[Emery] People in Texas
are obsessed with barbecue.
[Zane] It's our way of life.
It's ingrained into our soul.
[Emery] Barbecue compositions
used to just be for adults.
[Marc] Ladies and gentlemen,
I'm wrapping it.
And then I'm gonna start
stacking it.
[dramatic music playing]
Now high school kids
get to compete.
Leg to the lock.
There you go. Just like that.
Gloves, gloves, gloves!
High school barbecue
competitions are massive.
Hundreds of schools
all over Texas compete
in regionals
throughout the year.
And the top ten from each
regional qualifies for state.
[Coach Langdon] State is
the big show.
It's the Super Bowl.
It's the World Series.
-One team!
-[boys] One dream!
-[Coach Beasley] One team!
-One dream!
[cheers]
The rules are,
there are five categories
that you're judged on.
Dessert, beans,
chicken, ribs,
and the money meat
of Texas, brisket.
[Coach Rob] For those
high school kids that
don't play any other sport,
this is their sport.
If y'all want to win
something like this,
y'all got to put the work in.
[Marc] Going through
high school, you want
to be the quarterback,
-you want me to lineman.
- [all applauding]
Everybody at school is like,
that's the barbecue dude.
These first few years,
we rolled in
like The Bad News Bears,
but we are here to actually
bring home some trophies.
[Emery] The state final,
there's scholarship money
on the line
and a chance for me
to go to my dream college.
[Coach Langdon]
What are you doing
right now though?
-Praying.
-[Coach Langdon] Praying.
[Coach A] We put
a lot of work into this.
There's a lot of practicing.
There's a lot of sacrifice.
[Marc] My parents,
they love my food,
they love my barbecue,
but they just don't support me
going all in on culinary.
It's all about options.
I need to show my parents
I can do it.
[Zane] Winning state would be
a huge resume builder.
I'm gonna open up
my own restaurant.
Number one ribs in Texas,
people would be drawn to that.
Don't become complacent.
Let's stay focused.
Whether we come in
first or last place,
go have some fun.
Do that dance, Zane.
Oh, nice! [laughing]
But don't come in last place
because you got to walk home.
[dramatic music builds]
[triangle ringing]
[alarm beeping]
I'm getting ready
for the first
barbecue practice this year.
I got maybe about
like, five hours of sleep,
so I'm pretty tired.
But that's all right
'cause we're gonna go--
We're gonna go start a fire.
I'm real dedicated to barbecue
and my parents,
they just don't wake up
early enough to see what I do.
And honestly, I want them
to see it in person
just so they kind of
understand how hard I work.
Everybody should have
a pair of shoes
that are messed up
for barbecue.
These are the barbecue shoes.
It is my senior year,
you know,
my last first practice.
That sets the mood
for the rest of the year.
Oh, I get hyped up.
I'm ready for the season.
There's my baby
right over there.
I love the smoker.
It's treated me well.
We come in on Saturdays
for all day practices
just because it takes us hours
on end for us to cook our meat
on the smoker.
-What's up, man?
-[grunts] Crispy.
What's going on?
We're making food today.
Ey! It's cold in here.
[exclaims]
Oh dude, I got
everything set up.
Look at this spritz.
I made-- I made my coffee
spritz again, Like last year.
Remember how I ran it
through the coffee?
-Yeah, I do.
-I made that again.
Look at that.
Mm, money, money.
[Coach A] So I always
start the fire
right in the middle.
Once it turns into more
of a white color,
then I stop.
The Dan Dipert's
Smokin' Ferrets
have been competing
for the past six years.
But last year,
we didn't place the best.
We were ranked in the 30s
out of 100 competitors.
Our main goal going into
regionals this year is to be
in that top ten rank.
Our first competition
is less than a month away.
But we first got to go through
training our new team members.
Look at this one
and look at this one.
This is how you're getting it
in the bag.
This is how you're getting it
for competition.
There is a major difference
with this
because this is a great rib.
This is a bad rib.
So you got three
returning students.
They're basically leading
the team right now,
as in what's expected,
what worked, what didn't work
last year during competition.
I'm injecting it
in all the points.
Right into the fat.
You get that beef broth flavor
all the way through.
[sizzling]
[Marc] Look at
that color. Mmm.
Look at that color.
First regional,
we're going up against
some pretty good teams.
There's some pretty
heavy hitters.
Ben Barber's gonna be there.
Ben Barber's really good.
They got second
in state last year,
so it's gonna be
pretty difficult.
Look at this already.
I think it looks good.
Better than I thought,
of course.
[Marc] We can do this.
