To celebrate Father’s Day, we talked with some famous father-daughter duos about life, lessons, and love.
Retiring from the NFL nearly 40 years ago, four-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback Terry Bradshaw has brought his winning ability off the playing field into the broadcast booth and onto the small screen. He currently serves as a co-host and analyst on the hugely successful Fox NFL Sunday, which has garnered three Sports Emmy Awards over the last several decades.
With his larger-than-life personality, Bradshaw has been featured on such reality television series as Better Late Than Never and currently stars on E Network’s The Bradshaw Bunch with his brood of blond daughters and blond wife, Tammy. The documentary Terry Bradshaw: Going Deep, an “honest and emotional” inside look into his storied career, debuted in February on HBO and is available for streaming on HBO Max.
Television may now be his paycheck, but ranching is his passion at his 750-acre Terry Bradshaw Quarter Horse Ranch in Thackerville, Oklahoma.
We talked to him about his youngest daughter, Erin, who bought a ranch six years ago with her husband in Aubrey, Texas, where they have a booming training and breeding business.
“My daughter Erin was a horse nut the moment she hit the earth and today shows paint horses in the pleasure categories,” Dad Terry says.
Cowboys & Indians: Share some experiences in the West that made you and your daughter grow close.
Terry Bradshaw: When she was about 4 years old, I asked Erin what she really wanted to do, and she told me that she wanted to learn how to ride horses. So I got her a trainer and a paint horse named Socks. She was a great mare, and Erin became a good rider and started to compete. Then she started helping me buy and train my pleasure horses. Working together has kept the daddy-daughter relationship alive.
C&I: What’s an important lesson you’ve tried to instill in Erin?
Terry: When she was young, she lost at lots of riding competitions and would blame the judges. I hate it when people make excuses for losing. I explained to her that if she did her best in the arena, it didn’t matter if she didn’t win every competition — she just needed to develop the confidence to move forward, enjoy the ride, and learn from the experience.
C&I: Like father, like daughter — how are you alike?
Terry: We share such a love and joy for our horses and enjoy talking about them. Erin is a tender spirit, always thinks about others. She has a big heart, and I think that I have a big heart, too. I am very proud of her.
C&I: What’s an experience in the West that made you two grow close?
Erin Bradshaw: When I was growing up, my dad had a huge horse operation in Westlake, Texas, and when I started showing an interest in horses, he got me into riding lessons. I never had much interest in showing halter horses, which was a passion of his. We got into the breeding side of the business together about six years ago and have worked together ever since.
C&I: What’s the best advice you’ve gotten from your dad?
Erin: The best advice my dad has ever given me is to always be independent and true to yourself. He has so many different business ventures he does — from horses and bourbon to football and real estate. He always told me that if you have a dream, follow it.
C&I: What’s a great memory of your dad from when you were little?
Erin: My dad and mom buying me my first horse on Christmas Day is a memory I’ll always cherish. He brought me outside and walked Socks up the three-mile-long ranch driveway. That was literally the start of my horse career. Socks was my first show horse, and when I showed for the first time, it was the start of where I am today. I can so physically remember when that happened. He has been with me every step of the way and has been at every world title I’ve won.
C&I: Like father, like daughter — how are you alike?
Erin: I have a lot of my dad’s personality in me — I’m very vibrant and funny.
Next Dads and Daughters duo:
David and Amber Midthunder
From our May / June 2022 issue
Photography: Courtesy of Erin Bradshaw