Just one year after graduating from Powell High School, Bryce Bott is competing at the College National Finals Rodeo as part of the Casper College team this week in Casper.

Unlike most college sports, rodeo doesn’t split up the competition based on school size, so freshmen from two-year colleges are up against seniors from four-year universities across the United States and Canada — some of which have already begun their professional rodeo careers.

This is the rodeo equivalent of sending a freshman football player to compete against someone who has already been drafted and competed in the NFL.

“I am a little nervous, there will be competitors from across the United States and from Canada and it is a big stage and the competition is the best I will have ever seen,” Bott said. “There is some really talented kids going to be at the finals and kids who have been successful at the pro level ... I am excited.”

Bott does not compete against Northwest College during the regular season since Casper is part of the Central Rocky Mountain Region. Instead, he’s up against multiple four-year universities such as Colorado State and University of Wyoming.

“It gives those guys an edge with guys there for four years, but Casper has always been a competitive school — does a good job of recruiting and gets young talent that can compete,” Bott said.

The Casper College men’s team finished the spring season second in the Central Rocky Mountain Region with 3,490 points and Chadron State College was at the top with 4,460.

“It’s a little different, a step up in competition and a different set up,” Bott said. “In high school rodeo, it’s all year and then you go to finals — but college is 10 rodeos and whoever is best goes to the college finals.”

Bott faced some tight competition on Oct. 11 at Laramie County Community College where the top seven ropers were all within less than 2 seconds of each other. He tied for sixth with a 24.1 — not far behind the first place time of 22.5.

He returned for the spring half of the competition to rank eighth at the Eastern Wyoming College rodeo on March 6.

Bott ended the season with a second place time of 21.3 at University of Wyoming on May 1.

Although Bott ended the season ninth overall in the Central Rocky Mountain Region for tie down roping, his team’s high rank in the region meant Bott was packing his bags for the CNFR.

“I really wanted to be in the top three since they are guaranteed to go to the college finals and I know I could have done it, but I didn’t rope to the best of my ability,” Bott said. “I drew some hard calves, but I am happy for my first year. Not too many freshmen do that good their freshman year, but I had the goal of making finals on my own.”

Since the end of the spring season, Bott has been practicing roping and competing at the Cody Nite Rodeo.

“I feel good, been roping pretty good at the Cody Nite Rodeo and have a good horse underneath me,” Bott said.

He will be competing on a horse he borrowed from a friend, Logan Brown, earlier in the spring, he said.

Bott and the rest of the CNFR competition ran slack on Monday and today (Tuesday) with performances slated for Tuesday evening through Friday and then the Short Round on Saturday.

If this week goes well and Bott ends up winning the finals, he’ll gain not only national recognition and a prize saddle, but will also likely receive another full ride scholarship, he said.

He may be young, but he’s touting a lifetime of experience as he enters the arena.

While most toddlers were still bumbling around, Bott was starting to learn how to rope at only 2 years old and was competing in rodeos at 8 years old, he said.

“It has been a lifetime process,” Bott said.

He said he was thankful for his family supporting him along the way, and for the Brown family of Broadus, Montana, for letting him borrow their horse.