I think we're gonna do
great this year.
And I love this.
[hype music playing]
This is a nice trophy,
but it's big, bro.
Who's number two
in the state right now?
[Coach Rob] Very, very proud
of the fact that we got
this big old, gaudy trophy
that doesn't fit
anywhere in the school
because it's too darn big.
Are you gonna get
construction to build us
another trumpet case?
I'm working on it.
I am telling you,
if 2024 is that year for me,
and I get that first place,
I got to have somewhere
to store it.
Last year, our team hit
on all cylinders.
Zane needs to be the one
that's a driving force
for this team
because Zane was there
last year.
His specialty is
he loves to do ribs.
Because it's Texas,
so that's what we do.
[Coach Beasley] Last year
we got first place in ribs.
So he has something
he's good at, that he knows,
so he needs to really
come back this year
and show it even better.
My expectation is high.
I mean, what greater flex
is there than,
you know, winning?
Nothing can compare to that.
I'm just competitive.
I mean, I always
grew up like that.
Growing up playing soccer
and baseball, you know,
I always strive to win.
So I got first place
in a soccer.
I like this one because
there's a little soccer ball
that spins.
It's a little fidget toy.
I stopped playing
when I was around nine or ten.
I kind of just fell out of--
Did I want to play?
Did I feel
good enough to play?
And I didn't.
I like playing video games,
you know, cooking
in my free time.
High school barbecue
helped me, you know,
re-establish
the wanting to win
inner drive
that I've always had.
I mean, I got my belt buckle
that got out of state
last year.
It's a trophy, really,
of its own.
Coach Beasley, [chuckles]
when we found out
these existed,
tried to-- Tried to
buy them off
of the high school barbecue.
But they straight up
told them.
They said,
"You have to win it."
So he went to all of us
and said, "You all are
getting me a belt buckle."
My goal is to go to
Johnson and Wales University
in Charlotte, North Carolina.
It's widely known
among all the lot
of the top chefs.
I want to own a Michelin star,
white tablecloth,
waiters in suits
type of restaurants.
For my senior year,
there's definitely
a part of me
that wants to be remembered
as like a member
of the barbecue team.
Nothing would be cooler
than Ben Barber being
the best team in the state.
And I can say that I went
to that high school.
[Marc] The way
they cut this wood.
You see how it's very stringy?
-[Gus] Mm-hmm.
-[Marc] It's lighting it
a lot easier.
Well, you know
what you're doing.
[producer]
Okay, we're rolling.
What happens
if I go like this?
[playful chuckle] You lost me.
I started barbecuing
about a year ago,
and it's become slowly,
like one of
my biggest passions.
I'm making barbecue sauce.
I'm using my red soda
because personally,
I want to get
that nice sweet candy taste.
You want some more?
Dude, are you serious?
Dude, yes. What do you think
I bought it for?
It'll give me
that bright red color
that I am looking for
[in posh accent]
in a barbeque sauce-a.
[Rola] Marc, have you tried
that before?
[Marc] Yeah, of course
I've tried the soda before.
-Are you sure?
-Yeah.
-Y'all are just haters, okay.
-[laughs]
[Marc] So honestly, I've made
barbecue sauce like twice.
I just hope this is not
gonna be our last supper
with you experimenting on us.
[Marc] My role
on the barbecue team is ribs.
Last year in state,
my ribs did not qualify.
And that made me
really need to know that,
like, I need to make
something better.
I need to have
a better recipe.
I need to plate it better.
It needs to look better.
Cut it, cut it, cut it.
-[Michael] Mmm.
-[Marc] Uh-huh.
It will help me
to my ultimate goal
of opening a restaurant.
[producer] You already have
a name for your restaurant
too, right?
Habibi Barbecue.
I'm Lebanese.
Habibi means my love
in Arabic.
My entire life, my loved ones
around me have said habibi.
And when you're texting
you say barbecue,
you put B-B-Q.
Whenever you put habibi,
you put H-B-B.
H-B-B-Q.
So it's like Smart.
I grew up with a lot of family
around me the whole time.
I have easily, like,
50, 60 cousins
just living within
like, you know,
five, ten miles from me.
-How do y'all like the rib?
-[man] I like the rib.
I did something
different on it.
-[man] Oh, you did?
-[Marc] Mmm-hmm.
It was a bit spicy,
but I love it.
I love spicy.
[Marc] I' m the only person
in my family that knows
how to smoke food
and barbecue.
None of them know
what I'm doing.
But my family is always
there for me.
They're always supporting me.
[woman] No, Molly! Molly!
[all groaning] Molly.
