Bernard Blues and BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY)
2023-09-08 – 2023-09-09 · Cullman, AL · 📍 1600 St. Bernard Drive SE
Prize money: $2,700.00
Grand Champion: Smokey Bees BBQ (355.4172) · 19 teams
Reserve Champion: 🥈 PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q
Entries
Top score
Winning margin
Field average
Perfect 180s
Tightest race
Top-10 cutoff
Field spread
Prize money
Double threats
How hot was the win?
Traveled in
Form held
Field strength
Storylines
💪 A statement win
The champion won by 10.8684 points — a wider margin than 91% of championships in the data.
🧳 Out-of-towners took the title
Smokey Bees BBQ - MS took the Grand Championship home to MS.
📸 Photo finishes
Chicken places 7–8: Small Batch BBQ - TN edged Deviant Smoke by 0.0116. Pork Ribs places 7–8: The Real Squeal BBQ edged LEE LA Q by 0.0116. Chicken places 3–4: PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q edged 2 Swine Crew by 0.0116.
🃏 An upset on the books
Smokey Bees BBQ - MS came in rated below the field's top team, LEE LA Q, and took the Grand Championship anyway — roughly a 33-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings.
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)
Where the field came from (home regions on file)
This contest over the years full contest page →
| Date | Where | Venue | Teams | High score | Grand Champion | Reserve Champion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-09-08 ← this one | Cullman, AL | 1600 St. Bernard Drive SE | 19 | 355.4172 | Smokey Bees BBQ | — |
| 2024-09-06 | Cullman, AL | 1600 St. Bernard Drive SE | 27 | 355.4172 | Brothers Q BBQ Supply | — |
| 2024-09-06 | Cullman, AL | 1600 St. Bernard Drive SE | 16 | 174.2628 | NORALA BBQ TEAM | — |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 178.8572 | 170.8344 | 167.9656 |
| Pork Ribs | 177.7144 | 167.9772 | 162.8000 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Backyard Series
Overall
19 entries · top 355.4172 · median 330.7656
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Smokey Bees BBQ - MS | |
| 2 | PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q | |
| 3 | Big D's Q | |
| 4 | NORALA BBQ TEAM | |
| 5 | Deviant Smoke | |
| 6 | 2 Swine Crew | |
| 7 | FLOSS & SAUCE | |
| 8 | LEE LA Q | |
| 9 | Secondhand Smoke BBQ Team | |
| 10 | MAD ROCKET BARBECUE | |
| 11 | FOCAS Smokers | |
| 12 | Say My Name BBQ | |
| 13 | The Real Squeal BBQ | |
| 14 | Small Batch BBQ - TN | |
| 15 | Ghost Hill BBQ | |
| 16 | Codeman's BBQ | |
| 17 | REDBONES BBQ | |
| 18 | LWS Smokin Aces | |
| 19 | Ward Brothers BBQ |
Chicken
19 entries · top 178.8572 · median 167.9656
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Big D's Q | |
| 2 | Smokey Bees BBQ - MS | |
| 3 | PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q | |
| 4 | 2 Swine Crew | |
| 5 | NORALA BBQ TEAM | |
| 6 | FOCAS Smokers | |
| 7 | Small Batch BBQ - TN | |
| 8 | Deviant Smoke | |
| 9 | LEE LA Q | |
| 10 | MAD ROCKET BARBECUE | |
| 11 | Ghost Hill BBQ | |
| 12 | FLOSS & SAUCE | |
| 13 | Secondhand Smoke BBQ Team | |
| 14 | LWS Smokin Aces | |
| 15 | Say My Name BBQ | |
| 16 | The Real Squeal BBQ | |
| 17 | Codeman's BBQ | |
| 18 | REDBONES BBQ | |
| 19 | Ward Brothers BBQ |
Pork Ribs
19 entries · top 177.7144 · median 162.8000
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Smokey Bees BBQ - MS | |
| 2 | PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q | |
| 3 | Deviant Smoke | |
| 4 | NORALA BBQ TEAM | |
| 5 | FLOSS & SAUCE | |
| 6 | Secondhand Smoke BBQ Team | |
| 7 | The Real Squeal BBQ | |
| 8 | LEE LA Q | |
| 9 | Say My Name BBQ | |
| 10 | MAD ROCKET BARBECUE | |
| 11 | Big D's Q | |
| 12 | Codeman's BBQ | |
| 13 | 2 Swine Crew | |
| 14 | FOCAS Smokers | |
| 15 | Ghost Hill BBQ | |
| 16 | REDBONES BBQ | |
| 17 | Small Batch BBQ - TN | |
| 18 | LWS Smokin Aces | |
| 19 | Ward Brothers BBQ |