SMOKIN BARRELS

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

Power ranking

#5670

of 6,413 rated · rankings

Rating

1446

peak 1446 · rated over 21 contests ⓘ

Contests

in the data

First seen

2013-05-25

latest 2025-09-20

Best ToY finish

#1089

Master 2013

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

3 podiums

Overall top-10s

of 25 contests

Avg finish

top 65%

overall standings

Best overall

666.8228 / 720

Master · *Downtown Jonesboro BBQ Festival

Perfect 180s

Current form

634.83 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 625.97 (+8.86)

Walk rate

40%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

176.0000

Chicken · *Downtown Jonesboro BBQ Festival

Consistency

±21.41

std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Pork Ribs

avg 157.17 · weakest Brisket (152.82)

Road miles

9,024

mi across 23 mapped stops · furthest 873 mi

Schedule strength

15%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1522)

Purse competed for

$5K

listed at 4 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

GCs in 1 state-championship entries

Master avg

625.97 / 720

20 Master contests · 0 GCs

Backyard avg

293.59 / 360

3 Backyard contests · 0 GCs

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.

⚔ Compare with another team

Storylines (7 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

666.8228 career-best overall

92.6% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 666.8228 at *Downtown Jonesboro BBQ Festival — 92.6% of a perfect 720.

Master
2016-09-30

Their season

2014 their best year

2014 was the year it came together: 4 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 0 category wins, at an average finish in the top 49%.

4 contests
0 overall top-10s
0 category wins
average top 49%

A tough matchup

10–0 behind in the head-to-head

Priorville ahead in 100% of their meetings

Priorville has come out ahead in 10 of their 10 shared contests.

The weak link

−4.3 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 4.35 points below their pork ribs, and turns into a call 5% of the time against 22%.

Brisket avg 152.82
Pork Ribs avg 157.17
1 calls in 20 entries

A strong matchup

7–2 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 78% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of Big Pappa's Smokin' BBQ in 7 of their 9 shared contests.

The comeback

4.8 yrs off the trail, then back

Off the trail for 4.8 years, then back at Vine St. BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY) (2022-08-20).

last seen 2017-11-10
back 2022-08-20

The long haul

9,024 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 9,024 miles across 23 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 873 miles to Delta Smoke BBQ Contest.

23 mapped stops
furthest 873 mi

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.

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

BUEHRLE'S BACKYARD BARBECUE

#5685 of the rated field

1445 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1445

1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to SMOKIN BARRELS)

One contest in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team SMOKIN BARRELS has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.

rated over 10 contests
last seen 2016-08-19

⚔ Head-to-head

Smokin Genius

#5681 of the rated field

1445 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 22
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 86%
Peak: 1504

No shared contest yet.

They've been 1504 at their best, 58 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.

rated over 22 contests
last seen 2026-08-01
on an 8-contest top-10 run

⚔ Head-to-head

Bulldog BBQ

#5672 of the rated field

1446 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 23
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 17%
Peak: 1446

No shared contest yet.

Careers of much the same size, 23 contests to 25, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 22 contests
last seen 2026-06-19

⚔ Head-to-head

BURNT SIDE DOWN

#5668 of the rated field

1446 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 23
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 4%
Peak: 1446

No shared contest yet.

Their last contest in the data was back in 2017, 8 years before SMOKIN BARRELS's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 23 contests

⚔ Head-to-head

NA-DA-BONE BBQ

#5677 of the rated field

1446 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 24
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 4%
Peak: 1446

No shared contest yet.

24 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 4% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 24 contests
last seen 2024-10-04

⚔ Head-to-head

DESPERADO

#5661 of the rated field

1446 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 18
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 6%
Peak: 1446

No shared contest yet.

Level with SMOKIN BARRELS on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 18 contests
last seen 2017-06-02

⚔ Head-to-head

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
BEHIND BBQ	12	4	8	33%	⚔ compare
RED VALLEY BBQ	11	4	7	36%	⚔ compare
KISS MY BBQ	11	3	8	27%	⚔ compare
SHORTSVILLE SMOKERS	11	2	9	18%	⚔ compare
THE 5TH ARTERY	11	1	10	9%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN' AIN'T EASY	10	6	4	60%	⚔ compare
THREE DOGS BBQ	10	3	7	30%	⚔ compare
BUFFALO MEATHEADS	10	2	8	20%	⚔ compare
Priorville	10	0	10	0%	⚔ compare
Big Pappa's Smokin' BBQ	9	7	2	78%	⚔ compare
GOOD SMOKE BBQ	9	1	8	11%	⚔ compare
Sweet Heat BBQ	8	4	4	50%	⚔ compare
THE GOOD CUE CREW	8	4	4	50%	⚔ compare
TRANQUIL CARNIVORES	8	2	6	25%	⚔ compare
BLACK DAWG BBQ	8	2	6	25%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	23	4	0	1	176.0000	132.5028	156.70	top 60%
Pork Ribs	23	5	1	2	172.5828	126.6400	157.17	top 53%
Pork	20	2	0	0	169.1200	136.5712	156.24	top 61%
Brisket	20	1	0	0	166.2516	125.0288	152.82	top 63%

