Levi & Jena Ochsner

Code Name: The Family
Highest Yield: 322 BU/A
2021 PWR Score: 8.25

Levi and Jena Ochsner and their family have been raising cows and crops in small town Nebraska since 1885. They, along with their two boys, Stetson and Crawford, live on the original family homestead that is nestled just outside of Sutton, Nebraska and is home base for all things Double O Farms. Over the last 135+ years, the family has farmed numerous crops and raised a variety of livestock including pigs, lambs, chickens, and cows. Their current operation is focused on growing commercial corn and soybeans and tending to their Angus cattle. They farm alongside Levi’s parents, Jeff and Sheila Ochsner. When the farm isn’t keeping them busy, Jeff and Sheila also operate a crop insurance business with Jeff’s dad, Darv Ochsner. Grandpa Darv still comes back to the farm to help when they need it during harvest and other busy times of the year. They cherish the fact that they’re able to have three generations (four if counting Stetson) all working together to carry on the family farming traditions.

They feel incredibly blessed that the farm has survived so many generations. It has by no means been an easy road. With a lot of hard work, strong family values, and a whole lot of Jesus they are proud to be raising the sixth generation of Ochsner’s right on the land where it all started so many years ago.

With a personal best yield of 322 bu/A, the Ocshners are thrilled with the opportunity to share their story and farming techniques all over the country. Follow along on this journey during Corn Warriors Season 6!

Heath Cutrell didn’t become a farmer overnight. A fourth generation farmer based in Chesapeake, VA, Heath started working with his father and uncle on the family farm when he was 2 years old. Since then, it’s all he’s ever wanted to do, no matter how long it took.

Heath farmed with his family on their 1,200 acres of land as much as he could when he was younger, but over time there wasn’t much space for him. After high school, Heath found some work helping out a local farmer, but soon saw that there wasn’t enough room for growth. He decided to take out a loan and buy a tractor trailer to haul demolition material for 7 years with the goal of saving money for the perfect opportunity to go back to his true love: farming.

They say luck is when preparation meets opportunity, so when Heath heard that a local farm owner was willing to lease his 170 acres of land, Heath jumped at the chance. By taking good care of the farm, he gained a reputation as more than just a farmer, but as a strong leader in the community and a grateful steward of the land. Heath’s father retired and Heath took over the family business where he is now in charge of over 5,000 acres of land. He currently farms corn, wheat, and soybeans on a variety of clay ground, sandy soil, and extremely fertile black land. 

Heath is a six time NCGA winner pushing the boundaries of farming, while trying to keep his head above water, quite literally. 

“We get a lot of moisture; every rain they call for, really. Our water table is very high to the point where you pull up four or five shovels full of dirt and you’ll see water,” explains Heath.

But that didn’t stop him from pulling his best contest yield yet, an impressive 391.31 bushels per acre in the Conventional Non Irrigated category. 

Heath doesn’t plan to stop there either. His goal is to break the 400 bushel mark this season, and we plan to catch it all on camera on Season 6 of Corn Warriors.

Location: 
New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

900 Convention Center Blvd

New Orleans, LA 70130

Click here to download the schedule as a pdf.

Tuesday, March 8 

All Day                                Optional Tours

9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.       National Wheat Foundation Board of Directors Meeting

1:00 p.m. -­­ 8:00 p.m.         NAWG Committee Meetings

Wednesday, March 9

All Day                                 Optional Tours

8:00 a.m. -­­ 7:00 p.m.         Registration Desk Open

8:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.          NAWG Committee Meetings and

12:30 p.m. -­­ 2:45 p.m.        NCGA Issues Briefing, Open Forum & Policy Discussion

12:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.        NSP Board of Directors Meeting

2:00 p.m. -­ 4:30 p.m.          ASA State Caucuses

3:00 p.m. -­­ 4:30 p.m.          NCGA State Caucuses

5:00 p.m. -­­ 7:00 p.m.         Welcome Reception

7:00 p.m. -­­ 9:00 p.m.          NCGA CornPAC Hors d’oeuvres Reception

7:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.          National Wheat Yield Contest Winners Reception

