Perfect scores on the board
1 perfect 180 in the data — every judge at the table handing back a nine, all in chicken.
- Chicken ×1
Master and Backyard overall scores sit on different scales (Master is out of 720, Backyard out of 360), so they're kept separate — averaging them together would be misleading.
This team cooks the Backyard series — its own boards, records and Team of the Year are here.
Each card leads with the number that made it a story — read straight out of their results, no editorialising.
1 perfect 180 in the data — every judge at the table handing back a nine, all in chicken.
94.5% of a perfect 720
Their best day on record: 680.5372 at SMSU Smokefest — 94.5% of a perfect 720.
UNCLE BC'S has finished one call ahead of SMOKIN BONES 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
2014 was the year it came together: 4 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 2 category wins, at an average finish in the top 26%.
SHIGGIN & GRINNIN ahead in 100% of their meetings
SHIGGIN & GRINNIN has come out ahead in 24 of their 24 shared contests.
Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 5.20 points below their pork, and turns into a call 11% of the time against 27%.
SHIGGIN & GRINNIN ahead 76% of the time
Even in their strongest meat, SHIGGIN & GRINNIN has out-cooked them in 19 of 25 shared pork entries.
The rating has slipped 34 points across 9 contests since 2020-10-23 — from 1472 down to 1438.
3 BRATS AND A COCKTAIL WEENIE has landed one call behind them 2 times.
Something about May: average finish in the top 44% across 11 contests, versus top 60% the rest of the year.
Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 19,241 miles across 57 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 1,216 miles to Winnipeg Barbeque and Blues Festival.
Where this team stands in the all-time KCBS record book. A gold line is a record they hold outright; the rest are boards they are on. Rebuilt nightly, so beating one shows up here the next morning.
The nearest teams in the power rankings, with a different reason on each card — six teams on one rating are rarely on it for the same reason. Rating decides who makes the list; where teams tie on it, the ones this team has actually cooked against come first, then teams at a similar point in their own career. KCBS doesn’t publish where a team is from, so nothing here is inferred from geography.
67 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
These two have cooked 4 of the same contests — honours even — so there's a record behind this pairing and not just a matching number.
⚔ Head-to-headThis is the highest they've ever been rated, 9 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Head-to-headFewer contests behind them than SMOKIN BONES has cooked, 9 to 57, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.
⚔ Head-to-headTheir last contest in the data was back in 2018, 3 years before SMOKIN BONES's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Head-to-head44 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 11% top-10 finishes rather than wins.
⚔ Head-to-headBoth teams' first contest in the data came in 2013.
⚔ Head-to-head| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hogline | 25 | 3 | 22 | 12% | ⚔ compare |
| BUFFALO'S BBQ | 24 | 2 | 22 | 8% | ⚔ compare |
| SHIGGIN & GRINNIN | 24 | 0 | 24 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| SPITFIRE | 23 | 2 | 21 | 9% | ⚔ compare |
| CITY SLICKERS BBQ | 22 | 3 | 19 | 14% | ⚔ compare |
| BIG BUTTS NEED RUBBIN TOO | 21 | 4 | 17 | 19% | ⚔ compare |
| LUCKY'S Q | 21 | 2 | 19 | 10% | ⚔ compare |
| RUB MY RACK | 20 | 3 | 17 | 15% | ⚔ compare |
| BUTCHER BBQ | 20 | 1 | 19 | 5% | ⚔ compare |
| LUCKY 19 SAUCE COMPANY | 19 | 3 | 16 | 16% | ⚔ compare |
| NECTAR OF THE HOGS | 18 | 3 | 15 | 17% | ⚔ compare |
| SMOKEY AND HIS BANDITS | 18 | 3 | 15 | 17% | ⚔ compare |
| CROIX VALLEY SAUCES | 17 | 7 | 10 | 41% | ⚔ compare |
| CLARK CREW BBQ | 17 | 1 | 16 | 6% | ⚔ compare |
| 4 LEGS UP BBQ | 17 | 1 | 16 | 6% | ⚔ compare |
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 56 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 180.0000 🔥 | 137.0628 | 164.58 | top 55% |
| Pork Ribs | 55 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 174.8572 | 20.0000 | 160.69 | top 56% |
| Pork | 55 | 15 | 1 | 4 | 178.2972 | 145.6456 | 165.15 | top 49% |
| Brisket | 54 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 174.2856 | 137.0744 | 159.95 | top 59% |
“Calls” = top-10 category finishes (getting called to the stage). Scores here are the final weighted totals KCBS publishes; per-criterion appearance/taste/tenderness marks aren’t in the public results feed.
