A knife fight at the top
4.5828
points across the top five
First to fifth in the overall standings covered just 4.5828 points.
- 1st PERFECTLY BLENDED
- 2nd Flappin in the Breeze
- 3rd RAMMER JAMMER BBQ
- 4th REDBONES BBQ
- 5th LEE LA Q
Southern Sounds BBQ & Bluefest Backyard Contest
Sep 25–26, 2020 · Semmes, AL · 📍 9930 Stone Rd · State championship
Reps: Janet Appleton, Sam Appleton · Prize money: $3,200
PERFECTLY BLENDED won Grand Champion at the Southern Sounds BBQ & Bluefest Backyard Contest on September 25, 2020 in Semmes, AL at 9930 Stone Rd, scoring 342.2400 in a field of 23 teams. Flappin in the Breeze took Reserve Grand Champion with 340.5716. Category winners: Chicken — LEE LA Q (173.7028); Pork Ribs — PERFECTLY BLENDED (170.2744).
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.
307.29
median 328.49
342.24 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 173.70
- Pork Ribs 170.27
143.92
173.70
Entries
23
2 judged meats · 1 ancillary
Top score
342.2400
Winning margin
1.6684
GC over RC
Field average
327.51
307.29342.24
median 328.49 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Chicken
2.2856 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
329.6916
307.29342.24
10th place overall
Field spread
34.9484
winner to last place
Prize money
$3,200
on the line
Double threats
2
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 83%
beats 17% of 610 Backyard Series wins in the data
Form held
Moderate
ρ = -0.52 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,549
avg power rating going in · stronger than 37% of contests
Storylines (3 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 rookie on the podium
2nd
at their first tracked contest
Flappin in the Breeze finished 2nd overall in the first contest the data has them cooking at all.
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 7 calls decided inside half a point
Pork Ribs places 5–6: The Real Squeal BBQ and RIBLIFE tied on 167.4172 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork Ribs places 9–10: PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q and HICKORY HANGOVER tied on 166.2400 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 6–7: Dixie Pigs & Chick's BBQ Team edged RAMMER JAMMER BBQ by 0.0112.
- Pork Ribs 5–6 · tie
- Pork Ribs 9–10 · tie
- Chicken 6–7 · 0.0112
- Chicken 8–9 · 0.0112
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)
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 173.7028 | 171.4172 | 167.4172 |
| Pork Ribs | 170.2744 | 167.4172 | 166.2400 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Backyard Series
Overall
23 entries · top 342.2400 · median 328.4916
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | PERFECTLY BLENDED | |
| 2 | Flappin in the Breeze | |
| 3 | RAMMER JAMMER BBQ | |
| 4 | REDBONES BBQ | |
| 5 | LEE LA Q | |
| 6 | HELL ON SQUEALS | |
| 7 | The Real Squeal BBQ | |
| 8 | Big Cats BBQ | |
| 9 | Southern Q | |
| 10 | Bama-Que | |
| 11 | HICKORY HANGOVER | |
| 12 | PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q | |
| 13 | Southern Heat | |
| 14 | RIBLIFE | |
| 15 | General Lee Smoking | |
| 16 | Batwing BBQ | |
| 17 | FLAPS UP BBQ | |
| 18 | Red, White & Brew | |
| 19 | Dixie Pigs & Chick's BBQ Team | |
| 20 | HOLY SMOKERS - AL | |
| 21 | LEM'S MEAT VARNISH | |
| 22 | Smokehouse #9 | |
| 23 | BA's Barbeque |
Chicken
23 entries · top 173.7028 · median 166.8572
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | LEE LA Q | |
| 2 | Southern Heat | |
| 3 | Flappin in the Breeze | |
| 4 | PERFECTLY BLENDED | |
| 5 | Bama-Que | |
| 6 | Dixie Pigs & Chick's BBQ Team | |
| 7 | RAMMER JAMMER BBQ | |
| 8 | REDBONES BBQ | |
| 9 | HELL ON SQUEALS | |
| 10 | Smokehouse #9 | |
| 11 | HOLY SMOKERS - AL | |
| 12 | Big Cats BBQ | |
| 13 | Southern Q | |
| 14 | The Real Squeal BBQ | |
| 15 | FLAPS UP BBQ | |
| 16 | HICKORY HANGOVER | |
| 17 | PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q | |
| 18 | Batwing BBQ | |
| 19 | BA's Barbeque | |
| 20 | Red, White & Brew | |
| 21 | RIBLIFE | |
| 22 | General Lee Smoking | |
| 23 | LEM'S MEAT VARNISH |
Pork Ribs
23 entries · top 170.2744 · median 163.9544
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | PERFECTLY BLENDED | |
| 2 | Flappin in the Breeze | |
| 3 | RAMMER JAMMER BBQ | |
| 4 | REDBONES BBQ | |
| 5 | The Real Squeal BBQ | |
| 6 | RIBLIFE | |
| 7 | General Lee Smoking | |
| 8 | HELL ON SQUEALS | |
| 9 | PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q | |
| 10 | HICKORY HANGOVER | |
| 11 | Big Cats BBQ | |
| 12 | LEE LA Q | |
| 13 | Southern Q | |
| 14 | Batwing BBQ | |
| 15 | Red, White & Brew | |
| 16 | LEM'S MEAT VARNISH | |
| 17 | FLAPS UP BBQ | |
| 18 | Bama-Que | |
| 19 | Southern Heat | |
| 20 | HOLY SMOKERS - AL | |
| 21 | Dixie Pigs & Chick's BBQ Team | |
| 22 | BA's Barbeque | |
| 23 | Smokehouse #9 |
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.
Ancillary — Anything Butt
3 entries · top 166.8916 · median 166.2628
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Smokehouse #9 | |
| 2 | PERFECTLY BLENDED | |
| 3 | Batwing BBQ |