Thursday, March 10

6:45 a.m. -­­ 5:30 p.m.         Registration Desk Open        

7:00 a.m. -­­ 8:00 a.m.         Education: Early Riser Session         

8:00 a.m. -­­ 9:00 a.m           Trade Show: Media-Only Preview (Platinum Sponsors only) 

8:00 a.m. -­­ 11:00 a.m.        NSP Board of Directors Meeting

8:00 a.m. -­­ 11:30 a.m.        NCGA Corn Congress Session I        

8:00 a.m. -­­ Noon                 NAWG Board of Directors Meeting

8:15 a.m. -­­ 9:45 a.m.         Education: Mini What’s New Presentations

8:15 a.m. -­­ 11:00 a.m.       Education: Learning Center Session

9:00 a.m. -­­ 10:30 a.m.        Trade Show: Media-Only Preview

9:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.        ASA Government Policy Update

10:15 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.     Trade Show Grand Opening Ceremony

10:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.       Trade Show: Open (with Lunch 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.) 

10:45 a.m. -­­ 4:15 p.m.       Education: Main Stage in Trade Show

12:45 p.m. – 2:15 p.m.       Education: Mini What’s New Presentations (repeat)  

4:30 p.m. -­­ 5:30 p.m.          Trade Show: Exhibitor In-Booth Receptions (invitation only) 

6:00 p.m. -­­ 9:30 p.m.          ASA SoyPAC Auction

6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.         NAWG President’s Reception and PAC Auction

Friday, March 11

6:45 a.m. -­­ 6:00 p.m.         Registration Desk Open

7:00 a.m. -­­ 8:15 a.m.         Education: Early Riser Session

7:00 a.m. -­­ 8:30 a.m.          NCGA National Corn Yield Contest State Award Winners Breakfast

8:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.        Trade Show: Optional Media-Only Access for Scheduled Appointments

9:00 a.m. -­­ 11:00 a.m.       General Session

11:00 a.m. -­­ 4:30 p.m.       Trade Show: Open (with Lunch 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.) 

11:15 a.m. -­­ 4:30 p.m.       Education: Main Stage in Trade Show

12:30 p.m. ­­ 4:30 p.m.        Education: What’s New Sessions

1:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. CROWNING CEREMONY – Pivot Bio Booth #1006

12:30 p.m. -­­ 4:30 p.m.       Education: Learning Center Sessions

5:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.          National Sorghum Yield Contest Reception

6:00 p.m. -­­ 8:30 p.m.          NCGA Awards Banquet

6:00 p.m. -­­ 9:00 p.m.          ASA Awards Banquet

8:00 p.m. – 10:30 p.m.        NSP PAC Auction & Casino Night

Saturday, March 12

Afternoon                           Optional Tours

7:00 a.m. -­­ 8:00 a.m.         Education: Early Riser Session

7:00 a.m. -­­ 12:00 p.m.       Registration Desk Open

8:15 a.m. -­­ 9:15 a.m.         Education: Learning Center Sessions

8:30 a.m. -­­ 12:00 p.m.       Trade Show: Open (with Morning Snack 8:30 a.m. – 9:15 a.m.) 

8:45 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.       Education: Main Stage in Trade Show

9:30 a.m. -­­ 10:00 a.m.       Education: What’s New Sessions

12:30 p.m. -­­ 2:00 p.m.       Education: Closing Learning Center Session

1:00 p.m. -­­ 4:30 p.m.          NCGA Corn Congress Session II

1:00 p.m. -­­ 4:30 p.m.          ASA Voting Delegates

5:30 p.m. -­­ 6:00 p.m.         Worship Service

8:30 p.m. -­­ 9:45 p.m.         Evening of Entertainment

In addition to the crowning of Kevin Kalb, we are also happy to announce the winner of the competition to be on the next season of Corn Warriors is Chad Henderson from Madison, Alabama!  Chad is a fourth-generation farmer that is the current corn production record holder for Alabama with a yield of 355 BU/A.  A proud family man and problem solver, Chad works with his father, cousin, and son at Henderson Farms on over 8,000 acres of land.  We’re very excited to have Chad on the show and we look forward to seeing what sort of creative solutions he can come up with in his effort to win Season 5 of Corn Warriors.  Learn more about Chad Henderson at his Warrior Page.