“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	Avg finish
NY	13	top 63%
IL	3	top 66%
MO	3	top 70%
VT	2	top 74%
AR	2	top 63%

By contest size

Field	Contests	Avg finish
Small (<20 teams)	1	top 94%
Medium (20–39)	7	top 68%
Large (40+)	15	top 61%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
Vine St. BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY)	3	14	top 66%	2022-08-20
Oinktoberfest	3	35	top 68%	2017-09-22
Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que	3	15	top 45%	2015-06-19
Roc City Rib Fest	2	38	top 75%	2016-05-28
Cape Jaycees BBQ Fest	2	27	top 57%	2015-08-21
Roc City Rib Fest	2	15	top 32%	2015-05-23

The story so far (18 numbers that describe this team)

On the trail 12.3 yrs 2013-05-25 → 2025-09-20

Busiest season 2013 6 contests

Contests a season 3.1 across 8 seasons in the data

Cooks most in NY 13 of 25 contests · 6 states/provinces in all

Contests visited 14 6 of them cooked more than once

Most-entered meat Chicken 23 entries · 0 wins · 4 calls

Strongest meat Pork Ribs averages 157.17 · weakest Brisket (152.82)

Walk rate 40% a top-10 call in 10 of 25 contests

Overall top-10 rate 0% 0 of 25 contests

Master average 625.97 out of 720 · 20 contests · 0 GCs

Backyard average 293.59 out of 360 · 3 contests · 0 GCs

Opponents faced 543 412–640 across every shared overall standing

Road miles 9,024 23 mapped stops · furthest 873 mi

Schedule strength 1522 average field rating faced — tougher than 15% of rated contests

Purse competed for $4,800 listed at 4 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships 0 from 1 state-championship entries

Longest layoff 4.8 yrs 2017-11-10 → 2022-08-20

Power rating 1446 peak 1446 · #5670 of 6,413 rated

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

First tracked contest Vine St BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY)
First call Vine St BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY)
2013
May 25 Peak power rating (1493) Roc City Rib Fest
Jun 7 First category win (Pork Ribs) Podunk Pig Party
2014
May 24 First overall past 90% of a perfect score656.5488 Roc City Rib Fest
Jun 13 10th tracked contest Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que
2016
Sep 30 Career-best overall score666.8228 *Downtown Jonesboro BBQ Festival
Sep 30 Career-best single call (Chicken)176.0000 *Downtown Jonesboro BBQ Festival
2025
Sep 20 25th tracked contest Green Mountain BBQ Championship - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES (DAY 2)
Sep 20 Most recent contest Green Mountain BBQ Championship - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES (DAY 2)

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+13.5	Roc City Rib Fest	2014-05-24
+9.6	*Downtown Jonesboro BBQ Festival	2016-09-30
+8.1	Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que	2014-06-13
+4.7	Roc City Rib Fest	2015-05-23
+4.4	Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que	2015-06-19

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-13.1	Brockport BBQ - Music Festival	2013-06-21
-12.1	22nd Annual Cape Jaycees BBQ Fest	2014-08-22
-11.2	Vine St. BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY)	2022-08-20
-10.6	Delta Smoke BBQ Contest	2017-06-09
-10.2	Podunk Pig Party	2013-06-07

