High-water mark
665.7252
career-best overall
92.5% of a perfect 720
Their best day on record: 665.7252 at Murphysboro Barbecue Cook-off — 92.5% of a perfect 720.
- Master
- Sep 19, 2013
TOO BIG TO FAIL BBQ
TOO BIG TO FAIL BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 6 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2013 and 2015. Their best overall finish is 23rd of 76 at the Murphysboro Barbecue Cook-off (2013). They are ranked #3792 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1487
peak 1487 · rated over 6 contests
Contests
6
in the data
First seen
May 3, 2013
latest Sep 25, 2015 · 2.4 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
0
0% of 6 contests
Avg finish
top 64%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
647.00 ▲
last 5 Master vs avg 643.64 (+3.36)
Walk rate
33%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±14.05
spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 162.47 · weakest Pork Ribs (159.48)
Road miles
520
across 6 mapped stops · furthest 101 mi
Schedule strength
30%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1541)
Master avg
643.64 / 720
6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 ↗ | Master | #1676 (120 pts) | #1778 (120 pts) | #1543 (170 pts) | #1647 (145 pts) | #1129 (270 pts) |
| 2014 ↗ | Master | #1672 (146 pts) | #1389 (216 pts) | #1726 (146 pts) | #1557 (176 pts) | #1252 (241 pts) |
| 2013 ↗ | Master | #2561 (60 pts) | #1974 (90 pts) | #2452 (70 pts) | #2655 (55 pts) | #2535 (65 pts) |
Overall rank by season
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to TOO BIG TO FAIL BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.
119 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#3,786 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1504
Careers of much the same size, 6 contests to 6, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#3,779 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 17%
- Peak
- 1488
They turned up 6 years after TOO BIG TO FAIL BBQ did, first appearing in 2019.
⚔ Compare careers#3,774 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 17%
- Peak
- 1509
Level with TOO BIG TO FAIL BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Compare careers#3,782 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1488
Careers of much the same size, 6 contests to 6, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#3,790 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1487
Careers of much the same size, 6 contests to 6, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#3,784 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 29%
- Peak
- 1505
Their rating is built on 1 Grand Championship in 7 contests, alongside a 29% overall top-10 rate.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PITMASTERIQ BBQ | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| QUAU | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| ST. LOUIS BLACK IRON BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| BOSS HAWG BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 170.8684 | 151.3828 | 162.47 | top 60% |
| Pork Ribs | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 167.3944 | 150.2056 | 159.48 | top 65% |
| Pork | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 166.2856 | 152.5714 | 160.93 | top 60% |
| Brisket | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 173.7372 | 144.5144 | 160.75 | top 53% |
“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) | 1 | 0 | top 80% |
| Large (40+) | 5 | 0 | top 60% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Murphysboro Barbecue Cook-Off | 3 | 23 | 0 | top 51% | Sep 25, 2015 |
More numbers
Contests a season
2
across 3 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
IL
3 of 6 contests · 2 states in all
Contests visited
4
1 of them more than once
Opponents faced
183
finished ahead 127 times, behind 180
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20152 milestones
- Career-best single call (Brisket)173.7372 Murphysboro Barbecue Cook-Off
- Most recent contest Murphysboro Barbecue Cook-Off
20141 milestone
- First call Murphysboro Barbecue Cook-Off
20134 milestones
- First tracked contest Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score665.7252 Murphysboro Barbecue Cook-off
- Career-best overall score665.7252 Murphysboro Barbecue Cook-off
- Peak power rating (1500) Murphysboro Barbecue Cook-off
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +8.5 | Murphysboro Barbecue Cook-off | Sep 19, 2013 |
| +0.9 | Murphysboro Barbecue Cook-Off | Sep 25, 2015 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -8.8 | 6th Annual Main Street BBQ & Bluesfest | Apr 11, 2014 |
| -8.6 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour | May 3, 2013 |
| -3.1 | 7th Annual Main Street BBQ & Bluesfest | Apr 17, 2015 |
| -1.5 | Murphysboro Barbecue Cook-Off | Sep 18, 2014 |
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) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50% | top 63% | 90.6% | 89.4% |
| 2014 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50% | top 73% | 90.5% | 89% |
| 2013 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 55% | 92.5% | 89.8% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 25, 2015 | Murphysboro Barbecue Cook-Off Murphysboro, IL | 32 / 55 (652.5144) | 48 (157.7372) | 37 (158.2056) | 34 (162.8344) | 4 (173.7372) |
| Apr 17, 2015 | 7th Annual Main Street BBQ & Bluesfest Washington, MO | 33 / 49 (635.2800) | 47 (151.3828) | 15 (167.3944) | 20 (163.9312) | 39 (152.5716) |
| Sep 18, 2014 | Murphysboro Barbecue Cook-Off Murphysboro, IL | 36 / 57 (651.9088) | 41 (162.8344) | 45 (161.0972) | 51 (154.8572) | 8 (173.1200) |
| Apr 11, 2014 | 6th Annual Main Street BBQ & Bluesfest Washington, MO | 38 / 46 (629.5544) | 11 (169.7144) | 44 (150.2056) | 19 (165.1200) | 45 (144.5144) |
| Sep 19, 2013 | Murphysboro Barbecue Cook-off Murphysboro, IL | 23 / 76 (665.7252) | 16 (170.8684) | 32 (163.9884) | 26 (166.2856) | 33 (164.5828) |
| May 3, 2013 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour St. Charles, MO | 24 / 30 (626.8570) | 18 (162.2854) | 22 (156) | 27 (152.5714) | 23 (156.0002) |