They almost always walk
69%
of contests with a top-10 call
A call in 9 of 13 contests
A top-10 category call in 69% of their 13 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.
TARHEEL SMOKERS
TARHEEL SMOKERS is a competition barbecue team with 13 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2013 and 2019. Their best overall finish is 7th of 43 at the VA BBQ Championships (2014). They are ranked #3130 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1502
peak 1517 · rated over 13 contests
Contests
13
in the data
First seen
May 17, 2013
latest May 17, 2019 · 6 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
1 podium
Overall top-10s
3
23% of 13 contests
Best top-10 run
2
straight overall top-10s
Avg finish
top 56%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
649.95 ▲
last 5 Master vs avg 645.43 (+4.51)
Walk rate
69%
contests with a top-10 call
Best single call
174.2628
Consistency
±17.15
spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 162.65 · weakest Pork Ribs (159.77)
Road miles
3,154
across 13 mapped stops · furthest 303 mi
Schedule strength
37%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1549)
Purse competed for
$10K
listed at 1 contest — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
won from 1 state-championship entry
Master avg
645.43 / 720
13 Master contests · 0 GCs
Team of the Year (rank per category by season — the year links to the full board on kcbs.us)
| Year | Series | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 ↗ | Master | #1754 (90 pts) | #2049 (60 pts) | #2026 (60 pts) | #1453 (145 pts) | #1322 (175 pts) |
| 2017 ↗ | Master | #2212 (60 pts) | #2286 (60 pts) | #2271 (65 pts) | #1773 (125 pts) | #2266 (60 pts) |
| 2016 ↗ | Master | #2175 (75 pts) | #1736 (145 pts) | #2349 (60 pts) | #1720 (155 pts) | #2345 (60 pts) |
| 2015 ↗ | Master | #1470 (166 pts) | #1417 (196 pts) | #1264 (241 pts) | #1334 (231 pts) | #1476 (176 pts) |
| 2014 ↗ | Master | #855 (396 pts) | #961 (366 pts) | #841 (436 pts) | #942 (376 pts) | #920 (366 pts) |
| 2013 ↗ | Master | #954 (302 pts) | #1306 (207 pts) | #995 (312 pts) | #1012 (307 pts) | #766 (422 pts) |
Overall rank by season
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to TARHEEL SMOKERS, each with one reason worth a look.
113 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#3,131 of the rated field
- Contests
- 20
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 15%
- Peak
- 1547
1–1 in 2 shared contests (50% to TARHEEL SMOKERS)
2 contests in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team TARHEEL SMOKERS has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#3,146 of the rated field
- Contests
- 8
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 13%
- Peak
- 1512
0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to TARHEEL SMOKERS)
Their last contest in the data was back in 2014, 5 years before TARHEEL SMOKERS's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Head-to-head#3,126 of the rated field
- Contests
- 14
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 29%
- Peak
- 1528
Careers of much the same size, 14 contests to 13, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#3,115 of the rated field
- Contests
- 14
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 7%
- Peak
- 1512
14 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 7% top-10 finishes rather than wins.
⚔ Compare careers#3,132 of the rated field
- Contests
- 13
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 54%
- Peak
- 1521
They turned up 12 years after TARHEEL SMOKERS did, first appearing in 2025.
⚔ Compare careers#3,145 of the rated field
- Contests
- 11
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 9%
- Peak
- 1504
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 11 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SMOKIN SKULLIES | 8 | 4 | 4 | 50% | ⚔ compare |
| REDNECK SCIENTIFIC | 7 | 1 | 6 | 14% | ⚔ compare |
| CAROLINA SMOKE | 6 | 5 | 1 | 83% | ⚔ compare |
| THE SMOKEHOUSE MAFIA | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| HOLY SMOKE BBQ-NC | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| FatHeads bbq | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| MUTTLEY CREW BBQ | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 13 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 173.7028 | 145.7142 | 162.65 | top 54% |
| Pork Ribs | 13 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 173.1772 | 148.5488 | 159.77 | top 58% |
| Pork | 13 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 174.2628 | 142.2628 | 162.21 | top 48% |
| Brisket | 13 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 170.8800 | 141.1088 | 160.81 | top 49% |
“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 field size and state
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 9 | 0 | top 57% |
