Photo by Kayla Martin
Brahmas Win Whataburger Jalapeno Challenge
An electric crowd, cheerleaders, and six men hungry for $1500 and bragging rights, set the scene for last night’s Jalapeno Eating Challenge, hosted by Whataburger, all part of the “Battle of the Blues” week. The competition resulted in a MacArthur victory by the team of Administrator Dennis Rudnick, “Big Mike” Sanchez, 12, and Brandon Colorado, 12.
Students from both Mac and Johnson showed up ready to win and to make as much noise as possible. But, at the end, the brahmas raised their arms in triumph, winning both the eating challenge and fan attendance award.
“We won by two, we had a total of 17, they had a total of 15,” Brandon Colorado, 12, said. “If we won, we would’ve gotten $1000 for our school, so that’s the main reason why I did it.”
It was a close and “heated” competition between the “Blues,” but “Big Mike” Sanchez pulled out the win with a total of eight jalapenos. Afterwards, he was just a little bit sweaty.
“My mouth is burning right now; it hurts a little bit,” he said. “I’m going to keep drinking all of this milk (provided by the restaurant) and go home and shower.”
Up until the day of the competition, the team only had one competitor, Mr. Rudnick, until two brave men sold their stomachs away for a chance at Mexican chili-pepper glory.
“Well, coaches had called me [Wednesday] morning and asked me if I wanted to do it and I said, ‘Sure I’ll do it to support the school,”‘ Big Mike said.
The multitude of school spirit and joy presented in last night’s victory showed the pride of the “Brahma Nation.” The only thing left to do is win Saturday’s football game.
“I was proud of [the team], but I was also proud of all the kids that were there because everybody represented MacArthur very well,” Principal Martinez said. “There was good spirit, good attitude, and I think everybody had a good time.”
