A last-minute decision put Trey Cooper’s barrow, Big Hoss, in the competition that started the 270-pound hog toward the title of overall grand champion.

“We almost put the hog in the open class, which means he wouldn’t compete in the real show,” Cooper, 15, admitted Thursday, July 29. “We didn’t think he looked as good as our other hog.”

They ended up taking both barrows, and Big Hoss won the blue ribbon, then division champion, then grand champion barrow and the rest is sweet history.

To add to the victory, Cooper got $3,100 for Big Hoss in Thursday’s market hog auction at Clark County Fair. He purchased the animal for $225 in a silent auction.

Cooper, a student at Southeastern High School and a five-year member of 4-H, is going to add the money to his college fund.

He gave special thanks to his parents, Tony and Dawn Cooper, as well as his breeder.

As for his plans now: “Well, I’ve already won the mac daddy, so I just have to try to do it again,” he said.

“It’s amazing,” Cooper said. “I never thought it was really possible.”

When Cooper realized how far Big Hoss had made it, he knew he would be going up against “heavy hitters,” like Nicholas Hupp, Cooper said jokingly.

As it happened, 18-year-old Hupp’s 265-pound gilt secured overall reserve grand champion.

It was a nice ending for Hupp, who graduated from Greenon High School this year and will attend Ohio State University Agricultural Technical Institute in Wooster this fall.

Hupp is a four-year FFA member and has shown in 4-H since he was 9 years old, he said.

Coming from a family of award-winners, Hupp said they’ve never won an overall grand champion or overall reserve grand champion before now, “but we’ve gotten close.”

“We won grand champion barrow a couple of times, but it was real exciting winning this on my last time going out,” Hupp said.

His family bred the gilt themselves and raised her from birth.

The gilt received $1,575 at the auction, “which is real good,” Hupp said.

Hupp said he’s grateful to his parents for their help.

“I wanted to go out with a bang and I did,” Hupp said with a grin.

Contact this reporter at (937) 328-0374 or boutten@coxohio.com.