A North Carolina State University professor spent 15 years tinkering with a homemade barbecue sauce recipe in his kitchen, and now that sauce carries the Wolfpack's official seal. Dr. Chris DePerno, who has taught wildlife management and conservation at NC State for 22 years, is set to sell his new Slobberin' Sauce to the public for the first time on Saturday at Packapalooza, the university's massive Hillsborough Street block party.
The sauce, described as sweet, smoky, tangy and peppery, is the product of a formal partnership between NC State and DePerno, announced by the university on Thursday, according to WBTV. Packapalooza, which caps off the university's Wolfpack Welcome Week, draws more than 90,000 attendees, according to NC State News, giving DePerno's sauce an enormous local stage for its debut. Known around campus as Dr. D, DePerno oversees NC State's Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology program and holds a doctorate in wildlife management from South Dakota State University.
Bridging North Carolina's Barbecue Divide
What sets Slobberin' Sauce apart, per the WBTV report, is its attempt to combine two barbecue traditions that North Carolinians have long treated as rivals: the tomato-based sauce favored in the western part of the state and the vinegar-based flavor associated with the east. That divide runs deep in the state's food culture — Eastern-style whole-hog barbecue traditionally pairs with a thin vinegar-and-pepper sauce, while Western Lexington-style pork shoulder leans on a tomato-and-sugar base, according to Taste of Home. DePerno told WBTV that giving back has always been part of the plan, saying the goal has always been to give back to supportive communities and invest in the next generation, and adding that Slobberin' Sauce will give back through the partnership with NC State.
The sauce comes in 16-ounce glass jars stamped with NC State's classic Tuffy logo on both the label and the lid, and it can be bought online, per the WBTV report. It is manufactured without high-fructose corn syrup as a small-batch recipe, sold either individually or bundled with DePerno's other product, Dr. D's Original Barbeque Sauce. That sauce is distributed through DePerno Enterprises LLC, an Apex-based company DePerno founded to manage the trademarks and commercial operations behind the brand.
Scholarships Funded by Sauce Sales
Sales of Slobberin' Sauce generate royalties that go toward student scholarships, following a licensing structure that has become a signature of NC State's brand strategy. The university allocates 95% of its net trademark licensing revenue to student financial support, providing more than $2 million annually across merit, need-based, athletic and study-abroad scholarships, according to official brand guidelines published by NC State's Office of Strategic Brand Management. That office, run by Assistant Vice Chancellor Chris Boyer, was established in 2019 specifically to move the university beyond traditional logo licensing and into direct product development.
The strategy has paid off in national rankings. NC State placed 28th nationally among more than 700 colleges in trademark licensing royalties in 2023 and won the International Collegiate Licensing Association's Synergy Award that same year for innovative co-branding partnerships, according to NC State News. Slobberin' Sauce joins a growing lineup of university-branded food and drink products that includes Howling Cow ice cream, made on campus since the 1970s using milk from NC State's 300-head dairy herd, and a Riviera Mexican Style Lager launched in 2023 through a partnership between NC State Athletics and Raleigh's R&D Brewing.
What's Next for the Wolfpack
DePerno's sauce debut lands just before NC State football kicks off its 2026 season on August 29 on the road against Virginia, with the team's home opener following on September 11. Whether Slobberin' Sauce becomes a tailgate staple or DePerno adds more products to the university's commercial portfolio remains to be seen, but for now, fans looking to try it can find it for the first time in person this weekend at Packapalooza.