-[man] Sit down.
-Molly!
-[woman] It's okay.
We forgive you.
-Molly.
[laughing]
[Marc] I'm on
the barbecue team.
I've got regionals coming up.
You're gonna have homecoming
the same time.
And then I have my school,
and then I'm gonna have to
sign up for college.
It's a-- It's a lot.
Chef, I brought mustard.
Real talk, out of luck,
tick tock.
[Coach A]
For today's practice,
we're actually doing a full
competition practice set up.
We started prep already
at 06:00 a.m.
And we're gonna follow
the same guidelines
as the competition.
[Marc] Spread times.
Boop, boop, boop,
boop, boop, boop, boop!
Let's go!
[Coach A] The rules are
turn in a dessert, beans,
chicken, ribs and brisket.
Everything has a certain time
that we're allowed
to turn it in.
We're just gonna do
a whole competition,
but without the actual
other competitors.
When it comes to competitions,
we can't be nowhere near you.
So basically, you have
to basically own your job.
You've got to know
what you're doing,
so that way,
during competition,
you're not running around
with your heads chopped off.
[Marc] Do you remember
the first competition
when everything
was flying away?
That was so scary.
I was like, Oh my God,
we're losing.
We don't know what to do.
Brysen forgot how
to trim a brisket.
At least not as bad
when you drop the turkey.
-[Brysen] I did not
drop the turkey.
-You dropped the turkey.
-Did not drop the turkey.
-I remember it.
It was on the floor.
You spilled the juice
all over the wheel.
-That's why
we had to repaint it.
-[Brysen] It was the juice.
I'm just kidding, Brysen.
I love you.
Chef. I'm about to hit
a little pep in my step.
The first regional South Lake
is coming up.
I'm gonna take you head first
and I'll come swinging.
Competition wise,
you want ribs to be
as juicy as possible
because you got to get them
that perfect bite.
-Okay.
-[Marc] We take
a little needle,
we sh**t some juice in there.
I like to inject my ribs
between each bone.
I have my own little spritz.
I made it myself.
It's actually
a secret ingredient.
I'm gonna throw in my ribs.
[Coach A] Wait till 7:00.
-I need him to cook off
his cookies first.
-Until 7:00?
You're gonna sit there
and look pretty.
I love barbecue
because it's such a challenge
because you--
It's no sight recipe.
You have to constantly
move with it.
Oh, I mean, look at this.
Changing the fire temperature.
If it's cold outside,
you're gonna go through
a lot more wood.
Your fire shape,
the structure of the fire.
Every little thing goes
in to factor
compared to an inside kitchen
where you have one stove top
that's always
the same temperature.
[Coach A] Keep up
that heat here.
[Marc] Most 17-year-olds
don't know how
to scramble eggs.
Being able to work
and handle a fire
and being able to pull off
a dish outside,
it's impressive.
[Coach A] Dang,
look at that sunrise.
That looks cool.
[Marc] Okay.
I'm making my barbecue sauce
with my red soda.
We're gonna get
a slight sweetness,
like a candy taste.
Look at the color of it.
This is what you want
in a rib.
[Coach A] I turned it up
for you.
We could reduce it
a little bit more
than what it is, but--
Well, it's going to
get thicker
after we add
everything else, too.
Okay, here--
Here's everything. Look.
Two pinches of salt.
One pinch, two pinch.
Crushed pepper
and I blended it
in the coffee.
Two tablespoons
of apple cider vinegar.
Some of that Marky Poo
barbecue rib rub.
You know how I do it.
I wanna see what you want
to add to it.
I will go more for more--
A little bit more vinegar,
because all I taste right now
is just the chili powder
and the pepper.
[Marc] It's acidic and spicy.
Yes, it's spicy.
Maybe the honey
or brown sugar would take out
some the spiciness.
[Coach A] See,
I'm not tasting like,
a barbecue sauce or anything.
I mean, I know you're
trying to go different.
I know you're trying to do
something way different--
-[Marc] I want
that barbeque flavor.
-I know.
But I'm not--
I'm not getting that.
What if you were to add
some more of your rub
in to it?
You know,
to give it more flavor?
[Marc] I'm already worried
about my sauce honestly.
I wanna make sure it's good,
and I want to make sure
my ribs are tender.
You can tell I've got that
nice, peppery look on there.
You know, stuff like that.
That's nice.
I like it like that.
You want a peppery look
on there.
That's is a better bark.
[Coach A] Now it actually has,
like, a good barbecue taste.
It made me feel good
that he trusted me enough
to help him out
with the-- With the sauce.
It makes me really proud.
