FORT WORTH, Texas — This year’s Grand Champion Steer brought in a whole lot of moolah for its teenage owner at the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo.

What You Need To Know

  • The steer, named Alley Cat, was sold for $375,000

  • Alley Cat was raised by 16-year-old Mattison Koepp of La Vernia FFA

  • Koepp's 2024 steer was selected as the Reserve Grand Champion Steer, the second-place award, and sold for $230,000

  • The Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo wrapped up on Saturday after a little over three weeks of events

The steer, named Alley Cat, was raised by 16-year-old Mattison Koepp of La Vernia FFA–a city just 30 minutes east of San Antonio–and sold for a whopping $375,000 during the annual Junior Sale of Champions auction Saturday morning. 

The buyer was Vaden’s Acoustics & Drywall Inc., a family-run masonry and drywall company out of Fort Worth.

Koepp is no stranger to the bright lights of the Fort Worth Stock Show. Last year, Koepp’s American crossbreed was selected as the Reserve Grand Champion Steer–the second-place award–and sold for $230,000.

The 2024 Grand Champion Steer sold for $340,000. 

While Alley Cat received a higher bid than last year’s champion, it still doesn’t beat the record set in 2023 by a steer named Snoop Dogg, which sold for $440,000.

Koepp told event organizers that after she graduates high school, she plans on attending Texas A&M. 

The Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo wrapped up on Saturday after a little over three weeks of events. Over 1.2 million people were expected to attend some of this year’s festivities, and the event has raised more than $113 million in contributions, educational grants, scholarships and auction proceeds since it started in 1985.