Score of the month
712.5484
Master overall, out of 720
top 1% of every Master overall ever scored
Kermit's Ex put up 712.5484 at Balloons and Barbeque — the highest overall of the month.
October 2025 in BBQ
Every sanctioned contest scored in October 2025 — 1 Oct to 31 Oct.
48contests scored
821teams competed
1,399top-ten calls
86perfect 180s
90biggest field
18states & provinces
176new teams
12Backyard boards
Now on the newsstand
The Smoke Ring
Competition Barbecue’s Paper of Record
October 2025, set as a proper newspaper.
Every Grand Champion named, the month in figures across the top, the perfect 180s,
the box scores, and the calendar as classified notices.
Read the October 2025 edition →
The stories
Hottest hand
3×
Grand Championships
Leaning Jowler BBQ took 3 Grand Championships in October 2025.
First one ever
82nd
contest — and their first GC
Uncle Dubby's Backyard BBQ won their first Grand Championship at Page County Heritage Festival - Backyard BBQ (BACKYARD ONLY), in their 82nd contest in the data.
- 11 Oct
Upset of the month
7-in-100
shot on pre-contest ratings
The ratings gave them a 7% chance
BREWS BEFORE Q'S won Rock Lane Presents Grills Gone Wild over top-rated GETTIN' BASTED as the ratings underdog.
Perfect 180s
86
perfect scores handed out
Six judges, every card a 9: 86 perfect 180s were handed out in October 2025.
- Chicken ×23
- Pork ×23
- Pork Ribs ×22
- Brisket ×18
Closest call
0.5484
points between 1st and 2nd
Damn Fine Beef & Swine edged Squealin N Dealin BBQ by 0.5484 at Meat Inferno.
- Master Series
Biggest riser
+45
power rating points
TEAM CRAWFORD gained 45 rating points across 4 contests — the biggest climb of the month.
- 4 contests
- now #636 overall
Best debut
1st
in their very first contest
Brisket Broads finished 1st at DMV Kosher Brisket BBQ Competition (COMPETITOR SERIES) — the first contest they appear in anywhere in the data.
- 176 new teams in Oct 2025
- field of 7
Best in the backyard
358.8572
Backyard overall, out of 360
Electro-Que-ted put up 358.8572 on the Backyard board at Big Creek BBQ Bash (BACKYARD ONLY) — two meats, a different scale, and the same nerves.
- 12 Backyard boards in Oct 2025
- won it
Biggest field
90
teams at one contest
Jack Daniel's World Championship Invitational Barbecue (Competitor's Series) (JUDGES BY INVITATION ONLY) drew 90 teams, and Kings BBQ Team won it.
- Lynchburg
- TN
Road warriors
8
contests cooked
Electro-Que-ted cooked 8 contests in October 2025 — nobody hauled the rig further.
- best finish 1st
- 1 GC
New on the calendar
45
teams at a brand-new contest
Eastern Carolina BBQ Throwdown ran for the first time on record, drawing 45 teams, and Smoke Central won it. Somebody put in the work to make a new contest happen.
- 12 first editions in Oct 2025
- Rocky Mount
- NC
Busiest weekend
12
contests on one date
12 sanctioned contests were cooked on 3 Oct alone.
- 3 Oct
Rep of the month
6
contests worked
CAROL BIGLER repped 6 contests in October 2025 — somebody has to run the table.