I grew up in this area.
I went to school in this area,
now I teach in this area.
Growing up,
a lot of the role models
that I had weren't positive.
So I guess they weren't
really [chuckles] role models.
So I was always
down the wrong path
up until a certain point.
Just being
that positive role model,
it's an amazing thing.
Faster, faster serve.
Tilt it a little more forward.
[camera clicking]
All right, nice.
Ribs, you don't want it
to fall off the bone.
I want to be able
to hold it upside down
and shake it a little bit
and it still sticks to it.
But I want to still be able
to [chomps] slide right off.
Hmm. Look at that rib.
Honestly, I'm very proud
of my sauce.
It ended up giving me
that strong, peppery taste.
[Damion] The color is good.
That candy red.
[Coach A] I like them a lot.
My only complaint is
the ribs aren't cooked
all the way.
They needed to be more--
A little more tender.
[Marc] I always struggled
with making them too tender.
-And I figured-- Exactly.
-[Coach A] That was an issue
last year too. Yeah.
And my goal for this one
was to try to make them
less tender.
So I wanted to see
what would happen
if I was
to pull them out earlier.
This is my senior year,
so this is my last year
doing this type
of competition.
I really, really want
to place high.
I put a lot of time in this.
I needed some proof
telling me that I did good.
[Coach Beasley] 1-10,
will you meet me
out at Lake Ridge High School
in about 15 minutes?
Coaching high school barbecue,
it's a true passion.
My full time job is being
a police supervisor
around the district.
It was my dream as a kid
to be a police officer.
Just around 2007,
I told my wife Steph,
I'm gonna do this
and it gave me a chance
to help others,
which is what
I've always wanted to do
is help other people.
And I found time afterwards
to coach these students
on how to cook barbecue.
Being law enforcement,
the kids have a lot of respect
for the badge and the g*n.
They know that I'm going to be
sh**ting straight with them
and they know that
I'm not going to tolerate
none of the nonsense.
I feel like I'm a counselor.
I feel like I'm a parent.
I'm gonna pull
the best out of 'em.
-Let's go.
-[door squeaks]
Okay. Come on.
Let's get stuff going, bro.
All right.
On weekdays, we practice
the separate components.
Okay, set-- Set that in now.
And today we're gonna practice
chocolate cake.
Zane is the captain,
he needs to be here.
We all need to be able
to fill in.
So if this cake goes wrong,
who's gonna bake it
if the person baking
goes down?
We need somebody to step up.
Keep going, keep going,
keep going, keep going.
Wow, the Zane-ster pulling up.
[Zane's dad] Let's go with it.
[male producer]
We rolling cameras?
[female producer] It's like,
what's kind going on?
Um, I broke my leg.
I was walking and I stepped
in a puddle and I slipped
and fell all on my knee.
And then they said
I had a fractured
tibial plateau,
which is right when
the bone hits the knee.
I'm kind of bummed
that this happened.
[Coach Beasley]
How's it going?
[Zane's dad]
It'll be a lot better
when he can drive.
[Coach Beasley] Yes, indeed.
[Zane] I'm supposed to
be a leader for the team
and everything,
and with my broken leg
I don't know
what's gonna happen.
This is not how
I would anticipate
in my senior year at all.
-We need to win a regional.
-Okay.
That's going to set us up
for state.
We're working outside today.
We're working in the elements.
So we're working like this
is a competition.
I can't like heavy lift
anything, so
You're good, you're good.
Well, I don't want you
running back and forth
because we would never
get nothing done,
because you're not 100%.
[Zane] I mean,
I can't stay here until 8:30.
[grunts]
[Coach Beasley]
So you grunt,
and you in this condition?
It ain't gonna work for you.
You see what I'm saying?
You would be decommissioned.
You wouldn't--
You wouldn't be
no good to the team.
I just want to know from you.
Tell me where you're at.
What's your--
What's your mind thoughts
as far as leading a team?
If that's something that
you really think you can do.
[sighs]
[Zane] My leg is sore.
I'm just tired
and got a headache.
Yeah, it's everything
right now it's just kind of
Kind of bad, I guess,
is the words.
[Coach Langdon] All right.
You wanna go see
if we can make
a bunch of fools of ourselves
trying to get
this barbecue pit out there?
Granbury is this
great little town.
Got the small town feel to it.
It's a great place
to grow a family
and raise kids.
[straining] Three.
And what I love about Granbury
High School barbecue
is that If we get
that small family feel
within our department.
I just want to make sure
we don't blow ourselves up.
[Emery] Yeah,
we don't want that.