We appreciate all of our nominated farmers that fought to be on the next season of Corn Warriors, and our fans for participating in the voting process.  We’d also like to thank our panel of experts that made the decision to have Chad on the show, and we’re very excited to see him compete alongside the other farmers.

You need to plan it out before you tape it, think about where you see yourself fitting in the show. This is reality TV and reality TV is all about personalities and how they mix.

Tips for taping your video audition:

Before you start:

• First and foremost make sure that you have a quality video by using proper lighting. This may take a few experiments to get it right but generally you want to avoid bright light sources, windows or anything that will cast a shadow or act as a distraction.
• Pick a good location with minimal interference from around. Do not shoot a video in a mirror, the bathroom or any place that will take away from you.
• Make sure there is no outside noise, TV’s on in the room or radio playing.
• Make sure the camera is steady. Avoid holding it yourself. You may need a friend to help you by holding the camera as you talk.
• Always film it horizontally. Just because you can easily flip your iPad to watch vertical videos does not mean that casting directors will adjust their screens as well. This is for TV so keep it formatted for TV.
• Decide which personality you are. Are you the hot mom? The sexy co-ed? the dingy bimbo? The villain or the hero? Know what you are going for and keep it up through the entire video. Don’t switch it up. Do not start off with an attitude then lose it. Casting directors want consistency. Even if you think you would be great as this or that, pick just one. Remember, this is reality TV, they are not looking for actors. They want real people who do not look like they are acting. You never want to say “I can play this, that, or whatever you want me to”. Best bet is to just be yourself.

Now for your audition video:

• Start off strong. Casting directors look through thousands of videos so the first few seconds need to impress or they will just move on to the next one without watching it through. This is not the time to save the best for last!
• Introduce yourself and give examples of why you are great for the show. Show producers are looking for interesting people and you need to show them how interesting you are with examples of what you have done.
• Don’t just say you’re a great farmer, but give some examples of awards you’ve won or other achievements.
• Don’t say “Ummm” or “like”. Pauses are natural when we are speaking, we need a second to think of a response sometimes and many of us use the words, “Ummm”, “like” or “uhh” for those pauses. But this is a video that you should have already planned out. Saying “Ummm” is really annoying and will take away from the video’s pace.
• If you have some very special skills that most people do not, take a few seconds to showoff but refrain from doing dumb stunts that anyone can do.
• Don’t use costumes or props to make things more interesting. You are supposed to be the point of interest in your video audition.
• Be assertive and make your case. Be memorable.
• Keep it short. In the show submission instructions it should tell you how long the video should be. Stick to that time and do not go over.
• Try not to edit your video. Most casting directors want to see unedited footage. NEVER use effects or any kinds of transitions.
• Tell us how many years you have farmed and how many generations your family has done so
• Tell us your average corn yield average for the entire farm for the last 3 years
• Tell us your highest CERTIFIED yield used in a contest
• Tell us your farming practice and a short history of it’s development. How many acres of each different practice?
• How many acres of just corn do you farm?
• What are your yield goals for 2021 in Corn?
• Which category of the PWR score is your strength?
• Which category of the PWR score is your biggest weakness?
• Why do you think you should be a contestant?  What sets you apart from the other Corn Warriors?

And lastly:

• Follow the submission directions to the letter.  Most reality tv video auditions will ask for a link to your video. Not the actual video as an attachment. Most videos are too large to be handled as attachments.
• Make sure that you use the video hosting service that they request. Do not make it difficult for them to see the video by posting to a different service.
• Do not use private Youtube video links. So many people do not even realize that the video is available for them to see only BECAUSE they are logged in and stay logged in. Double check your settings to make sure the video is public. If unsure, email it to a friend and have them try it.

We need your help to decide which day and time are the best option.

We appreciate you only voting once!

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