By Kyle Roberts
Say the name “Womack” to any bull ’round these parts and watch him shudder — they don’t take too kindly to that name.
That’s because for decades Ruston Fire Chief Chris Womack had also been one of the most well known bull fighters in the professional rodeo circles, and now, his son Tanner will be taking the family business by the horns — literally — after rustling up a partial scholarship to bull fight for the Panola College Ponies in Carthage, Texas, where he hopes to study how to work on HVAC units.
“Tanner’s a great kid,” Panola rodeo head coach Jeffrey Collins said. “He knows that he’s going to be underpaid for the job he does. But guys that fight bulls — they’re wired differently. They’ll go in there and take a hit for a rider. Sometimes it’s multiple hits, and they can just get up again and again. I’m very proud to have that.”
After playing football for most of his high school life, Tanner decided it was time to try the rodeo for the past year and found that he truly had a niche gift for taking some licks.
“I tried bull riding first, but I got hurt a lot and quit doing that,” Tanner said. “I found out I was pretty good at fighting bulls and getting its attention. So if somebody’s going to get hit by a bull, it’s going to be me.”
The primary role for a bull fighter in modern rodeo is to distract the bull after it’s bucked its rider. Two to three bull fighters at a time will then do their best to distract the bull while the rider is tended to on the ground and moved to safety.
It’s a challenge that the recent Ruston High grad is certainly up for and has the endorsement of his dear old dad to boot.
“He’s doing a great job,” Chris said of his son. “And if this will help him get an education and ease the burden on “mom and dad,” then it’s a win for everybody.”
Take an even higher view and you’ll not only see the father-son connection between bull fighting, you’ll see that the main purpose is to put yourself on the line in service of others — something Chris does for a living as the city’s Fire Chief and now Tanner gets to do as a bull fighter.
“It gives you goosebumps when you think about it that way,” Collins said in conclusion. “It’s pretty cool stuff, because that’s going to be Tanner’s role here.”
During Collins tenure the head coach at Panola College, the Ponies won the 2019 national championship, competing against larger schools such as Sam Houston State and McNeese State.