[Coach Langdon] Cause
there's not a ton of
The disparity of setups
that different teams have
is huge.
Sometimes it does feel
like David versus Goliath.
Okay, let's talk about
what we're doing here.
Okeydokey, cow pokey.
While other schools
are preparing
for their first
regional competition,
we're getting our fundraising
set up and in place
so that we can really start
our competition practices.
We need to get some dollars
in the bank before we can just
go after it real hard.
That's what it boils down to.
Y'all know how some places
will do like a thermometer
to track
their fundraising stuff.
So we're going to use
this old cow.
We're gonna have each one
of these primal cuts
is gonna be worth
a certain amount,
and that's how
we're gonna track
our fundraising goal
for the year.
So 2,000 is our goal.
We're gonna write
up here like
And it could be y'all--
Maybe not you.
Your handwriting.
-[laughing]
-You're being mean.
It's not bad.
My handwriting is so good.
Put down.
Give me two compliments.
Your hair looks great today,
and you're good at chicken.
-There you go.
-I'm great at chicken.
[Coach Langdon]
Barbecue is expensive,
equipment is expensive,
cuts of meat are expensive,
and those costs just continue
to rise every single year.
We try to take hold
of every opportunity
for fundraising.
One way that we raise money
is by selling the awesome food
that we make.
You are representing
not only yourselves,
but you're representing
Granbury High School
and you're representing me.
We have the pricing
on our menu.
We have different jobs
that we're going to do.
But we're going to come out,
and we're going to
work for it, right?
Texas Cowboy Symposium
is a brand new event.
It has awesome
Texas swing music
and barbecue.
Thank you.
I was a junior
when I first started barbecue.
It's just what I love to do,
and it's like my passion now.
I'm really, really excited
to see what this year
has in hands for us.
[woman] When we run out
or you're sold out
Is this it?
[Emery] No, ma'am.
We have plenty more.
We have plenty more.
[Coach Langdon]
What we've raised so far,
because at Texas
Cowboys Symposium,
will get us through
our first regional
which is exciting.
But we have a long way
to go to get us to state.
[Gus] Come here. Sit down.
[playful growling]
-[Rola] Stop!
-[Gus] Get him, Molly.
-Molly.
-[Rola] Get off!
Yeah, go see Dad. Go see Dad.
I got hair all over me.
-Look at that little dude.
-[laughs]
-Look at him.
He ain't got no teeth.
-[Gus] Oh my God.
-[Gus chuckles]
-Look at that dude.
-Look how chunky he was.
-[Gus] What happened to you?
Look, look.
He even had long hair.
[laughing]
I know that you have
the ACT test coming up.
Are you taking that?
[Marc] Yeah.
That doesn't sound
very convincing.
It's on 3rd.
-Of?
-October.
-But yeah, I'm gonna take it.
-[Rola] Okay.
'Cause we need to do
college tours.
-Which college?
-[Rola] I don't know.
You tell me.
[Marc] I don't know.
You tell me.
It's like Houston, I think.
Let's Google it.
[Rola] Why do you wanna
go that far?
It's just like UTA.
They just don't have like,
culinary classes.
Or UT Austin or, I mean--
But do they have culinary?
But why do you want
to do culinary?
Why don't you do culinary
on the side
and get yourself
a degree in something?
-Like what?
-I don't know.
You were doing
computer science.
-I know, but--
-That was your path.
I don't like it like that.
It's just-- I just don't
like it like that.
It's boring.
There's nothing interesting
about it.
Whenever I talked to Marc
and he told me
he wanted to go into culinary,
it gave me a heart attack.
I don't think we have
anybody in our family
that went into that line.
In college,
I did architecture.
You know, it was looked upon
as, "What? You're not going
to be a doctor?"
Because that's all we know.
You know, if you're going
to go to school
and get a degree,
you have to become a doctor
or a lawyer.
-Or an engineer
-Or an engineer.
But once they saw
and they understood
more of what I was doing,
it was-- It was very rewarding
and they were very supportive.
I just want him
to be smart about it.
So if it's the culinary path
that he chooses, fine.
You know, do that.
As long as you get
a bachelor's degree
along the way, [laughs]
that's all I care about.
[Gus] But seriously, I mean,
you've always talked
about engineering.
[Marc] It's just--
It's not my thing.
And all of a sudden,
now you're talking
about culinary.
[Marc] I've never--
I talked about engineering
when I was
in elementary school.
You can't ask
what an elementary kid
wants to do with his life.
-He doesn't know.
-[Rola] We're just asking you.
You don't have to
get defensive.
I'm not getting defensive.
I'm just saying the obvious.
