Back-to-back
2 in a row
editions of this contest
WARREN COUNTY PORK CHOPPERS won here last time out too — 2 straight editions of this contest.
- 2013
- 2014
Smokin' in McMinnville 2014
Aug 8–9, 2014 · McMinnville, TN
WARREN COUNTY PORK CHOPPERS won Grand Champion at the Smokin' in McMinnville on August 8, 2014 in McMinnville, TN, scoring 699.3484 in a field of 40 teams. HISTORIC BBQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 694.8000. Category winners: Chicken — SWIGGIN PIG (177.7028); Pork Ribs — COCK-A-DOODLE-DOO BBQ (178.8572); Pork — SOUTH PORK (176.5600); Brisket — WARREN COUNTY PORK CHOPPERS (180.0000). This is the 2nd of 6 editions of this contest on record; the 2013 edition was won by WARREN COUNTY PORK CHOPPERS; the next was held in 2015.
The contest at a glance (read off the scored boards)
How the field scored
Overall totals, every team on the board — tall stacks are where the pack sat.
503.28
median 672.44
699.35 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 177.70
- Pork Ribs 178.86
- Pork 176.56
- Brisket 180 🔥
20
180
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2013 to 2018 — this edition picked out.
Entries
40
4 judged meats · 3 ancillary
Top score
699.3484
Winning margin
4.5484
GC over RC
Field average
663.86
503.28699.35
median 672.44 · last place to winner
Tightest race
Chicken
3.4400 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
685.0512
503.28699.35
10th place overall
Field spread
196.0684
winner to last place
Double threats
6
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 37%
beats 63% of 4715 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
54%
20 of 37 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Strong
ρ = -0.73 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,552
avg power rating going in · stronger than 39% of contests
Storylines (7 found in this contest's numbers)
Everything below is read straight out of the results — the number on each card is the one that made it a story.
A dynasty in the making
3×
wins at this contest
3 of 6 tracked editions
SWIGGIN PIG has won this contest 3 times across its 6 tracked editions.
- 2015
- 2016
- 2017
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 12 calls decided inside half a point
Chicken places 4–5: SMOKIN N TURNIN BBQ and MIDNIGHT SMOKERS MJ tied on 174.2628 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork Ribs places 3–4: WARREN COUNTY PORK CHOPPERS and MIDNIGHT SMOKERS MJ tied on 175.4172 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork Ribs places 4–5: MIDNIGHT SMOKERS MJ and SWIGGIN PIG tied on 175.4172 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Chicken 4–5 · tie
- Pork Ribs 3–4 · tie
- Pork Ribs 4–5 · tie
- Pork 5–6 · tie
How the title was won
3 of 4
meats called to the stage
WARREN COUNTY PORK CHOPPERS took the title on 3 calls from 4 meats, with 1 outright win — their weakest board was chicken at 13th.
- Chicken 13th
- Pork Ribs 3rd
- Pork 10th
- Brisket 1st
A contest record in chicken
177.7028
best chicken ever cooked here
SWIGGIN PIG turned in 177.7028 in chicken — past the 176.5600 that had stood across 1 earlier editions.
- old best 176.5600
- across 1 past editions
Back to defend
1
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: WARREN COUNTY PORK CHOPPERS (won 2013).
- WARREN COUNTY PORK CHOPPERS · 2013
A perfect score on the table
1
perfect 180s
1 perfect 180 was scored at this contest — every judge at the table handing back a nine.
- WARREN COUNTY PORK CHOPPERS · Brisket
Score curves (score by finishing position — steep cliffs mean a spread field, flat lines a knife fight)
Category showdown (top / average / median score per meat)
Score distribution
Biggest rating movers (power-rating points won and lost at this contest)
Did form hold? (pre-contest rating vs overall finish — ratings called it if the dots climb to the right)
This contest over the years full contest page →
| Date | Where | Venue | Teams | High score | Grand Champion | Reserve Champion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 9, 2013 | McMinnville, TN | McMinnville, TN | 37 | 699.9428 | WARREN COUNTY PORK CHOPPERS | SOUTH PORK |
| Aug 8, 2014 ← this one | McMinnville, TN | McMinnville, TN 37111 | 40 | 699.3484 | WARREN COUNTY PORK CHOPPERS | HISTORIC BBQ |
| Aug 7, 2015 | McMinnville, TN | McMinnville, TN 37122 | 37 | 704.5372 | SWIGGIN PIG | GREY STREET BBQ |
| Aug 12, 2016 | McMinnville, TN | McMinnville, TN 37122 | 32 | 699.9312 | SWIGGIN PIG | SOUTH PORK |
| Aug 11, 2017 | McMinnville, TN | 500 Garfield St. | 35 | 708.5372 | SWIGGIN PIG | BUSH LEAGUE BBQ |
| Aug 10, 2018 | McMinnville, TN | 500 Garfield St. | 28 | 705.7144 | SMOKE ME SILLY | HOT COLE'S BBQ |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 177.7028 | 174.2628 | 172 |
| Pork Ribs | 178.8572 | 175.4172 | 173.1200 |
| Pork | 176.5600 | 172.5600 | 171.9656 |
| Brisket | 180 | 174.8800 | 173.1428 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
40 entries · top 699.3484 · median 672.4398
Chicken
40 entries · top 177.7028 · median 168.8170
Pork Ribs
40 entries · top 178.8572 · median 167.1086
Pork
40 entries · top 176.5600 · median 169.1142
Brisket
40 entries · top 180 · median 167.4000 · 🔥 perfect 180
Ancillary categories
Run by the organizers alongside the sanctioned contest. These are judged on their own terms and do not count toward the overall score, so they're kept out of the meat stats above.
Master Series — Backyard Chicken
5 entries · top 173.1200 · median 169.1428
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | PORKY'S NIGHTMARE | |
| 2 | Stuff 'N' Thangs | |
| 3 | Prime+1 - Security Federal | |
| 4 | SMOKE IN THE GROVE | |
| 5 | Spooky's BBQ |
Master Series — Backyard Ribs
5 entries · top 175.4400 · median 155.9772
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | PORKY'S NIGHTMARE | |
| 2 | Stuff 'N' Thangs | |
| 3 | Spooky's BBQ | |
| 4 | Prime+1 - Security Federal | |
| 5 | SMOKE IN THE GROVE |
Master Series — Desserts
18 entries · top 180 · median 176.5600 · 🔥 perfect 180