isn’t news, by any means.
But when you get a few like-minded approaches together in the same locker room, we’ve already seen what kind of leaps and bounds teams can make when guys are on the same page.
And if there’s a common denominator between Campbell, Alvidrez, Coleman and beyond, it’s that they want to continue to excel and develop as individuals in order to give their team a leg-up come July.
“Andrew is a superstar workhorse. Every day of his life, he gets up early, trains like a madman, and he loves to fight. He hasn’t gotten into any (fighting) competition yet, but he very well could one day when he’s done riding bulls. But he is such an animal,” Coleman shared of his captain.
“Mentally, he’s been through … (a lot). This year was a roller coaster for him, and it didn’t have to be, but it went pretty bad for him throughout the year. First two rounds here (at World Finals), he got his ass handed to him. They were bucking hard and they whooped him down pretty properly. That fourth round, when he showed up, he meant business, and he made it work. There were two or three times in the middle of that bull ride where it would’ve been easy to check out. But he was committed and he showed up and looked like the real Andrew Alvidrez, the guy we will continue to watch be very successful as one of our leaders and one of our main guys who will be able to take care of business for us. I love the guy.”
Able to clinch himself a spot inside AT&T Stadium during UTB’s Championship showdown May 18-19 via a quality effort during the final day of competition inside the historic Cowtown Coliseum, the Thunder star extended his season another few days.
And if every chain has a weak link, Alvidrez continues to do everything in his power to ensure he doesn’t fall into that role. Even if he was just a mere 5-for-23 last summer for his squad.
RELATED: Progress, patience and prayer guiding Missouri Thunder captain Andrew Alvidrez back to glory
Finishing his respective 2024 individual slates with 7-for-40 (UTB) and 7-for-25 (PWVT) efforts, he very much rode the roller coaster of success, finding himself down on the expansion tour for quite some time before stringing together some success to make his late-season run.
Which, nothing against Alvidrez, is one of the many reasons Coleman and crew decided to pursue another potential ace talent in Campbell, who spent his first two summers riding for the Carolina Cowboys before being acquired by Missouri a few months back.
RELATED: Perfect Boudreaux Campbell wins record-setting PBR Canada Cup Series event in Ottawa, Ontario
“We needed a Boudreaux on tour team, which is great. But we needed another solid guy that’s in the top 10-15 UTB, proven, been there, done that. And you know what Boudreaux does every time … He tries his ass off every time. It might not be pretty, and he does some wild moves and different things and techniques that we can try to work on and stuff, but my favorite thing about him is that no matter what bull or situation he’s in, he ain’t never looking at the ground. He’s working his ass off, and I love that about a guy,” Coleman shared.
“I really, really love that because you can talk about technique and different things in the world of bull riding all day long, but when it comes down to it, the guy that’s got that desire and heart and try, that beats all of the skills. Ten times over in my book, and he’s got that. He’s got some try to him, I promise you. Our team last year, we had a great team. But we needed another step up and we got that with Boudreaux for sure.”
Knowing that the 2024 New Rider Draft was full of plenty of top-tier talent, it wasn’t easy for the Thunder to send away its first-round selection for the established talent. But after sitting a bit idle while allowing some of its youngsters to develop, embracing the long-term dynasty approach, it was time for the Bass Pro Shops-owned team to make a move.
RELATED: Top 4 takeaways from the 2024 PBR Teams New Rider Draft
And with Campbell, it’s not just his try and ability that stand out. He’s one of those talents that can get the boys around him fired up and ready to ride. He’s passionate. He cares.
And he wants to win.
“We love the guy, so that was our first-round draft pick that we gave up to get him. If we could do it all over again, I wouldn’t change a thing. Look at these young bucks coming up, too. There’s some damn good talent in the draft this year. But I know Boudreaux well and I know what he can bring to our locker room and what he has in his toolbox to be a high-level pro and to be a world class champion. And he wants to. He’s obviously showed that before at the PBR World Finals when he won it,” he said.
“We’re just so excited to have him. Back in my day, there’s always one of those guys in the group, in the crowd, that will bring everybody together. The one that will have a little bit of fun but also maybe make fun of himself. Everybody knows, when you’re around him, there’s something magical about him. We’re so pumped to have him this year and we’re going to hopefully have him for a long time.”