I'm just saying. It's just--
It's a lot of hard work.
-Exactly.
-Culinary.
Honestly, culinary is not
that hard really.
It's really just
owning a business.
If you know how
to own a business
and make a recipe,
then you're chilling.
[Gus] Do you know
how to own a business?
You're asking a high schooler
if he knows
how to own a business.
That's dealing with employees,
dealing with
unhappy customers.
[Marc] But that's at first.
I just-- We just wan
to make sure that,
you know, you're gonna
be set in your life.
Don't touch the bottom
of your shoe.
No. Basically,
what I'm trying to tell you
is that we would like
for you to
[sighs] Get a good degree
and in parallel
do the culinary, just in case.
[Rola] That's called
running away.
-Running away.
-That's called running away
from the conversation.
[Marc] I feel like
I owe my parents a lot.
They gave me
such a wonderful life.
I definitely have
a lot to live up to.
Obviously, they're gonna
support me
because they love me.
But the thing is that
they just want me
to be successful.
They want me
to make sure I'm making
the right choices in life.
But it also makes me
feel overwhelmed.
[Coach Beasley] All right.
[yawns] Let's go.
Let's go! Let's go!
I hope y'all got everything
you need.
Y'all need more seasoning.
Y'all didn't bring oil?
Improvise.
This is just a binder.
[Coach Rob] The best way
to practice is to practice
competition style.
So you have to come in
at 4:30 on Saturday morning
until 3:00.
It is intense.
Today is the day
we're gonna see who's who.
[Coach Beasley]
That's trash, trash.
The only thing
you want to keep is this.
-In cook competitions,
you got to step up.
-Yes, sir.
You're gonna have
to get this here.
-Look. Do you see
how fast I'm moving?
-[high school boy] Yes.
'Cause that needs to go
on the smoker
no later than 7:30.
So that means you got--
You got to step it up.
Okay. Now,
y'all take a picture of that
because that's what
y'all briskets
should look like.
That's what I need y'all to do
every competition,
every practice.
In order to win brisket,
you got to get
the perfect trim,
the right amount of seasoning,
the right cook.
Those flavors got
to come through.
In order for us to win it,
we've got to perfect it.
[whoops]
[Zane] Give me a table.
Are y'all keeping up
with the time? It's 9:34.
Competitive barbecue,
the first thing
that you gotta be ready for
is a 12-hour day.
Chicken can take
three and a half hours.
Use all of this.
You want a nice,
juicy chicken.
A rib, four hours.
All right, ribs are on.
Brisket, eight or nine hours.
[exclaims]
[groans] That was bad almost.
-[groans]
-[Coach Rob] 9:50, guys.
[grunts]
If my leg wasn't broken,
I mean, you'd definitely see
a more amped up guy.
But it's pretty hard to,
you know, go around
and [chuckles] limp.
[girl] Aw, I missed.
-Chill!
-[girl giggling]
Food fight!
-[girl continues giggling]
-Food fight.
Look at y'all ribs.
Y'all rib look like
it's a curve in the highway.
I straightened it.
[Coach Beasley]
Hey, you ain't gotta try
and justify.
This is the problem I have.
This curved top
and this curved bottom.
-It's just a curve.
-Yeah.
I'm just saying
you're going to have
some jacked up cut slices.
[Zane] There's a lot
of pressure on me
as the captain
since I got first place
in ribs at state last year.
But first place
in ribs last year
doesn't necessarily mean
first place ribs this year.
Move! Excuse me.
Coming through.
Coming through.
Coming through.
Coming through.
[boy] I want to spray it
with vinegar.
I want to make it clean.
Stay together, stay together,
stay together, stay together.
[groans] It's probably
not a good one, but keep it.
[Coach Rob] Yeah,
I don't know about that.
[Zane] We'll get
a better knife for comp.
Well, I didn't have
good flavor.
-And this one's a little dry.
-Yeah.
It'll be ready for regionals
with some minor
-Major. Some
major adjustments.
-Yeah.
What are you worried
about, Paul? Really.
Zane.
Zane had to step up
his cooking game.
[Coach Rob] The injury really
threw that off.
I don't know
what he's talking about.
This knife is not sharp.
[girl] It's ready.
[Coach Beasley] We have
an hour and 20 minutes
to turn in brisket.
So by the time
you turn that in,
you should be ready
to shut down and leave.
[Zane] Well, we got
to take the briskets out
for about 20 minutes, Chef,
but heard.
[Coach Beasley]
It doesn't matter, Zane.
-We'll start taking it.
-I'm just telling you.