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	Category wins	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
—	2	0	50%	top 53%	85.1%	82.7%
2025	1	0	0%	top 76%	90.6%	90.6%
2022	1	0	0%	top 90%	79.3%	79.3%
2017	3	0	33%	top 82%	86%	84.8%
2016	3	0	33%	top 53%	92.6%	90.3%
2015	5	0	60%	top 58%	90%	87.6%
2014	4	0	50%	top 49%	91.2%	88%
2013	6	1	33%	top 77%	86.8%	84.7%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2025-09-20	Green Mountain BBQ Championship - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES (DAY 2) 🏅 Braintree, VT	19 / 25 (652.3540)	25 (154.8000)	21 (163.9428)	14 (167.3828)	13 (166.2284)
2022-08-20	Vine St. BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY) Park Ridge, IL	37 / 41 (285.4168)	15 (158.7768)	40 (126.6400)	—	—
2017-11-10	Brew B Q Nashville, TN	—	—	—	—	—
2017-09-22	Oinktoberfest Clarence, NY	36 / 53 (619.2684)	53 (139.9540)	9 (166.2628)	25 (157.6916)	28 (155.3600)
2017-06-09	Delta Smoke BBQ Contest Wynne, AR	43 / 45 (602.1716)	39 (157.7256)	17 (170.2972)	44 (149.1200)	45 (125.0288)
2016-09-30	*Downtown Jonesboro BBQ Festival Jonesboro, AR	13 / 44 (666.8228)	2 (176.0000)	36 (156.5372)	17 (168.5600)	21 (165.7256)
2016-07-22	BBQ Fest Cooking Contest Dyersburg, TN	—	—	—	—	—
2016-05-28	Roc City Rib Fest Rochester, NY	38 / 50 (633.5544)	23 (166.2628)	44 (154.2516)	19 (165.0972)	43 (147.9428)
2015-08-21	Cape Jaycees BBQ Fest Cape Girardeau, MO	27 / 58 (631.3944)	48 (149.7028)	34 (159.9772)	33 (157.1428)	17 (164.5716)
2015-07-25	Harpoon Championships of New England BBQ Windsor, VT	25 / 35 (642.7544)	20 (165.6800)	28 (156.5716)	29 (158.2400)	19 (162.2628)
2015-06-19	Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que Wilson, NY	21 / 47 (628.9944)	24 (159.3944)	9 (162.8572)	11 (164.5256)	40 (142.2172)
2015-05-23	Roc City Rib Fest Rochester, NY	27 / 57 (647.9428)	42 (159.9540)	3 (172.5828)	31 (161.7144)	42 (153.6916)
2015-05-15	Salt City BBQ Festival Syracuse, NY	17 / 21 (600.9260)	7 (164.5600)	19 (138.1832)	19 (141.0856)	10 (157.0972)
2014-09-20	Oinktoberfest Clarence, NY	35 / 66 (622.7316)	39 (157.1428)	23 (160.5600)	56 (148.5028)	28 (156.5260)
2014-08-22	22nd Annual Cape Jaycees BBQ Fest Cape Girardeau, MO	49 / 52 (600.5372)	46 (147.9656)	22 (162.9144)	51 (143.4056)	45 (146.2516)
2014-06-13	Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que Wilson, NY	15 / 47 (654.1944)	13 (167.4400)	18 (163.9888)	7 (169.1200)	28 (153.6456)
2014-05-24	Roc City Rib Fest Rochester, NY	15 / 86 (656.5488)	24 (164.0228)	9 (167.9772)	46 (158.2972)	16 (166.2516)
2013-09-20	Oinktoberfest Clarence, NY	59 / 71 (596.3768)	43 (155.3712)	64 (134.2400)	28 (160.5600)	57 (146.2056)
2013-08-23	Cape Jaycees BBQ Fest Cape Girardeau, MO	38 / 56 (624.6284)	26 (162.3200)	38 (156.5600)	47 (152.5712)	36 (153.1772)
2013-06-21	Brockport BBQ - Music Festival Brockport, NY	17 / 18 (606.2864)	18 (143.4294)	15 (152.5716)	11 (156.5712)	11 (153.7142)
2013-06-14	Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que Wilson, NY	18 / 31 (623.4288)	10 (160.0000)	20 (150.8572)	9 (161.7144)	24 (150.8572)
2013-06-07	Podunk Pig Party Springwater, NY	17 / 20 (611.4280)	15 (156.5712)	1 (171.4286)	20 (136.5712)	15 (146.8570)
2013-05-25	Roc City Rib Fest Rochester, NY	59 / 80 (597.1424)	64 (149.1428)	20 (158.2858)	61 (146.8568)	58 (142.8570)
	Vine St BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY) Park Ridge, IL	27 / 38 (289.0856)	34 (132.5028)	16 (156.5828)	—	—
	Vine St BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY) Park Ridge, IL	14 / 39 (306.2744)	10 (155.4172)	21 (150.8572)	—	—

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
2017 ↗	Master	#2212 (60 pts)	#2286 (60 pts)	#1683 (145 pts)	#2260 (60 pts)	#2266 (60 pts)
2014 ↗	Master	#1372 (200 pts)	#1640 (155 pts)	#1246 (250 pts)	#1668 (150 pts)	#1452 (195 pts)
2013 ↗	Master	#1089 (259 pts)	#1018 (304 pts)	#746 (444 pts)	#971 (324 pts)	#1083 (269 pts)