Young guns Tyler Tryan and Nicky Northcott claimed the 2026 Cheyenne Frontier Days title after tying Kaleb Driggers and Junior Nogueira with a 7.6-second run in the finals.
The two teams split first- and second-place money, giving them $8,600 a man in the finals. Combined with their earnings from Bracket Five and the semifinals, Tryan and Northcott finished Cheyenne with $12,600 apiece.
Determining who received Cheyenne’s championship awards required two sets of tiebreakers.
According to the The Daddy of ‘Em All’s ground rules, the championship goes first to the tied team with the most money won throughout the rodeo. Tryan and Northcott and Driggers and Nogueira had each earned $4,000 per man before the finals, leaving them tied again.
The next tiebreaker in team roping is the fastest time in the semifinals. Tryan and Northcott’s 7.9-second semifinal run topped Driggers and Nogueira’s 9.6, giving Tryan and Northcott the saddles, buckles and other awards.
“You don’t really know how tiebreakers are going to go,” 20-year-old Tryan said. “If it was off standings, like I told someone earlier, you’re never going to beat Kaleb and Junior in that. I was just glad we got the win. The money’s good, and we needed it.”
Tryan and Northcott started their week by placing third in Bracket Five with an 8.4-second run, worth $1,000 each. They returned to win their semifinal section with a 7.9 for another $3,000 each, advancing to the 12-team finals.
They were last out in the finals, backing them in the box after Driggers and Nogueira had taken the lead with their 7.6.
A few teams before Driggers was up, Tryan asked him what his plan was.
“He was like, ‘I’m just going to go catch him,’” Tryan said. “And I know him—when he tells me that, he’s probably lying to me.”
Driggers and Nogueira followed with what Northcott called a legitimate run, leaving Tryan and Northcott no room to safety up.
“Driggers threw his whole rope and Junior heeled him really good,” 19-year-old Northcott said. “Their steer was stronger, and that was a legit run.”
After watching the World Champions move to the lead, Tryan focused on making the best run their steer allowed.
“You can only do so much out here,” the Lipan, Texas native said. “My horse is so fast that I get sometimes better throws than most people, but you still have to draw good. We tried to make the best run I thought we could, and it just happened to tie. It worked out just fast enough.”
Their steer did not turn his head toward Tryan’s horse in the box like Tryan wanted and stepped a little left across the line. Tryan focused on getting doing his job and handling him without getting stuck.
“I didn’t try to do anything too special,” he said. “I just kind of roped coming in on the gain, and I tried to pull him as much as I could without getting stuck in the fence.”
Northcott finished the run, even if he was not overly impressed with his delivery.
“My partner roped good, and I threw a terrible loop,” Northcott said. “It happened to go on two feet and paid good, so I’m happy about it.”
“I think the loop was so bad that it just happened to catch,” Northcott joked.
The Cheyenne win came at a crucial point in the season for the 2024 Resistol Rookie Header and reigning Resistol Rookie heeler. Both are somewhere in the middle of the world standings with the August run beginning and plenty of work left to secure their first National Finals Rodeo qualification together.
“We needed it,” Tryan said. “We haven’t roped great. It’s been both of us overall, and it’s just the honest truth. We haven’t done very good. But wins like this can change everything.
“It’s going to move us up a little bit—not a lot—but the goal is to make the NFR. We just need to keep winning and keep putting checks on the board. You’ve got to start somewhere, and today was the day.”
Northcott put their situation more simply.
“We need to win a lot of money,” he said.
The horses underneath them gave them the opportunity to do exactly that.
Tryan rode Cowboys Famous Guy, better known as Butters, whom he bought from Driggers. Butters become one of the biggest factors in his young career’s success, having the speed and running to the stop he needs to take high-percentage throws.
“That horse has changed my roping forever,” Tryan said. “Since I got him, he’s just been unbelievable. Without him, I wouldn’t be able to win what I win. He’s so fast.”
Northcott rode his longtime horse Brown, whose registered name is Sofisticatto. Northcott has ridden the 15-year-old since he was a kid, after his father bought the gelding from Hunter Koch when Brown was 7.
“We’ve had him forever,” Northcott said. “I started riding him when I was like 13 years old. He’s just easy and consistent, and he’s going to turn in every time and give you a good throw.”
With Cheyenne behind them, Tryan and Northcott’s schedule continues through Idaho, Utah and Kansas as they attack what Tryan called the toughest stretch of the summer.
“We’re not going to let up at all,” Tryan said. “Right now, we’re just trying to win as much as we can to give ourselves a chance to make it.”