It was barely two years ago, Iola High School started up its barbecue team, the Underhogs.
Eight students signed up to learn the barbecue basics under IHS special education teacher Doug Kerr, a long-time backyard grill enthusiast.
The squad has fared well since then, raking in multiple awards at both the state and national levels in both the 2024 and 2025 cooking seasons.
Fast forward to this month, where the extracurricular club has grown to 49 competitors, including 27 high-schoolers and for the time Iola Middle School students.
“It’s gotten so big, so fast,” Kerr said.
More than 20 of the students were available for the Underhogs’ first day of practice March 13, a number likely affected because it was the first day of spring break, with many unavailable.
Still, it was plenty for Kerr to go through the BBQ basics, from setting up a tent to explaining how various spices, rubs and other ingredients affect each of the entries.
The 2026 season — it’s a spring “sport” — has a few other changes in store.
For one, students no longer prepare pork chops or dutch oven chili.
In their places are pork butts and dutch oven cakes.
“The cakes scare me,” Kerr said. “I’m anything but a pastry chef.”
He needn’t have worried. By the time the practice ended, the Underhogs had a row of tasty desserts ready for judging.
KERR walked the students through the three phases — prep, cook and finishing — of barbecue competitions.
He demonstrated the proper way to cut into the meats, how they’re brined or seasoned, and then placed in either a grill or smoker.
The larger number of competitors has also meant seeking out sponsorships to help cover the costs.
Real Man Meat BBQ of Kansas City has agreed to provide the various spices and rubs for the 2026 Underhogs.
