He's a Coach of Champions

I've been impressed with Tarleton State rodeo coach Bob Doty ever since we met at the 1986 College National Finals Rodeo in Bozeman, Mont.
Doty then coached Western Texas College's rodeo teams. I was reporting for the Star-Telegram, so Doty pointed out that a roper named Keith Hudson was from nearby Paradise.
Hudson won the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association 1986 calf roping title and helped Western Texas win the men's national team title.
Two decades later, Doty still recruits top athletes, and his teams are national title contenders. Last year, Tarleton's men and women won national team titles.
Tarleton will try to repeat that double at next month's College National Finals in Casper, Wyo. Tarleton's men and women advanced by finishing second in the NIRA Southwest Region regular season, which concluded last weekend.
The top two teams and top three competitors in each event from each region advance to the college finals.
Doty said one thing he instills in each of his athletes is that they can always feel confident that they have given their best effort.
"We try to make sure that everyone understands that at the end of the year, if for whatever reason they miss the college finals by a few points, that they still did all that they could to qualify," Doty said. "They can't look back and say something like I didn't practice enough."
Doty, 54, said his longevity as a coach makes it easier to recruit great athletes. He coached at Western Texas from 1979-94 and recruited outstanding athletes such as Dave Appleton, who thrived on the college circuit in the early 1980s and went on to win the 1988 world all-around title. When the Arlington resident was inducted into the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame this year, Doty sat at Appleton's table.
The successful Western Texas stint helped Doty move to tradition-rich Tarleton in 1994.
"Parents and students trust us," Doty said. "They know that Tarleton is a great school with a great rodeo environment and that we're going to do what we say."
Briefly
Brazilian Guilherme Marchi of Decatur earned $12,692.50, finishing third at the Professional Bull Riders Built Ford Tough Series stop last weekend in Nampa, Idaho. He leads the world title race over second-place Adriano Moraes, a Brazilian who lives in Keller, 7,243.5 points to 6,645.5.
The rodeo in Guymon, Okla., Friday through Sunday marks the end of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association Wrangler ProRodeo Tour winter series. The Pace Chute-Out, the finals of the series featuring the top 12 in each event, is May 13-14 in Tulsa.
The 2006 Windy Ryon Memorial Roping is May 26-28 in Saginaw.