A TASTE OF CAROLINA

At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)

Power ranking

#4393

of 6,413 rated · rankings

Rating

1475

peak 1511 · rated over 17 contests ⓘ

Contests

in the data

First seen

2013-04-19

latest 2019-09-27

Best ToY finish

#942

Master 2013

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

0 podiums

Overall top-10s

of 17 contests

Avg finish

top 63%

overall standings

Best overall

676.4800 / 720

Master · Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival

Perfect 180s

Current form

637.55 ▼

last 5 Master vs avg 649.98 (-12.43)

Walk rate

18%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

175.4400

Chicken · 19th Annual Firehouse BBQ Cook-Off

Consistency

±14.66

std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 167.58 · weakest Pork Ribs (158.78)

Road miles

814

mi across 17 mapped stops · furthest 102 mi

Schedule strength

48%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1562)

Purse competed for

$11K

listed at 1 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

GCs in 1 state-championship entries

Master avg

649.98 / 720

17 Master contests · 0 GCs

⚔ Compare with another team

Storylines (10 found in this team's record)

Each card leads with the number that made it a story — read straight out of their results, no editorialising.

High-water mark

676.4800 career-best overall

94.0% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 676.4800 at Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival — 94.0% of a perfect 720.

Master
2016-06-10

Their season

2013 their best year

2013 was the year it came together: 4 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 0 category wins, at an average finish in the top 46%.

4 contests
0 overall top-10s
0 category wins
average top 46%

A tough matchup

15–0 behind in the head-to-head

SMOKE THIS ahead in 100% of their meetings

SMOKE THIS has come out ahead in 15 of their 15 shared contests.

The weak link

−8.8 points behind their best meat

Pork Ribs is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 8.80 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 0% of the time against 12%.

Pork Ribs avg 158.78
Chicken avg 167.58
0 calls in 17 entries

A strong matchup

11–1 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 92% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of King's Cooking in 11 of their 12 shared contests.

Chicken nemesis

11 of 15 shared chicken entries lost

SMOKE THIS ahead 73% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, SMOKE THIS has out-cooked them in 11 of 15 shared chicken entries.

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

BIG ON THE PIG has landed one call behind them 2 times.

A June team

Top 38% average finish in June

Something about June: average finish in the top 38% across 4 contests, versus top 63% the rest of the year.

4 June contests
top 63% the rest of the year

The metronome

±2.04% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±2.04% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 90.3% of a perfect score
17 contests

A standing appointment

4 years running at one contest

They've cooked Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival every year from 2013 to 2016 — the contest they never miss.

4 visits in all
best finish 23rd

Teams like this (closest power rating)

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.

153 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.

BANGIN' BBQ

#4374 of the rated field

1475 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 27
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 7%
Peak: 1532

0–2 in 2 shared contests (0% to A TASTE OF CAROLINA)

2 contests in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team A TASTE OF CAROLINA has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.

rated over 27 contests
last seen 2023-04-07

⚔ Head-to-head

FATSO'S BBQ

#4407 of the rated field

1474 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 7
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1474

1–1 in 2 shared contests (50% to A TASTE OF CAROLINA)

Their last contest in the data was back in 2014, 5 years before A TASTE OF CAROLINA's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 7 contests

⚔ Head-to-head

BUTT BURNERS BBQ - NC

#4396 of the rated field

1475 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 5
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1475

1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to A TASTE OF CAROLINA)

Fewer contests behind them than A TASTE OF CAROLINA has cooked, 5 to 17, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.

rated over 5 contests
last seen 2015-05-08

⚔ Head-to-head

Blazin by the Bay BBQ

#4381 of the rated field

1475 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 17
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1475

No shared contest yet.

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 17 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 17 contests
last seen 2025-11-21

⚔ Head-to-head

Whats Smokin

#4390 of the rated field

1475 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 17
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1526

No shared contest yet.

17 contests and no Grand Championship yet.

rated over 17 contests
last seen 2024-07-13

⚔ Head-to-head

BEER & SMOKING IN LAS VEGAS

#4377 of the rated field

1475 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 17
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 6%
Peak: 1475

No shared contest yet.

Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2013.

rated over 17 contests
last seen 2018-05-04

⚔ Head-to-head

Familiar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
SUE E PIGG	15	4	11	27%	⚔ compare
SMOKE THIS	15	0	15	0%	⚔ compare
THE SMOKEHOUSE MAFIA	14	0	14	0%	⚔ compare
SAUCED! BBQ TEAM	13	1	12	8%	⚔ compare
King's Cooking	12	11	1	92%	⚔ compare
BAYOU POKER SMOKERS	12	5	7	42%	⚔ compare
BUBBAJACK'S	11	4	7	36%	⚔ compare
EB'S BAR-B-QUE	11	3	8	27%	⚔ compare
REDNECK SCIENTIFIC	11	1	10	9%	⚔ compare
MIDNIGHT BURN	11	0	11	0%	⚔ compare
MUTTLEY CREW BBQ	11	0	11	0%	⚔ compare
CONTAGIOUS Q	10	2	8	20%	⚔ compare
SMOKING BUTT HEADS	10	1	9	10%	⚔ compare
SWIG-N-PIG	9	2	7	22%	⚔ compare
PICKIN' PORKERS	9	2	7	22%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	17	2	175.4400	152.5600	167.58	top 45%
Pork Ribs	17	0	168.5716	140.4916	158.78	top 68%
Pork	17	1	173.7028	151.3600	162.83	top 60%
Brisket	17	0	172.5714	146.2516	160.80	top 62%

“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.

By state / province

Where	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
NC	14	0	top 63%
GA	3	0	top 63%

By contest size

Field	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
Medium (20–39)	2	0	top 88%
Large (40+)	15	0	top 59%

Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival	4	23	top 38%	2016-06-10
* Hog Happnin'	3	38	top 68%	2015-11-06
Dillard Bluegrass & Barbeque Festival (GBC Qualifier)	3	35	top 63%	2015-07-31
Butts and Beans BBQ Challenge	2	34	top 88%	2019-09-27

The story so far (17 numbers that describe this team)

On the trail 6.4 yrs 2013-04-19 → 2019-09-27

Busiest season 2015 4 contests

Contests a season 2.4 across 7 seasons in the data

Cooks most in NC 14 of 17 contests · 2 states/provinces in all

Contests visited 9 4 of them cooked more than once

Most-entered meat Chicken 17 entries · 0 wins · 2 calls

Strongest meat Chicken averages 167.58 · weakest Pork Ribs (158.78)

Walk rate 18% a top-10 call in 3 of 17 contests

Overall top-10 rate 0% 0 of 17 contests

Master average 649.98 out of 720 · 17 contests · 0 GCs

Opponents faced 411 415–574 across every shared overall standing

Road miles 814 17 mapped stops · furthest 102 mi

Schedule strength 1562 average field rating faced — tougher than 48% of rated contests

Purse competed for $10,500 listed at 1 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships 0 from 1 state-championship entries

Longest layoff 1 yrs 2017-04-14 → 2018-04-20

Power rating 1475 peak 1511 · #4393 of 6,413 rated

Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)

2013
Apr 19 First tracked contest Kings Mountain Firehouse BBQ Cook-off
Apr 19 First call Kings Mountain Firehouse BBQ Cook-off
Apr 19 First overall past 90% of a perfect score657.7136 Kings Mountain Firehouse BBQ Cook-off
Jun 14 Peak power rating (1511) Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival
2015
Apr 17 Career-best single call (Chicken)175.4400 19th Annual Firehouse BBQ Cook-Off
Jun 12 10th tracked contest Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival
2016
Jun 10 Career-best overall score676.4800 Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival
2019
Sep 27 Most recent contest Butts and Beans BBQ Challenge

Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+9.2	Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival	2013-06-14
+8.7	Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival	2016-06-10
+4	Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival	2014-06-13
+1.8	Kings Mountain Firehouse BBQ Cook-off	2013-04-19
+1.7	Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival	2015-06-12

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-9.3	21st Annual Fire House BBQ Cook-Off	2017-04-14
-7.7	* Hog Happnin'	2015-11-06
-6.9	Butts and Beans BBQ Challenge	2019-09-27
-6.6	*22nd Annual Firehouse BBQ Cookoff	2018-04-20
-6.1	17th Annual Firehouse BBQ Cook-off	2014-04-18

Category scores over time

Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)

Where they finish (overall)

Best vs average (by meat)

How entries end (by meat)

Team of the Year rank by season

Season by season

Season	Contests	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2019	1	0%	top 92%	87.7%	87.7%
2018	2	0%	top 85%	87.8%	87.2%
2017	1	0%	top 88%	86.8%	86.8%
2016	1	0%	top 33%	94%	94%
2015	4	25%	top 65%	92%	90.4%
2014	4	0%	top 60%	92.4%	91%
2013	4	50%	top 46%	91.9%	91.5%

Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2019-09-27	Butts and Beans BBQ Challenge 🏅 Newton, NC	34 / 37 (631.3260)	24 (165.7028)	33 (158.2516)	26 (161.1200)	35 (146.2516)
2018-09-21	Butts and Beans BBQ Challenge Newton, NC	38 / 45 (622.6512)	24 (163.9656)	42 (146.2056)	38 (155.3600)	30 (157.1200)
2018-04-20	*22nd Annual Firehouse BBQ Cookoff Kings Mountain, NC	28 / 33 (632.3768)	12 (170.8456)	29 (153.6340)	32 (151.3600)	27 (156.5372)
2017-04-14	21st Annual Fire House BBQ Cook-Off Kings Mountain, NC	43 / 49 (624.9372)	21 (168.5140)	48 (140.4916)	46 (155.3828)	34 (160.5488)
2016-06-10	Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival Tryon, NC	25 / 76 (676.4800)	35 (169.6684)	33 (168.5716)	28 (167.4172)	17 (170.8228)
2015-11-06	* Hog Happnin' Shelby, NC	50 / 60 (642.1828)	55 (152.5600)	42 (161.0972)	45 (160.5600)	30 (167.9656)
2015-07-31	Dillard Bluegrass & Barbeque Festival (GBC Qualifier) Dillard, GA	37 / 55 (662.1372)	32 (169.7028)	37 (165.6800)	40 (165.0972)	39 (161.6572)
2015-06-12	Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival Tryon, NC	41 / 78 (650.7084)	45 (163.9656)	60 (155.3712)	45 (163.3944)	27 (167.9772)
2015-04-17	19th Annual Firehouse BBQ Cook-Off Kings Mountain, NC	24 / 41 (649.5892)	4 (175.4400)	32 (154.8116)	29 (160.5144)	25 (158.8232)
2014-10-31	Hog Happnin' Shelby, NC	38 / 61 (654.6628)	20 (170.2628)	35 (163.9428)	39 (162.2400)	49 (158.2172)
2014-08-01	Dillard Bluegrass & Barbeque Festival (GBC Qualifier) Dillard, GA	35 / 56 (658.6740)	11 (175.4056)	32 (164.5256)	33 (165.1200)	50 (153.6228)
2014-06-13	Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival Tryon, NC	31 / 73 (665.0284)	18 (171.9772)	43 (161.1200)	27 (167.4056)	38 (164.5256)
2014-04-18	17th Annual Firehouse BBQ Cook-off Kings Mountain, NC	40 / 55 (643.2800)	36 (162.8228)	39 (155.9428)	23 (164.5600)	36 (159.9544)
2013-11-01	Hog Happnin' Shelby, NC	43 / 75 (655.8284)	38 (167.4056)	32 (166.2516)	6 (173.7028)	67 (148.4684)
2013-08-02	Dillard Bluegrass & Barbeque Festival (GBC Qualifier) Dillard, GA	36 / 61 (661.5656)	18 (171.4172)	49 (157.0856)	34 (166.8228)	34 (166.2400)
2013-06-14	Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival Tryon, NC	23 / 97 (660.5708)	65 (157.1426)	28 (165.7142)	37 (165.1426)	13 (172.5714)
2013-04-19	Kings Mountain Firehouse BBQ Cook-off Kings Mountain, NC	25 / 55 (657.7136)	10 (172.0000)	35 (160.5712)	32 (162.8568)	32 (162.2856)

Career map (orange GC · green top-10 · grey the rest — tap a pin)

Team of the Year standings (rank per category by season — year links to the full board on kcbs.us)

Year	Series	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2018 ↗	Master	#1677 (118 pts)	#1298 (188 pts)	#1730 (118 pts)	#1733 (118 pts)	#1703 (118 pts)
2017 ↗	Master	#2212 (60 pts)	#2146 (80 pts)	#2304 (60 pts)	#2260 (60 pts)	#2266 (60 pts)
2016 ↗	Master	#2274 (60 pts)	#2353 (60 pts)	#2349 (60 pts)	#2326 (60 pts)	#2112 (100 pts)
2015 ↗	Master	#1636 (125 pts)	#1150 (270 pts)	#1776 (120 pts)	#1790 (120 pts)	#1763 (120 pts)
2014 ↗	Master	#1034 (300 pts)	#838 (430 pts)	#1096 (300 pts)	#1065 (310 pts)	#1069 (300 pts)
2013 ↗	Master	#942 (310 pts)	#796 (410 pts)	#1029 (300 pts)	#796 (415 pts)	#871 (360 pts)