| Where | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| MN | 21 | 0 | top 57% |
| OK | 18 | 0 | top 64% |
| MO | 4 | 0 | top 50% |
| KS | 2 | 0 | top 68% |
| WI | 2 | 0 | top 68% |
| AL | 1 | 0 | top 76% |
| AR | 1 | 0 | top 82% |
| SD | 1 | 0 | top 67% |
| MT | 1 | 0 | top 31% |
| TX | 1 | 0 | top 53% |
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 16 | 0 | top 66% |
| Large (40+) | 39 | 0 | top 58% |
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beats, Brews, & BBQ | 3 | 19 | 0 | top 87% | 2021-06-11 |
| Smokin In Steele | 3 | 16 | 0 | top 44% | 2019-05-31 |
| SMSU Smokefest | 2 | 4 | 0 | top 51% | 2019-08-16 |
| Bixby BBQ'n Blues Festival | 2 | 10 | 0 | top 27% | 2019-05-03 |
| KTD Smokin ' Gobbler Cook-Off | 2 | 14 | 0 | top 69% | 2018-09-14 |
| Firelake BBQ Cook Off(Day 2) | 2 | 67 | 0 | top 89% | 2017-03-25 |
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +15.4 | SMSU Smokefest | 2017-08-18 |
| +12.1 | 35th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue Open | 2014-10-02 |
| +12 | Bixby BBQ'N Blues Festival | 2014-05-02 |
| +11.9 | Bixby BBQ & Blues Festival | 2013-05-03 |
| +11.2 | *Mankato Cookout Day 1 and (BACKYARD) | 2017-06-09 |
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -14.5 | Minnesota in May | 2019-05-10 |
| -10.4 | Firelake BBQ Cook Off (Day 1) | 2017-03-24 |
| -9.9 | *Jonesboro Downtown BBQ Festival | 2018-09-28 |
| -9.7 | *Mankato Cookout Day 2 and( Back Yard) | 2016-06-11 |
| -9.3 | 39th Annual Kennett Jaycees Show Me State BBQ Cook Off | 2021-05-01 |
| Season | Contests | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 57% | top 76% | 91.6% | 86.7% |
| 2020 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 82% | 93.2% | 90.8% |
| 2019 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29% | top 70% | 92.8% | 87.4% |
| 2018 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 43% | top 75% | 92.7% | 88.4% |
| 2017 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 60% | top 60% | 94.5% | 91.2% |
| 2016 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 40% | top 58% | 92% | 90.5% |
| 2015 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 57% | top 46% | 93.8% | 92.7% |
| 2014 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 75% | top 26% | 94.1% | 92.5% |
| 2013 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 50% | top 42% | 94% | 89.9% |
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-09-16 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue-OPEN CONTEST 🏅 Kansas City, KS | 293 / 467 (653.6116) | 262 (164.5256) | 377 (157.0972) | 228 (165.1200) | 180 (166.8688) |
| 2021-08-20 | 13th Annual Big Island BBQ 🏅 Albert Lea, MN | 26 / 35 (659.8512) | 23 (166.2628) | 23 (163.9428) | 10 (170.8456) | 29 (158.8000) |
| 2021-06-12 | Bring'n Home the Bacon - Day 2 🏅 West Salem, WI | 29 / 45 (657.6000) | 2 (174.2972) | 38 (160.5256) | 6 (170.2744) | 41 (152.5028) |