RELATED: John Crimber selected by the Florida Freedom with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 PBR Teams New Rider Draft
Of course, having a pair of talented UTB rookies in their own right returning to the fold (in the form of Felipe Furlan and Paulo Eduardo Rossetto) likely made the decision a bit easier. And when you consider the squad will get 2023 breakout star Kade Madsen back during the 2026 season once he completes his two-year religious retreat, the future still appears to be bright for the Thunder.
“It’s crazy to look at all of the rookies, all of the new guys, all of the new names. Having Felipe and Paulo, watching what they’ve done, first off, for us. What they did during the Teams situation. Then they rolled into the UTB and when you’re from South America and you show up here, it’s a whole new world. The bulls are way ranker and way faster. But they’ve got a great foundation started from Adriano (Moraes) and these superstar riders from Brazil,” Coleman said.
“Felipe and Paulo grew up in Brazil. Some of them bulls really buck hard, but a lot of them are really sweet for them to learn on and set a good foundation. So, they’re going to show up here and do what they did on Teams and UTB and now they’re still learning. Hopefully they keep on rolling for our team, too.”
Add in the likes of Dawson Gleaves, Grayson Cole, Trace Redd and the squad’s second-round selection, 20-year-old Tristin Parker (selected No. 15 overall in Nashville at the 2024 PBR Teams New Rider Draft) and it’s rather apparent they’re set up for the future.
And the now.
After seeing his unit come alive during the 2023 PBR Teams Championship last fall inside T-Mobile Arena, making a bit of a Cinderella run to Championship Sunday despite entering the weekend near the bottom of the standings, we already know Coleman’s youngsters are more than capable of taking the next step.
“That’s what it’s all about. We were one ride away from being in that Championship game. That’s what we love. Things like that; things happen for a reason. That’s going to be my motivation to our guys every single day of our life when we’re training. When we’re running five miles a day. When we’re swimming for an hour a day. When we’re seriously trying to quit at things or take things easy, I’m going to remind their asses of that for sure. But we’re going to go to work and that’s just going to be fuel for the fire for us,” Coleman said.
“Because, yes, we were very close to being in that championship game, but I was still proud of my guys because we worked hard and we tried hard. The Missouri Thunder was very well known in Las Vegas last year at the PBR Teams Championship and the future of our guys, with a young team like we do have and were with last year, I think it’s our choice now to go ahead and figure out a game plan and step up to the plate. Start hitting some home runs.”
One of many coaches last month present at Cowtown Coliseum and AT&T Stadium in getting some summer series chats going, Coleman was on hand throughout last month’s 2024 PBR World Finals: Unleash The Beast.
And while he didn’t hold back his passion for the upcoming season and all of the training that will lead into the third session of 5-on-5 action, he admitted the team’s training camp, as year’s past, will be a bit more about bonding and enjoying time with each other as a unit.
With plenty of long nights and traveling weekends ahead as the tour expands from 10 to 12 regular season events with the addition of the New York Mavericks and Oklahoma Wildcatters getting in on the action …
… they might as well have some fun. Especially when your team owner has quite the set of entertainment options!
“Our training camp is a bit different. It’s more of an experience to go meet Johnny (Morris), our boss, and see his place in Big Cedar. We’re going to work out in the morning, do some drills, but we’re going to go shooting and fishing and golfing build a team by doing some fun things besides bull riding,” he concluded.
“Stuff besides working out all day, every day, which we’re going to be doing the rest of our life. When we get our team finally set, and they get a day off and get time to be up with me and my house, real cowboy work is about to go down. Every day of our lives. So that’ll be a little vacation in a way for us, going to training camp. It’ll be fun though.”
The Missouri Thunder will get their next shot at stating the year on a productive note July 12-14 when the Wildcatters open the season via their first-ever homestand in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
But when the end of August rolls around, the team will be hosting the third iteration of PBR Thunder Days, set to take place in Springfield, Missouri’s Great Southern Bank Arena for the first time, Aug 30-31!
Photo courtesy of Andy Watson/Bull Stock Media
