I know Bill Cody has raised yellow bullheads in cages in his pond in the past. So I am sure he can share his immense wisdom and knowledge with you...
As far as my experience with brown and yellow bullheads...
I have always like the way they taste better than CC. Just my personal preference I suppose. They will readily take feed and grow quite well when fed. There maximum size is around 18" and 3 to 4 pounds. However, 12" and 1 pound is about where I like to harvest them for the table. If they are raised in a clean pond where there is a healthy LMB population, I generally don't see them getting overpopulated. It is when there are fish kills(they are rarely the ones doing the dying) that I see issues. Large numbers of bass die off and the bullheads then go wild. Turning into 4" runts. I have never seen bullheads stir up a pond into a muddy mess. I am not saying it can't be done, but in the several ponds I have managed with bullheads in them, this has never happened.
As far as which species to choose, I would pick either the brown or yellow bullhead. The black bullhead is the most prolific and also the smallest of the three. Yellow bullheads are the nest biggest with brown bullheads reaching the largest in size.
Brown and yellow bullheads are generalists in their diet. There is no doubt they will compete with BG and YP as well as others for food. How much of an overlap their is, I am not sure. I have seen some very large sunfish come out of ponds that contain bullheads and vice versa. If you feed your fish, the competition is greatly reduced. Bullheads are predatory and will gladly strike a jig or small crankbait, but not nearly as much as CC. IME, bullheads are also nowhere near as hook shy and far less picky about the bait choice.
So, if you like to eat bullheads, have a healthy bass population, stocking some isn't going to destroy your fishery. If you have the ability to cage them and raise them in a cage, that is also a viable option.
IME, bullheads that are not overpopulated reach 4"-6" by the end of their fist year, 6"-10" by the end of the second year and 8"-12" by the end of their third year. I usually harvest them in the 12" range.