| 2021-06-11 | Beats, Brews, & BBQ 🏅 Wagoner, OK | 21 / 25 (655.2568) | 23 (162.2400) | 9 (171.9656) | 17 (166.2284) | 22 (154.8228) |
| 2021-06-11 | Bring'n Home the Bacon - Day 1 🏅 West Salem, WI | 37 / 52 (651.3604) | 34 (163.9888) | 6 (170.8228) | 49 (153.6572) | 27 (162.8916) |
| 2021-05-01 | 39th Annual Kennett Jaycees Show Me State BBQ Cook Off 🏅 Kennett, MO | 31 / 32 (462.7316) | 32 (137.0628) | 31 (20.0000) | 25 (161.7028) | 31 (143.9660) |
| 2021-04-23 | Smoke on the Water Festival(BACKYARD ONLY) Florence, AL | 22 / 29 (314.8344) | 22 (162.2972) | 26 (152.5372) | — | — |
| 2020-10-24 | Firelake BBQ Cook Off-Day 2 🏅 Shawnee, OK | 45 / 58 (670.8576) | 31 (173.1200) | 52 (163.4404) | 17 (173.1428) | 54 (161.1544) |
| 2020-10-23 | Firelake BBQ Cook Off-Day 1 🏅 Shawnee, OK | 58 / 64 (652.9828) | 51 (167.3712) | 32 (169.1200) | 60 (158.2516) | 54 (158.2400) |
| 2020-08-28 | Minnesota in Mayaugust 🏅 Cambridge, MN | 33 / 45 (646.7080) | 43 (157.6684) | 39 (158.8112) | 28 (163.9656) | 22 (166.2628) |
| 2020-06-12 | Beats, Brews, & BBQ 🏅 Wagoner, OK | 48 / 55 (643.8972) | 30 (167.9772) | 45 (156.5828) | 49 (159.3600) | 43 (159.9772) |
| 2019-09-12 | 40th American Royal World Series of Barbecue- OPEN CONTEST 🏅 Kansas City, KS | 339 / 468 (641.6000) | 427 (152.5372) | 353 (158.8228) | 214 (166.2856) | 234 (163.9544) |
| 2019-08-23 | Big Island BBQ 🏅 Alberta Lea, MN | 28 / 50 (656.4688) | 33 (164.5944) | 26 (164.5256) | 19 (170.2744) | 36 (157.0744) |
| 2019-08-16 | SMSU Smokefest 🏅 MARSHALL, MN | 42 / 46 (640.4684) | 45 (154.8572) | 19 (169.1084) | 40 (158.8000) | 35 (157.7028) |
| 2019-06-07 | Beats, Brews, & BBQ Wagoner, OK | 19 / 21 (642.1140) | 18 (161.0740) | 16 (159.9428) | 10 (169.6800) | 19 (151.4172) |
| 2019-05-31 | Smokin In Steele 🏅 Owatonna, MN | 16 / 43 (663.8628) | 18 (170.2744) | 14 (166.2284) | 26 (166.2400) | 24 (161.1200) |
| 2019-05-10 | Minnesota in May 🏅 | 56 / 57 (494.7428) | 16 (172.0116) | — | 37 (159.9428) | 35 (162.7884) |
| 2019-05-03 | Bixby BBQ'n Blues Festival 🏅 | 23 / 56 (667.9088) | 43 (155.9316) | 17 (167.9772) | 7 (175.4400) | 16 (168.5600) |
| 2018-09-28 | *Jonesboro Downtown BBQ Festival Jonesboro, AR | 37 / 45 (574.5600) | 35 (149.6800) | 43 (142.1600) | 38 (145.6456) | 39 (137.0744) |
| 2018-09-14 | KTD Smokin ' Gobbler Cook-Off Worthington, MN | 14 / 25 (667.3256) | 19 (165.0856) | 18 (164.5372) | 7 (172.0000) | 13 (165.7028) |
| 2018-09-01 | *Big Muddy Brew N Que Winona, MN | 14 / 22 (650.1832) | 20 (151.4288) | 3 (173.7144) | 11 (165.0856) | 12 (159.9544) |
| 2018-08-24 | 11th Annual Big Island BBQ Alberta Lea, MN | 33 / 49 (644.9944) | 12 (172.5600) | 47 (151.3828) | 8 (170.8228) | 42 (150.2288) |
| 2018-07-20 | *BBQ-Fest Cooking Contest Dyersburg, TN | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2018-03-24 | Fire Lake BBQ Cook-off Day 2 Shawnee, OK | 73 / 79 (648.4684) | 73 (160.5256) | 63 (165.1200) | 75 (155.4172) | 44 (167.4056) |
