Austin Vieselmeyer was named an Academic All American and competed with the national champion K-State livestock judging team in Kentucky last November.
The Kansas State University livestock judging team is pictured from left, coach Chris Mullinix, Cagney Effling of South Dakota, Justin Slabaugh of Indiana, Daniel Dobbs of Georgia, Skyler Scotten of Missouri, Madi Andrade of California, Chisum Grund of Kansas, Austin Vieselmeyer of Colorado, Trace Mulligan of Kansas, Lane Egger of Nebraska, Sam Gleason of Kansas and assistant coach Payton Dahmer of Missouri.
Bringing home the bronze bull
After a string of four runner-up finishes, it sure felt good when the Kansas State University livestock judging team returned to Manhattan, Kansas, from the North American International Livestock Exposition in Louisville, Kentucky, with the national title and the bronze bull trophy in November 2020. The championship marked the 15th for K-State’s livestock judging program.
Austin Vieselmeyer of Amherst, Colorado, was part of this elite team of 10 members from across the country. He was one of three from K-State to be named Academic All Americans, and he placed ninth in high individual overall, third in reasons, sixth in cattle, and seventh in sheep and goats.
Livestock judging challenges students to test their knowledge of a group of animals (cattle, pigs, sheep and goats) by ranking them according to how they compare to each other and to the ideal animal. In the breeding category, they assess the structure and look of the animal, and the market category is focused on muscle and degree of finish. Then, students justify their rankings orally to the judges by giving sets of reasons that describe the livestock.
The K-State team actually went undefeated in reasons throughout the entire year, and other highlights include championship titles at the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo Contest, Flint Hills Mid-America Contest and American Royal. The team jumped through a number of hoops to be able to travel and compete safely during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Prior to K-State, Vieselmeyer attended Butler Community College in El Dorado, Kansas, on a full-ride livestock judging scholarship. His team earned national recognition as the 2019 Junior College Team of the Year.
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