The UTM athletics department is saddened to announce that Wyatt Cole, a rodeo student-athlete, passed away on Sunday evening. He was 20 years old.
Cole was majoring in agricultural business during his sophomore season as a UTM cowboy. Before attending UTM, he graduated from Owen County High School in his hometown of Owenton, Ky.
“Wyatt was a super good kid with a great attitude,” UTM head rodeo coach John Luthi said. “He had a hard work ethic and came from a great family. Our prayers go out to his family – he will be missed.”
Cole advanced to the finals of three collegiate rodeos during the 2018-19 season, representing UTM in team roping at Missouri Valley College (Sept. 20-22) and in steer wrestling at both Three Rivers College (Oct. 11-13) and at Murray State (Nov. 15-17). He accumulated team points in each of his steer wrestling performances, including a career-best third-place finish in average (13.6 seconds) at Murray State.
Assistant Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs John Abel said, “Wyatt was a friend to many on our campus. If you know of a student that is grieving and in need of support, you can submit a Hawk Alert to the Care Team at http://care.utm.edu. You can also contact us in the Student Affairs Office at 7710 and we will help connect students to support services on campus.”
