SPECIAL ED'S BBQ

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

Power ranking

#6099

of 6,413 rated · rankings

Rating

1426

peak 1426 · rated over 13 contests ⓘ

Contests

in the data

First seen

2013-05-10

latest 2017-10-06

Best ToY finish

#1111

Master 2014

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

1 podiums

Overall top-10s

of 13 contests

Avg finish

top 80%

overall standings

Best overall

657.0284 / 720

Master · Black Dog Music and Que Festival

Perfect 180s

Current form

609.08 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 607.19 (+1.89)

Walk rate

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

177.1428

Pork · Black Dog Music and Que Festival

Consistency

±37.12

std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Pork

avg 156.41 · weakest Brisket (146.74)

Road miles

4,781

mi across 13 mapped stops · furthest 605 mi

Schedule strength

37%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1549)

Master avg

607.19 / 720

13 Master contests · 0 GCs

⚔ Compare with another team

Storylines (8 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.

Their season

2014 their best year

2014 was the year it came together: 3 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 1 category win, at an average finish in the top 68%.

3 contests
1 overall top-10s
1 category wins
average top 68%

A tough matchup

7–0 behind in the head-to-head

WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ ahead in 100% of their meetings

WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ has come out ahead in 7 of their 7 shared contests.

The weak link

−9.7 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 9.67 points below their pork, and turns into a call 0% of the time against 8%.

Brisket avg 146.74
Pork avg 156.41
0 calls in 13 entries

A strong matchup

4–1 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 80% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of smokey anderson bbq in 4 of their 5 shared contests.

Pork nemesis

6 of 7 shared pork entries lost

WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ ahead 86% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ has out-cooked them in 6 of 7 shared pork entries.

A May team

Top 61% average finish in May

Something about May: average finish in the top 61% across 4 contests, versus top 80% the rest of the year.

4 May contests
top 80% the rest of the year

The long haul

4,781 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 4,781 miles across 13 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 605 miles to Up In Smoke On The Square.

13 mapped stops
furthest 605 mi

A standing appointment

4 years running at one contest

They've cooked BBQ Jamboree every year from 2013 to 2016 — the contest they never miss.

4 visits in all
best finish 21st

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.

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

BITE MY BUTT BBQ

#6097 of the rated field

1426 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 25
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 8%
Peak: 1426

0–2 in 2 shared contests (0% to SPECIAL ED'S BBQ)

2 contests in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team SPECIAL ED'S BBQ has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.

rated over 24 contests
last seen 2026-06-26

⚔ Head-to-head

Pig Riggin BBQ

#6093 of the rated field

1426 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 12
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1426

No shared contest yet.

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 12 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 12 contests
last seen 2025-11-05

⚔ Head-to-head

BBQ De Reizende Mannen

#6094 of the rated field

1426 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 12
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 8%
Peak: 1426

No shared contest yet.

Careers of much the same size, 12 contests to 13, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 12 contests
last seen 2019-11-30

⚔ Head-to-head

DU-LITTLE BBQ

#6100 of the rated field

1425 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 15
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1425

No shared contest yet.

15 contests and no Grand Championship yet.

rated over 15 contests
last seen 2021-04-23

⚔ Head-to-head

SMOKIN ROSES

#6091 of the rated field

1426 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1426

No shared contest yet.

They turned up 5 years after SPECIAL ED'S BBQ did, first appearing in 2018.

rated over 10 contests
last seen 2024-05-17

⚔ Head-to-head

PALMETTO MOONLIGHT SMOKERS

#6096 of the rated field

1426 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1426

No shared contest yet.

Level with SPECIAL ED'S BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 8 contests
last seen 2023-07-06

⚔ Head-to-head

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
JD'S SMOKIN MISFITS	7	1	6	14%	⚔ compare
WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
CHIX, SWINE & BOVINE BBQ	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
Rocks Money Pit BBQ	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
HOG-IT-UP BBQ	6	1	5	17%	⚔ compare
OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
FRED VEGAS SMOKERS	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
Serial Griller	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
CHECKERED PIG	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
smokey anderson bbq	5	4	1	80%	⚔ compare
PIG PICKERS	5	2	3	40%	⚔ compare
PAVONE BROTHERS BBQ	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
NEW REVOLUTION Q	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
THE PIG'S EAR	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
4:20 Q	5	0	5	0%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	13	0	0	0	163.4744	132.0000	153.29	top 76%
Pork Ribs	13	1	0	0	164.0000	128.0000	150.74	top 80%
Pork	13	1	1	1	177.1428	145.1426	156.41	top 69%
Brisket	13	0	0	0	165.7028	105.7152	146.74	top 78%