[Coach Beasley]
It doesn't matter, Zane.
[Coach Rob] I need a timer set
so that y'all don't miss
turning time.
[groans]
Legs like a-- On a pain level,
it's like a 6 out of 10.
It's starting to like
throb a little bit,
so I'm kind of taking a break.
My leg feels like--
It feels like it's about
to explode.
[indistinct conversation]
[Coach Rob] You know
your brisket is late, right?
[Zane] Yes, we know.
Our brisket is not up to temp.
It's only like 195, 196.
It needs to get to like, 200
for it to be tender.
We're in a competition,
so we have to
accelerate cooking
in order to meet
turn in times.
Going forward when we get
to our number five,
wrap it in foil.
What does foil do?
Convection oven, right?
It's gonna help cook it.
Make sure it's tight.
It's gotta be like that.
I've always told you,
you gotta make sure
it's tight like a baby
in a blanket.
If this was competition,
I would say
just slice it anyway.
It's going to be tough.
At least you get one point.
In this case, y'all got zero.
We can't have this
on next weekend.
[Francesca gasps]
Oh my goodness.
-Bold.
-That's huge.
-I know.
-Are you gonna try it
around my neck?
I'm gonna try to.
[Rola] That's what
you call it. Size 'em up.
[both laughing]
Should I light it up?
-Lights up?
-Yeah.
Homecoming is a big deal
for Texans.
You have to have a mum
because it's literally,
like a big old
origami type of thing.
I don't really know why.
It honestly makes no sense.
But at the same time,
we don't know
why the sky is blue.
I mean, we do. But like
Are you gonna check
my blood pressure, too?
[laughs]
[Marc] Francesca is
my girlfriend.
I've been dating her
for two years now.
She's my first
serious girlfriend.
I love her.
-Mr. Belly.
Mr. Belly's a little full.
-[Francesca giggles]
-Isn't that right?
-Yeah.
-Ain't that right?
-Yeah.
If you go back
like five years,
I would have never thought
that I'd even
have a girlfriend.
I'm gonna be honest.
You know, I was just like
a little nerdy, chubby kid.
Stand right here
so I can take
y'all's photo first.
[Marc] Future-wise,
I don't know how long
we'll be together.
I don't even know
what I'm gonna do
when I'm older, so
[Gus] Bye, you guys.
Have fun, please.
See you later. I love you.
[Marc] I got to wake up
at two in the morning
'cause I have to be
at competition at
about four in the morning.
But tonight I gotta have fun.
[rousing band music playing]
[indistinct conversation]
-[audience cheering]
-[cowbell ringing]
[man] Let's go!
-[Marc] Thank you.
-[Francesca] She wasn't
talking to you.
[Marc] But my mom's
not here today, so.
[Francesca laughs] Yeah.
[indistinct conversation]
[speaking Arabic]
[in English]
How's the game looking?
-I just got here.
I know we're winning.
-[boy 1] It's 48 by 3.
Okay, okay.
[boy 2] He's like,
I'm gonna leave like,
right at halftime
and go to bed.
We're at homecoming, Brysen.
You're such a lame baby.
You ain't never
doing this again.
You ain't never
doing this again.
Think about that.
No more homecoming.
-[indistinct cheering]
-[whistle blows]
[Marc] Oh yeah!
[laughing]
Between trying to figure out
what I'm gonna do
when I'm older
and my barbecue competition
that I have
and literally everything else
in my life,
I'm still a student. You know?
And I think my day
is for, you know,
trying to be like a kid again.
Those aren't really
like too often.
[crowd cheering]
[producer] Well,
what scares you
about the future?
Growing up.
-[all cheering]
-Yeah! Yeah.
[whispers] Oh my God.
What time is it?
I'm supposed to be
at the competition now.
I even put my pants
on backwards.
I don't feel good right now.
None of my alarms went off.
I had seven alarms.
One for each minute.
They didn't go off.
How you gonna show up late
to a competition?
I'm nervous now.
[suspenseful music playing]
[indistinct conversation]
[Coach A] Where's Marc?
Text them to hurry up.
[GPS navigation]
In 2.3 miles,
keep left towards South Lake.
[cellphone ringing]
Dude. Yeah, I'm late.
I overslept.
None of my alarms went off.
As soon as the bell rings,
you're gonna start
working on cookies.
-Yeah, as soon as
the bell rings.
-Because remember
from 6:00 a.m. to 7:00 a.m.
you have the smoker
all by yourself.
-What's up?
-[Damion] Jump in
and start helping, dude.
[Brysen]
You have been slacking.
-[boy] Do you need this?
-[girl] Yeah.