| Large (40+) | 4 | 0 | top 55% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kings of Q BBQ Cook-off and Festival | 3 | 19 | 0 | top 69% | May 17, 2019 |
| Sam's Club National BBQ Tour | 2 | 8 | 0 | top 57% | Jun 12, 2015 |
More numbers
Busiest season
2016
3 contests
Contests a season
2.2
across 6 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
NC
6 of 13 contests · 4 states in all
Contests visited
10
2 of them more than once
Opponents faced
335
finished ahead 214 times, behind 270
Longest layoff
2 yrs
May 19, 2017 → May 17, 2019
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20191 milestone
- Most recent contest Kings of Q BBQ Cook-off and Festival
20162 milestones
- Career-best single call (Pork)174.2628 Brasstown Valley's BBQ Throwdown (GBC Qualifier)- TEAMS FULL & JUDGES FULL
- 10th tracked contest Kings of Q BBQ cook off and Festival
20143 milestones
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score669.6800 Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
- Career-best overall score669.6800 Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
- Peak power rating (1517) VA BBQ Championships
20133 milestones
- First tracked contest Chesapeake Jubilee BBQ Cook-off
- First call Chesapeake Jubilee BBQ Cook-off
- First overall top-10 Chesapeake Jubilee BBQ Cook-off
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +12.5 | VA BBQ Championships | Aug 22, 2014 |
| +9.6 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour | Jun 6, 2014 |
| +9.4 | Chesapeake Jubilee BBQ Cook-off | May 17, 2013 |
| +5.1 | Beak Week BBQ Challenge | Sep 11, 2015 |
| +2.5 | Kings of Q BBQ Cook-off and Festival | May 17, 2019 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -10.2 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour | Jun 12, 2015 |
| -8.4 | Kings of Q BBQ cook off and Festival | May 19, 2017 |
| -7.8 | WNC Barbeque Festival | Jul 26, 2013 |
| -6.1 | BBQ Jamboree | May 9, 2014 |
| -4.4 | Kings of Q BBQ cook off and Festival | May 20, 2016 |
Scores over time (% of a perfect score — tap a meat to add it)
Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)
Where they finish (overall)
Best vs average (by meat)
How entries end (by meat)
Season by season
| Season | Contests | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 53% | 91% | 91% |
| 2017 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 83% | 87.6% | 87.6% |
| 2016 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 65% | 92% | 90.9% |
| 2015 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50% | top 65% | 92.2% | 89.7% |
| 2014 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 100% | top 39% | 93% | 89.6% |
| 2013 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 33% | top 52% | 89.5% | 88.6% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 17, 2019 | Kings of Q BBQ Cook-off and Festival 🏅 Ayden, NC | 19 / 36 (655.3144) | 35 (157.6572) | 26 (158.8572) | 9 (168.5372) | 6 (170.2628) |
| May 19, 2017 | Kings of Q BBQ cook off and Festival Ayden, NC | 30 / 36 (630.6744) | 33 (157.0628) | 24 (158.8688) | 12 (164.5372) | 33 (150.2056) |
| Aug 12, 2016 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Richmond, VA | 17 / 28 (654.7888) | 5 (172.5828) | 12 (166.2744) | 25 (155.3944) | 14 (160.5372) |
| May 20, 2016 | Kings of Q BBQ cook off and Festival Ayden, NC | 21 / 30 (646.1944) | 4 (172.5828) | 28 (148.5488) | 17 (163.3828) | 15 (161.6800) |
| Feb 5, 2016 | Brasstown Valley's BBQ Throwdown (GBC Qualifier)- TEAMS FULL & JUDGES FULL Young Harris, GA | 22 / 35 (662.7544) | 9 (173.7028) | 33 (153.1088) | 8 (174.2628) | 28 (161.6800) |
| Sep 11, 2015 | Beak Week BBQ Challenge Goldsboro, NC | 14 / 32 (663.9088) | 22 (160.5372) | 6 (166.2744) | 9 (170.8228) | 12 (166.2744) |
| Jun 12, 2015 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour N. Charleston, SC | 25 / 29 (628.4228) | 11 (168.5256) | 22 (157.6800) | 18 (161.1084) | 29 (141.1088) |
| Aug 22, 2014 | VA BBQ Championships Hampton, VA | 7 / 43 (658.2172) | 16 (157.6456) | 2 (173.1772) | 9 (163.3944) | 12 (164) |
| Jun 6, 2014 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour N. Charleston, SC | 8 / 28 (669.6800) | 15 (165.6800) | 17 (165.1544) | 8 (167.9656) | 7 (170.8800) |
| May 9, 2014 | BBQ Jamboree Fredericksburg, VA | 46 / 64 (606.6968) | 10 (164.5256) | 43 (152.5600) | 58 (142.2628) | 46 (147.3484) |
| Oct 11, 2013 | Eastern Carolina BBQ Throw Down Rocky Mount, NC | 30 / 55 (637.0400) | 37 (157.6800) | 45 (151.9428) | 13 (165.6800) | 25 (161.7372) |
| Jul 26, 2013 | WNC Barbeque Festival Maggie Valley, NC | 37 / 48 (644.3884) | 42 (160.5028) | 25 (161.6456) | 44 (152.5256) | 12 (169.7144) |
| May 17, 2013 | Chesapeake Jubilee BBQ Cook-off Chesapeake, VA | 8 / 34 (632.5712) | 29 (145.7142) | 7 (162.8572) | 17 (158.8570) | 4 (165.1428) |