INGLESIDE, TX — The Ingleside fire chief and a fellow firefighter taste-tested some of the award-winning sausages made by the Ingleside High School BBQ team.
"It’s got a good smoked flavor to it. It's a good-tasting sausage,” Chief Thomas Miller said.
But they weren't too surprised to learn a group of teenage students made this. The 5 members of the Ingleside BBQ team call themselves the Mustang Smoke Show. Each team member has a specific job to perform during the competition.
The team's coach RJ Alvarado said they have to get it just right for the judges.
"You have to give them one good bite and that's all they get to choose from. They can't take one bite and try it again,” Alvarado said. “You have to impress them."
That's what the team did at regionals. They advanced to the High School BBQ, Inc. State Championship where they competed against 98 other teams from across the state.
"Basically, the timelines and the practice and the prep is crucial to winning the state championship,” coach, Bo Danieo said.
Getting it just right at the state championship, the Mustang Smoke Show from Ingleside High School won 1st place.
Logan McGrath, the junior on the team tells us they got lots of practice doing local competitions.
"When we take that mentality and bring it to the high school level, we set apart,” McGrath said.
Three seniors will be leaving the team including Noah Rodriguez and his brother Gavin, but they have plans to keep up with their passion.
"I'll be doing some adult competitions with my friends, and I hope it grows as a contest,” Rodriguez said.
The school year is almost over.
The instructor said people who want to join the team must try out during the next school year which starts August 14.