The boards
Highest overall scores (Master · /720)
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kermit's Ex Balloons and Barbeque |
712.5484 |
| 2 | BREWS BEFORE Q'S Rock Lane Presents Grills Gone Wild |
711.9888 |
| 3 | JANKY LEG BBQ La Belle MO Show Me BBQ Showdown |
710.8460 |
| 4 | Can Country Outlaw BBQ Happy Basset 5th Annual BBQ Competition |
710.8112 |
| 5 | OM BBQ Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 1) |
709.6800 |
| 6 | BOGGS HOG BBQ Red White & Que - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES (Day 1) |
709.1544 |
| 7 | JANKY LEG BBQ Happy Basset 5th Annual BBQ Competition |
708.5256 |
| 8 | BrewsCue Rock Lane Presents Grills Gone Wild |
706.2400 |
| 9 | MACHETE BOYS BBQ Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 1) |
706.2400 |
| 10 | Damn Fine Beef & Swine Meat Inferno |
705.6800 |
| 11 | Dooms Day BBQ Balloons and Barbeque |
705.1432 |
| 12 | Squealin N Dealin BBQ Meat Inferno |
705.1316 |
| 13 | Smoke Central BBQ Eastern Carolina BBQ Throwdown |
705.1200 |
| 14 | GETTIN' BASTED Rock Lane Presents Grills Gone Wild |
705.0972 |
| 15 | MUDVILLE BBQ Hub City BBQ Fest (formerly TN River BBQ Fest) |
704.5372 |
Best of each meat (both series · /180)
| Category | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Chicken ×23 💯 | MAN MEAT BBQ Meat Inferno |
180.0000 |
| Pork Ribs ×22 💯 | Bocephus BBQ Meat Inferno (One Meat Ribs) |
180.0000 |
| Pork ×23 💯 | Damn Fine Beef & Swine Meat Inferno |
180.0000 |
| Brisket ×18 💯 | Shark Q Meat Inferno |
180.0000 |
Straight nines (perfect 180s)
…and 62 more in October 2025.
On the move (power rating)
| Team | Rating | Oct 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| TEAM CRAWFORD #636 | 1,652 | +45 |
| Wee Daddy's BBQ #833 | 1,624 | +37 |
| BrewsCue #316 | 1,719 | +34 |
| Uncle Dubby's Backyard BBQ #373 | 1,707 | +34 |
| Rollin Smoke BBQ #144 | 1,780 | +27 |
| HICKORY BARBEQUE COMPANY #1057 | 1,598 | +25 |
| Leaning Jowler BBQ #98 | 1,808 | +24 |
| Can Country Outlaw BBQ #162 | 1,772 | +24 |
| MACHETE BOYS BBQ #458 | 1,687 | +24 |
| SMOAKWOOD #2577 | 1,517 | +23 |
| Too Sauced BBQ #230 | 1,745 | -22 |
| LOCAL SMOKE BBQ #2017 | 1,538 | -23 |
| Big Butts BBQ #1917 | 1,542 | -23 |
| Bourbon & Blues BBQ #1242 | 1,582 | -28 |
| BUNCH OF SWINES #90 | 1,811 | -30 |
Who showed up
| Team | Contests | GCs | Best |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electro-Que-ted | 8 | 1 | 1 |
| BrewsCue | 7 | — | 2 |
| GETTIN' BASTED | 7 | — | 2 |
| SMOKIN HOGGZ BBQ - MA | 7 | — | 3 |
| Take It Easy BBQ | 7 | — | 3 |
| Rollin Smoke BBQ | 6 | 1 | 1 |
| FIRE & SHINE BBQ | 6 | — | 2 |
| IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ | 6 | — | 3 |
| Wee Daddy's BBQ | 6 | — | 3 |
| FIRE AT THE END OF THE DAY | 6 | — | 4 |
| LEE LA Q | 6 | — | 8 |
| BIGG SMOAK BBQ | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| Damn Fine Beef & Swine | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| JANKY LEG BBQ | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| NORALA BBQ TEAM | 5 | — | 2 |
Who ran the table
| Rep | Contests | States |
|---|---|---|
| CAROL BIGLER | 6 | 2 |
| RANDY G BIGLER | 6 | 2 |
| ANDREAS SCHNOELL | 5 | — |
| JEFF CHAMBERS | 5 | 2 |
