LARAMIE – Traven Sharon is uniquely Cowboy tough.
 
Not only is the freshman a member of Wyoming's nationally competitive wrestling team, but he is also one of the nation's top all-around cowboys and will represent the brown and gold next week at the College National Finals Rodeo (CNFR) in Casper.
 
Sharon took a short break from branding cattle on his family's ranch in Ordway, Colo., for an interview about his grueling two-sport life at UW.
 
"There were multiple days where I would be late to calf roping practice coming from wrestling practice," Sharon said. "Then when we buck horses, that's my main rodeo practice day. Usually, we'd get done with wrestling (practice) at 3 (p.m.) and I'd have to be ready to strap it on and get on a bronc at 4 (p.m.)
 
"Those days were hard just because you're so tired after wrestling and you need those fine motor skills for bronc riding. But I would say it helped me practicing that tired all the time because it makes you realize how explosive you can be when you're feeling full and ready to go."
 
The strong relationship between wrestling coach Mark Branch and rodeo coach Seth Glause, who have offices in the Fieldhouse, allowed Sharon to navigate both sports and his studies throughout the 2025-26 UW calendar.
 
Sharon competed in only one wrestling match as a freshman because he joined a veteran team that finished 12th at the NCAA Championships and suffered a foot injury during a rodeo that kept him out of practice for a painful stretch.
 
But Branch is on board with Sharon returning to the mat next season as part of a team with great expectations.
 
"He's a great part of our team. He's a super hard worker and so respectful. You want kids in your program that have the values, the work ethic and the morals Traven has," Branch said. "We certainly wanted him back and we're interested in seeing how he does because he's tough. He still has a way to go in wrestling, but he needs to compete more.

"It's just awesome that he's energized to do both right now."
 
Developing a wrestler who also competes in the rodeo event depicted in UW's famous Steamboat logo is an interesting subplot for Branch, a rodeo fan who has a passion for owning and riding horses, to Sharon's story.
 
"I tried to talk Traven into breaking one of my wild horses, but he wasn't jumping on that too much," Branch said. "He's like, 'I don't break them, I want them to keep bucking.'"
 
In the rodeo arena, Sharon helped lead the Cowboys to their eighth consecutive Central Rocky Mountain Region (CRMR) title by finishing second in both saddle bronc riding and tie-down roping, which earned him the regional all-around championship.
 
"For him to win the all-around and qualify in two events and have a chance to win the all-around national title is pretty astounding for a freshman," Glause said. "Traven just has that drive to win and the right attitude that can take him a long way in this sport."
 
Growing up on a ranch running cows and yearlings, Sharon naturally took to riding horses and swinging a rope. He started competing in junior rodeos at the age of nine and was wrestling even before that.
 
During a decorated wrestling career at Fowler High School, Sharon joined an exclusive club of four-time Colorado state champions, pinning Meeker's Koy Weber in 3:51 to win his final title at 126 pounds during the 2025 state tournament at Ball Arena in Denver.
 
So, who was the better recruiter to get Sharon's talents to Laramie, Branch or Glause?
 
"Oh, that's tough, because without either of them I would have gone somewhere else, but together I guess they're pretty deadly," Sharon said of his decision to come to UW. "If it all boiled down to (choosing one sport), I'd have to go rodeo because of the future that's in it for me. But I really wanted the chance to keep wrestling, and I was blessed enough that they gave it to me, and especially at this high level."
 
Branch returns a lot of experience and some of the nation's best grapplers, including All-Americans Joey Novak (197), Eddie Neitenbach (184) and Christian Carroll (heavyweight), to lead the 2026-27 Pokes. The program recently signed three impact transfers and five touted high school recruits to bolster a team that will likely be highly ranked when the preseason polls come out.
 
Sharon admittedly has a lot of work to do to compete for a spot in the formidable Big 12 lineup.
 
"It was awesome," Sharon said of his first year in the program. "It was stuff you see on TV growing up, and shoot, I got to live it. Just being in the room with those guys, and getting whipped on pretty good, it's something that I guess not everybody wants, but everybody needs. It was a blast for sure. It was fun enough that even though it was a lot of work and hard, I'm going back."
 
Before thinking about summer wrestling workouts, Sharon is focused on helping the Cowboys make a run at the CNFR team title. His brother, Waitley Sharon, has also qualified in saddle bronc riding for Tarleton State, the back-to-back reigning champions on the men's side.
 
"I'm pretty stoked," Sharon said of making his CNFR debut as a freshman. "It would be awesome to do what we worked all season for, and I don't see any reason why we can't do it. … It's going to be pretty special to get a ride against (Waitley), and hopefully we give that purple team a run for their money."
 
Follow Ryan for more stories on Wyoming athletics on X at @By_RyanThorburn on Facebook at Wyoming Athletics and Instagram at wyoathletics. Also follow him at Pokes Insider at Gowyo.com/pokesinsider.
 
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