| 2018-03-23 | Fire Lake BBQ Cook-off Day 1 Shawnee, OK | 73 / 84 (632.4916) | 58 (164.5944) | 79 (154.2516) | 56 (165.1084) | 81 (148.5372) |
| 2017-09-15 | KTD Smokin ' Gobbler Cook-Off Worthington, MN | 22 / 27 (647.8744) | 21 (163.9544) | 8 (170.8228) | 24 (156.5372) | 23 (156.5600) |
| 2017-08-25 | 10th Annual Big Island BBQ Albert Lea, MN | 38 / 56 (638.1600) | 41 (161.6800) | 17 (167.4400) | 45 (156.5028) | 39 (152.5372) |
| 2017-08-18 | SMSU Smokefest Marshall, MN | 4 / 41 (680.5372) | 17 (168.5600) | 22 (164.5600) | 4 (174.8572) | 4 (172.5600) |
| 2017-07-14 | Cookin On Kampeska Watertown, SD | 32 / 48 (663.3372) | 38 (164.0000) | 16 (170.8228) | 28 (165.0972) | 29 (163.4172) |
| 2017-06-10 | *Mankato Cookout Day 2 Mankato, MN | 27 / 33 (658.7316) | 12 (172.5828) | 27 (162.2516) | 2 (175.4172) | 32 (148.4800) |
| 2017-06-09 | *Mankato Cookout Day 1 and (BACKYARD) Mankato, MN | 11 / 35 (673.0628) | 2 (176.5600) | 11 (168.5600) | 25 (163.4172) | 22 (164.5256) |
| 2017-06-02 | Smokin In Steele Owatonna, MN | 26 / 46 (655.2916) | 5 (174.2972) | 21 (164.5372) | 38 (159.3828) | 32 (157.0744) |
| 2017-05-12 | Minnesota in May Falcon Heights, MN | 19 / 71 (665.6688) | 33 (162.8228) | 37 (163.4288) | 24 (165.7028) | 4 (173.7144) |
| 2017-03-25 | Firelake BBQ Cook Off(Day 2) Shawnee, OK | 67 / 77 (649.0740) | 73 (155.9656) | 68 (161.6684) | 47 (168.0228) | 49 (163.4172) |
| 2017-03-24 | Firelake BBQ Cook Off (Day 1) Shawnee, OK | 79 / 87 (633.0396) | 67 (161.1544) | 78 (156.0000) | 68 (161.0968) | 79 (154.7884) |
| 2016-06-11 | *Mankato Cookout Day 2 and( Back Yard) Mankato, MN | 28 / 32 (645.0400) | 23 (168.0000) | 14 (170.2628) | 27 (160.5600) | 31 (146.2172) |
| 2016-06-10 | *Mankato Cookout Day 1 Mankato, MN | 24 / 33 (659.3144) | 29 (162.8572) | 24 (165.6800) | 3 (175.4172) | 28 (155.3600) |
| 2016-06-03 | Smokin in Steele Owatonna, MN | 20 / 53 (662.1832) | 33 (162.2400) | 31 (160.5260) | 8 (171.4400) | 14 (167.9772) |
| 2016-05-06 | *Bixby BBQ'N Blues Festival Bixby, OK | 33 / 83 (644.4572) | 46 (157.6572) | 28 (165.1200) | 18 (169.7028) | 54 (151.9772) |
| 2016-03-04 | Fire on Ice Barbecue World Championship Isle, MN | 31 / 59 (646.1944) | 11 (170.2744) | 26 (163.4172) | 38 (158.2628) | 43 (154.2400) |
| 2015-10-03 | 36th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbeque- Open Kansas City, MO | 210 / 606 (662.7772) | 184 (168.0116) | 189 (167.9772) | 80 (171.9884) | 435 (154.8000) |
| 2015-06-12 | Bend of the River CookOut Mankato, MN | 11 / 42 (670.7888) | 4 (173.7144) | 23 (164.5716) | 25 (162.2400) | 13 (170.2628) |
| 2015-05-29 | Smokin' in Steel Owatonna, MN | 24 / 60 (661.6232) | 19 (167.9888) | 20 (166.2400) | 21 (165.7028) | 32 (161.6916) |
| 2015-05-01 | Bixby BBQ'N Blues Festival Bixby, OK | 16 / 81 (675.4172) | 25 (167.4516) | 8 (174.8572) | 46 (161.7028) | 5 (171.4056) |
| 2015-03-21 | 2nd Annual Smokin At The Run Shootout Miami, OK | 65 / 82 (670.2284) | 78 (165.0856) | 60 (165.7256) | 2 (178.2972) | 73 (161.1200) |