[boy] Do you need this?
[Marc] Starting off
on a bad foot
before competition,
mentally, it's not
the best situation to be in.
The stakes are high
just because
the first regional marks how
you're gonna sit
for the year, you know.
You show up
to a first football game,
you see your team's
playing bad,
you already know
you are not going
to the Super Bowl that year.
The smoke hit me in the face.
[Zane] After breaking my leg,
you know,
I was definitely down.
It was definitely hindered
my mentality.
And right now my leg feels
better than it did.
Building a bit
of strength back up.
[Coach Beasley] Good job.
Stay on task.
You guys got this.
Told you Ben Barber
was gonna be here.
-One team!
-One dream!
-One team!
-One dream!
[all cheer]
A typical cook off day,
4:30 a.m. they come
on the property.
They can go ahead
and start their fires
at 5 a.m.
[Coach Beasley]
Fire in the hole!
[girl exclaims]
[Chuck] At 6 o'clock
in the morning,
we tape off the cook area.
Once it's taped off,
the adult mentors have to stay
outside of the cooking area.
[triangle ringing]
And they start cooking.
[Coach Rob] Go ahead
and throw your onions
and stuff in there,
your beans
and some seasonings.
Let's roll.
Let's go.
[Coach A] Damion,
how much more time
until your cookies go in?
Just trying to make sure
we're on time.
-[Marc] That's some nice
brisket, dude.
-[Brysen] Thank you.
But remember,
try to square it off
a little bit.
[Brysen] Yeah, I'm fixing it.
So that way
the smoke rolls over it.
I think that will give it
a more smoky flavor anyway.
Hey, I'm putting
our turning trays
in this blue one.
[Marc] How's everybody doing?
Good.
[Marc] I'm about
to season my ribs,
and I'm coming
straight to you, okay?
I don't want to ruin
the seasoning on the top.
I want to get that bark,
that nice peppery bark.
Oh, this rub smells amazing.
Who made this?
[chuckles]
My mindset
going to this competition,
I'm worried about my sauce.
I wanna make sure it's good.
I haven't had a competition
since last year's state.
And last year's state,
I didn't do too good.
I need to come back.
New season, new meat.
[dramatic music playing]
[Zane] Did you pop
the breast bone?
That's you gotta do first.
That's first step.
Yeah, you just do a firm--
Yeah, you gotta make sure
you keep that--
Let these legs and wings
sit straight.
[fire crackling]
[Zane] There's high
expectations for me.
I mean, I have
the most experience.
I'm the seasoned member.
I just have to walk in
and keep my head straight.
We're a team
that everyone wants to beat.
So we got a target
on our backs.
We got to accept it.
We gotta win
those belt buckles.
We got to do this.
[Coach Rob] We're gonna walk
through this together, right?
Me and you?
You trust me?
I trust you.
[Marc] Things feel chaotic.
It's overwhelming for me
to figure out
my future and purpose
in the world.
But being in front
of my smoker
and making really good food,
it makes me happy right now.
It feels right.
-Yeah, that's a money rib!
-[Brysen exclaims]
[high school girl]
I want to be
as unique as possible,
and that's really not
the coolest thing to do
when you're in high school.
[imitating banjo twang]
[yelps]
Barbecue was definitely
one of the areas
in high school
that I felt like I belonged.
[Zane] My whole life,
adding up my passions,
my goals.
And then adulthood colliding.
[Coach Beasley]
You are second place
in the state of Texas, Zane.
Let's act like
we're second place.
[Marc] This is the moment.
We've worked
all year for this.
100 teams and a chance
to get first place
in the state of Texas.
Winning state,
that puts you on the map.
[Coach Rob]
Okay, guys, it's crunch time.
You gotta go fast.
-[boy] Yellow, yellow.
-[Coach Beasley] Go!
[Zane] Everyone's panicking.
I'm panicking on the inside.
I try not to show it.
[Emery] My chicken goes wrong,
them we're not gonna
get scholarships,
and it's gonna mess up
my future.
The chicken's not cooking
fast enough for turn in time.
Oh no. I think
I just screwed up major.
I just need to sit.
[Marc] The fire's dead.
Why aren't we paying
attention to the fire?
You're messing up my cook.
You're messing up your cook.
-You're messing up
the morale of the team.
-Stop!
First place in the High School
Barbecue Incorporated
State Championship
This is epic, bro.
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01x01 - Pilot
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Across Texas, teens compete in regional BBQ competitions for a shot at the state championship and scholarships.
Across Texas, teens compete in regional BBQ competitions for a shot at the state championship and scholarships.