Tailgating: Sooners prevail in Bedlam Tailgating Showdown

Wedged between Oklahoma State University's cataclysmic loss to the Cyclones of Iowa State and OU's bitter defeat at the hands of Baylor's Bears, the competition featured four teams. The Two Docs Tailgate prevailed on behalf of the crimson and cream.

Steve Carter and friends unseated defending champion Bart Towne and his OSU posse from Kingfisher — no small achievement.

Big prizes are due big achievement, and that's what Carter and his clan garnered, taking home a portable Primo kamado-style grill from American Propane, a 42-inch flat-screen television from Byford Autogroup of Chickasha and $500 from Homeland grocery stores. The Oklahoma Beef Council also sponsored the event.

American Propane, 7401 N Broadway Extension, again hosted the event. However, this year, four teams competed for the crown. The teams showed a variety of foods and high spirits on a blustery fall afternoon. Cooks showed great skill with grills and skewers. The one dish each team did its own interpretation of was the jalapeno popper, which my old pal Dale Saviers once sagely proclaimed the culinary equivalent of sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll.

Sooner fan Mandy Grove and her family tailgate, which was started many years ago by her parents, made the semifinals. The Groves brought the most consistently tailgate-friendly food and off-the-charts enthusiasm. For their efforts, they took home $100 from Homeland.

OSU fraternity brothers Britton Bradford, Morgan Sanders and Robert Steinkirchner were looking for a unique tailgate truck that would be fun to work on and capable of everything. Mission accomplished. An army surplus Deuce and a half called Agent Orange boasts a 14-foot-by-12-foot party deck, two bars, hot tub and a legion of black-and-orange clad tailgaters. The group is known to roast whole pigs for its regular tailgate, which is the embodiment of going big rather than going home. The group also took home $100 from Homeland.

The Kingfisher crowd was every bit as potent as last year — perhaps more so. The spread that surrounds Towne's hand-built Poke-friendly smoker is truly inspired. Churches from Cimarron County to McCurtain would be proud to have a potluck as well-stocked as the Kingfisher tailgate.

But teams do not win the Bedlam Tailgating Showdown on spread alone.

The semifinalists were evaluated by five judges, who scored each team on food and setup. After that round, the kids from Kingfisher held a slim lead over Two Docs, which made the win even more difficult.