| 2015-03-20 | 3rd Annual Smokin At The Run Miami, OK | 67 / 87 (661.6456) | 38 (171.4172) | 78 (155.4172) | 15 (174.8456) | 68 (159.9656) |
| 2015-02-27 | Fire on Ice Barbecue World Championship (Competitor's Series) Isle, MN | — | 10 (169.1428) | 3 (171.4172) | 7 (169.7028) | — |
| 2014-10-02 | 35th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue Open Kansas City, MO | 72 / 552 (677.8060) | 165 (168.6172) | 97 (170.8916) | 63 (173.1428) | 201 (165.1544) |
| 2014-08-16 | Winnipeg Barbeque and Blues Festival Winnipeg Manitoba Canada, | 13 / 26 (640.6744) | 8 (165.7600) | 22 (149.1544) | 17 (158.3428) | 3 (167.4172) |
| 2014-06-06 | Okfuskee Firefighters Wildfire Cookoff Okemah, OK | 9 / 33 (671.3716) | 9 (170.2744) | 13 (165.1200) | 1 (177.1544) | 15 (158.8228) |
| 2014-05-02 | Bixby BBQ'N Blues Festival Bixby, OK | 10 / 80 (673.6800) | 10 (170.8800) | 29 (163.9772) | 27 (165.0856) | 1 (173.7372) |
| 2013-10-03 | 34th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue Open Kansas City, MO | 293 / 535 (634.7768) | 353 (157.1200) | 197 (162.2972) | 437 (151.3940) | 157 (163.9656) |
| 2013-08-14 | Montana State BBQ Championships at Montana Fair Billings, MT | 8 / 26 (655.3600) | 4 (167.4172) | 7 (167.9772) | 8 (163.4056) | 12 (156.5600) |
| 2013-05-10 | Boots & BBQ Festival Claremore, OK | 20 / 36 (659.4284) | 22 (164.0000) | 27 (159.9998) | 9 (172.0000) | 15 (163.4286) |
| 2013-05-03 | Bixby BBQ & Blues Festival Bixby, OK | 12 / 88 (677.1428) | 2 (180.0000) | 42 (161.7144) | 47 (161.1428) | 5 (174.2856) |
| 2013-04-19 | 8th Annual Smokin' Red Dirt BBQ Enid, OK | 27 / 63 (649.7142) | 33 (159.4286) | 17 (166.2858) | 42 (161.1426) | 27 (162.8572) |
| 2013-03-22 | Best of the Basin Barbeque Championship Midland, TX | 31 / 59 (605.7140) | 24 (155.4286) | 43 (146.8572) | 33 (151.4286) | 25 (151.9996) |
| Year | Series | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 ↗ | Master | #752 (180 pts) | #489 (390 pts) | #595 (305 pts) | #502 (370 pts) | #782 (180 pts) |
| 2020 ↗ | Master | #856 (60 pts) | #896 (60 pts) | #913 (60 pts) | #899 (60 pts) | #846 (75 pts) |
| 2019 ↗ | Master | #948 (285 pts) | #916 (320 pts) | #1058 (265 pts) | #1026 (270 pts) | #1100 (245 pts) |
| 2018 ↗ | Master | #1031 (267 pts) | #1060 (277 pts) | #906 (367 pts) | #807 (427 pts) | #1047 (282 pts) |
| 2017 ↗ | Master | #523 (735 pts) | #412 (920 pts) | #529 (755 pts) | #470 (830 pts) | #496 (795 pts) |
| 2016 ↗ | Master | #1148 (265 pts) | #1091 (315 pts) | #1137 (295 pts) | #777 (505 pts) | #1133 (290 pts) |
| 2015 ↗ | Master | #1321 (195 pts) | #1070 (300 pts) | #1612 (155 pts) | #1675 (140 pts) | #1431 (180 pts) |
| 2014 ↗ | Master | #1887 (111 pts) | #1746 (146 pts) | #2624 (66 pts) | #2094 (91 pts) | #1302 (226 pts) |
| 2013 ↗ | Master | #810 (376 pts) | #643 (506 pts) | #952 (326 pts) | #879 (371 pts) | #708 (461 pts) |