| ALAN ROTHROCK | 4 | 3 |
| EVA SCHNOELL | 4 | — |
| KAREN JANE WILLIAMS | 4 | 2 |
| RALPH WILLIAMS | 4 | 2 |
| REGINA BODNAR | 4 | 1 |
| BILL JONES | 3 | 3 |
| CHARLIE BRINZA | 3 | 3 |
| DAVE ROGERS | 3 | 2 |
| DOUG REID | 3 | 2 |
| EUGENE WICKHAM | 3 | 2 |
| MARIA LOHMAN | 3 | 3 |
| PEG ROGERS | 3 | 2 |
| SARAH WICKHAM | 3 | 2 |
| WAYNE LOHMAN | 3 | 3 |
| ALEX JR BROWN | 2 | 2 |
| BRENDA BLACK | 2 | 2 |
Where they cooked
| State/Prov. | Contests | Teams |
|---|---|---|
| Missouri | 8 | 172 |
| Alabama | 7 | 98 |
| Kansas | 4 | 61 |
| New Jersey | 4 | 61 |
| Tennessee | 2 | 112 |
| Georgia | 2 | 85 |
| North Dakota | 2 | 47 |
| Pennsylvania | 2 | 37 |
| Arkansas | 2 | 10 |
| Maryland | 1 | 68 |
| North Carolina | 1 | 45 |
| Louisiana | 1 | 33 |
| Alberta | 1 | 25 |
| Mississippi | 1 | 25 |
| Kentucky | 1 | 23 |
| Oklahoma | 1 | 15 |
| Virginia | 1 | 9 |
| Manitoba | 1 | 5 |
Best in the backyard (Backyard · /360)
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Electro-Que-ted Big Creek BBQ Bash (BACKYARD ONLY) |
358.8572 |
| 2 | Rollin Smoke BBQ Roast N Boast |
357.7028 |
| 3 | HESSHOGS Big Creek BBQ Bash (BACKYARD ONLY) |
356.0000 |
| 4 | RUCKING FADICULOUS BBQ Big Creek BBQ Bash (BACKYARD ONLY) |
355.4400 |
| 5 | 931 BBQ Last Chance Points Dance (BACKYARD) |
355.4288 |
| 6 | Rudes BBQ Big Creek BBQ Bash (BACKYARD ONLY) |
354.8456 |
| 7 | Hickory Hangover WhistleStop BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) |
354.2744 |
| 8 | BBQ MIKE Stover Rock Island Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) |
354.2628 |
| 9 | NORALA BBQ TEAM Last Chance Points Dance (BACKYARD) |
354.2628 |
| 10 | Rollin Smoke BBQ Last Chance Points Dance (BACKYARD) |
354.2628 |
| 11 | Wee Daddy's BBQ Last Chance Points Dance (BACKYARD) |
354.2628 |
| 12 | PUDDLEDUCK BBQ Scottsboro BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) |
353.1200 |
New to the circuit
First editions (new on the calendar)
| Contest | Teams | Won by |
|---|---|---|
| Eastern Carolina BBQ Throwdown Rocky Mount, NC |
45 | Smoke Central |
| La Belle MO Show Me BBQ Showdown La Belle, MO |
39 | Janky Leg BBQ |
| The Great Alabama BBQ Cook-Off (ONE MEAT RIBS) Cleveland, AL |
28 | Rollin Smoke BBQ |
| The Great Alabama BBQ Cook-Off (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) Cleveland, AL |
27 | Lee La Q |
| Hub City BBQ Fest (formerly TN River BBQ Fest) Jackson, TN |
25 | Mudville BBQ |
| 1st Annual Boost & BBQ Odessa, MO |
25 | SMOKE THIS BBQ MO |
| The Great Alabama BBQ Cook-Off (ONE MEAT PORK) Cleveland, AL |
24 | 931 BBQ |
| Happy Basset 5th Annual BBQ Competition Topeka, KS |
23 | Can Country Outlaw BBQ |
| "Spooky Q" 1792 Monticello, KY |
23 | Scuffletown Smokers |
| V. I Love Smoky Exhibition and BBQ Competition Szerencs, 3900 |
21 | Szendo Smoke BBQ Team |
| Gladstone Smokefest (ONE MEAT RIBS) Gladstone, MO |
17 | Ming St. Meats |
| Battle for the Bones BBQ Cook Off (ONE MEAT RIBS) Birmingham, AL |
17 | 2 Men and a Pig |
Running a contest? The organizer tools →
Every contest scored (48 in October 2025)
The archive
Every month with scored results, back to the start of the data. Subscribe to the monthly feed and each one lands as it closes.