Along with some college buddies, I competed in the Keller Lions Club BBQ Cook Off over the weekend. This is the only cook off we do and we've done it for 8 years now. We don't take ourselves seriously but are all competitive by nature so we want to do well. The cookoff usually has 55-65 teams competing and we've continuously gotten better in all categories. We've won 4th place for beans, 6th place for appetizer (bacon bomb) and made it to final table the last 3 years in brisket, last year in chicken.

This year we felt really good about our chicken, although they were so big we couldn't close to lid. Our ribs were the best ones we've ever turned in, but we didn't make final table for either of those.

We did however get a call for brisket, 6th place and $200. This was a proud moment for us. The guys that run the cook off know this is the only one we do where many other teams do one every weekend, 2 a month or a handful per year. SO after 8 years of trying, we feel like we've mastered the holy grail of Texas BBQ. Funny thing is we haven't changed our recipe at all the past 4 years.

Here's what you came here for:

Way to go, Scott!!! That is awesome!! I'll nominate you to cook brisket at the matches from now on!!!

Congrats!!

Congrats....that’s awesome! Everything looks great....

Damn that looks good!!! Congrats

Congratulations on your brisket. Ive cooked there for the past several years, still looking for a win but it’s a great cook off and always a great time

Were you there this weekend?

Nice work sir! Congrats!

Congrats!

congratulations!

show off your pit set up too when you get a chance

Like all of that throwback SWT garb!!!Chicken looks spot on!!

Yes me and 2 others cook there most of the time. Great cook off and have a blast. Congratulations again

Here's the smoker. This was my first time to cook on it and the 4th time it's been cooked on. On of the guys is the director of food services for Eagle Mountain Saginaw ISD and had a high school shop class build it. Took them 4 years, but the did a great job. It's a reverse flow with a warming box over the firebox. We can open a vent from the firebox to the warming box but it won't get warmer than the smoke box. Was windy earlier in the day and it took us a couple hours to figure out what the smoker needed to run warmer but we got it and it held where we wanted it to all day with little maintenance.




All of us graduated from Southwest Texas State University, not Texas State. Team name is SWT Smokers.

Food looks great, congrats!

I see the sauce on your ribs, may be part of the problem with why they don't place. I was told if your going to sauce them to make sure it is caramelized/cooked on etc. as the sauce shouldn't drip or scrape off. Not sure if that has something to do with what type of event/cookoff it is or what.

those just came out of the foil wrap where we add apple juice & bbq sauce mixture, we don't brush another sauce on it. I think our rub has too much chili powder & cayenne seasoning. Backyard judges like this cookoff attracts like sweet bbq, not spicy. We like them with a bit of a kick.

It all looks delicious, congrats

Now that is a smoker!

That’s the one thing I learned about cookoffs years ago, you have to cook for the judges, not for your home table.

I agree you have to cook for the judges.

Congrats on the placing and I an liking your set up