TEMPLE, Texas — The Temple High School BBQ Pitmasters Team closed out its inaugural season in grand fashion, earning second place in the National High School BBQ Association’s National Championships in Hutto on June 19.
The Pitmasters were named reserve grand champion in the competition, also known as "The Slab", coming in only behind the Sanger High School Smoke Signals.
In addition to their second place overall title, the Pitmasters also brought home the bacon, and the trophy, by winning grand champion honors as the first-place finisher in the pork shoulder category, and scored themselves two more top five finishes in other categories, placing fourth in chicken and fifth in steak fajita tacos.
Teams also turned up the heat in ribs, pork chops and Dutch oven dessert competitions, with final placements being determined by a cumulative overall score. Awards were announced on June 20 at the Kalahari Resort in Round Rock.
The Pitmasters earned their spot in the National Championships after finishing 16th in the State Championship in Burnet in May. The team won their place in the State Championship after winning Reserve Champion honors in the their first competition ever.
The Pitmasters are coached by Temple alum Joe Medrano and his wife Allison. The team is made up of seniors William Hardin, Erandy Perez and Anthony Rangel, junior Jordan Magana and sophomore Reece Medrano.
Each member of the team is responsible for a specific food item that must be turned in on a very specific timeline during each competition.
Temple High said Hardin is in charge of pork chops, Perez is the Dutch oven specialist, Rangel oversees the chicken, Magana is responsible for the steak fajita tacos and Medrano takes charge on the ribs.
According to the district, the pork shoulder competition was a new addition for this National Championship, meaning the Pitmasters won first place in a category they had never competed in before, and had only been practicing for three weeks.
All five team members reportedly helped to prepare the pork and helped each other with other items during the competition.
Coach Joe Medrano explained the team did not just "meat" expectations, they blew them out of the water.
“There have not been many times in my life that I have been that excited and if I never win another cook-off myself, I am good with that, my heart is full,” Medrano said. “For those kids to go out and do what they did, I just don’t have the words for it. It is so difficult to do what they did, and I am not sure they realize the magnitude of what they have accomplished. I just love them all and they have made me so proud and made Temple so proud.”
“It feels amazing and to be honest it feels like a dream,” said team member Perez when grilled about the experience. “I am so proud to be a part of this team and I never thought we would finish second in nationals. I had a good cry when I got home last night as it is really starting to sink in about what we have done. This whole experience has been amazing, and I just love this team so much.”
Temple High said the BBQ team held its first meeting last fall with a group of 25 interested students before dropping down to its current five. The Pitmasters competed in their first ever cookoff in December 2022, earning their spot in the state championship and never looking back.
The spectacular performance has allegedly lit a fire under Medrano, who says he has high hopes for the team in the future.
“These kids are special and have accomplished so much, but we are just getting started,” Medrano said. “I want to win the whole thing and my goal for next year is to win a state championship and win a national championship and we are just getting warmed up.”
“This was a great way to go out as a senior and this team has become my new family,” said Perez. “I can use this as an opportunity moving forward because I now have these skills and can always fall back on teamwork and the skills we have developed.”
The Pitmasters are competing as part of the National High School BBQ Association and are also representing the Temple High School Career and Technical Education Department.
Temple High culinary arts teacher Margaret Fyffe is the staff sponsor for the team.
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