McCOOK, Neb. (AP) - The head rodeo coach of Mid-Plains Community College in southwestern Nebraska unexpectedly died this week following his release from a hospital after he was injured by a horse.
Garrett Nokes, 45, died Sunday at his McCook home within days of being released from a hospital following emergency surgery for a head injury caused by a horse on his property the evening of Jan. 28, the school said in a news release.
Nokes sustained the injury after returning to his home in McCook after rodeo practice, the school said. He was taken to McCook Community Hospital, then flown to Kearney, where he underwent surgery and rehabilitation before being released last week.
Nokes was on the on the Oklahoma Panhandle State University’s first two national championship teams in 1997 and 1998. A member of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association since 1996, Nokes had more than $740,000 in PRCA career earnings.
He was hired in 2014 at Mid Plains, which competes in the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association. He helped several students to the College National Finals, and his team won the Great Plains region title in 2016-17. Garrett was named Great Plains Region Coach of the Year in 2020.
He is survived by his wife, Laura, and their two sons, Trevor and Parker, as well as his parents. Funeral services are set for Saturday at Kiplinger Arena in McCook.
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