“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
VA	9	top 75%
IL	2	top 90%
GA	2	top 94%

By contest size

Field	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
Medium (20–39)	5	0	top 85%
Large (40+)	8	0	top 77%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
BBQ Jamboree	4	21	0	top 61%	2016-05-13
Flames on the Flint (GBC Qualifier)	2	67	0	top 94%	2016-03-11

The story so far (15 numbers that describe this team)

On the trail 4.4 yrs 2013-05-10 → 2017-10-06

Busiest season 2016 3 contests

Contests a season 2.6 across 5 seasons in the data

Cooks most in VA 9 of 13 contests · 3 states/provinces in all

Contests visited 9 2 of them cooked more than once

Most-entered meat Chicken 13 entries · 0 wins · 0 calls

Strongest meat Pork averages 156.41 · weakest Brisket (146.74)

Walk rate 8% a top-10 call in 1 of 13 contests

Overall top-10 rate 8% 1 of 13 contests

Master average 607.19 out of 720 · 13 contests · 0 GCs

Opponents faced 403 138–498 across every shared overall standing

Road miles 4,781 13 mapped stops · furthest 605 mi

Schedule strength 1549 average field rating faced — tougher than 37% of rated contests

Longest layoff 1.2 yrs 2016-06-24 → 2017-08-18

Power rating 1426 peak 1426 · #6099 of 6,413 rated

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

2013
May 10 First tracked contest BBQ Jamboree
May 10 Peak power rating (1487) BBQ Jamboree
2014
Sep 12 First call Black Dog Music and Que Festival
Sep 12 First category win (Pork) Black Dog Music and Que Festival
Sep 12 First overall top-10 Black Dog Music and Que Festival
Sep 12 First overall past 90% of a perfect score657.0284 Black Dog Music and Que Festival
Sep 12 Career-best overall score657.0284 Black Dog Music and Que Festival
Sep 12 Career-best single call (Pork)177.1428 Black Dog Music and Que Festival
2016
May 13 10th tracked contest BBQ Jamboree
2017
Oct 6 Most recent contest *Decatur's Smokin BBQ Festival(JUDGES FULL)

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+9.7	BBQ Jamboree	2015-05-08
+5.7	Black Dog Music and Que Festival	2014-09-12
+2.4	BBQ Jamboree	2016-05-13

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-13.5	Covington Cork and Pork Festival	2013-06-28
-13.1	BBQ Jamboree	2013-05-10
-12.7	Que & Cruz	2013-07-19
-10	Up In Smoke On The Square	2014-08-22
-9.8	Big Bad BBQ in Boydton	2017-08-18

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	Top-10s	Category wins	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2017	2	0	0	0%	top 92%	86.2%	83.1%
2016	3	0	0	0%	top 82%	88.3%	85.6%
2015	2	0	0	0%	top 63%	89.9%	89.4%
2014	3	1	1	33%	top 68%	91.3%	86.9%
2013	3	0	0	0%	top 94%	82.5%	77.9%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2017-10-06	*Decatur's Smokin BBQ Festival(JUDGES FULL) Decatur, IL	26 / 30 (620.9032)	22 (160.5256)	27 (151.3372)	26 (155.3716)	26 (153.6688)
2017-08-18	Big Bad BBQ in Boydton Boydton, VA	30 / 31 (575.7480)	30 (146.2284)	27 (148.4796)	30 (149.6800)	29 (131.3600)
2016-06-24	Covington Cork & Pork Festival Covington, VA	26 / 27 (591.2456)	26 (147.3600)	26 (145.6800)	23 (157.0856)	27 (141.1200)
2016-05-13	BBQ Jamboree Fredericksburg, VA	40 / 72 (635.9088)	49 (157.1200)	32 (162.2744)	16 (166.2400)	54 (150.2744)
2016-03-11	Flames on the Flint (GBC Qualifier) Bainbridge, GA	84 / 89 (621.5768)	81 (157.6912)	75 (157.1200)	67 (161.0856)	85 (145.6800)
2015-05-08	BBQ Jamboree Fredericksburg, VA	21 / 65 (639.4052)	39 (156.5712)	28 (161.1428)	33 (155.9884)	12 (165.7028)
2015-03-13	Flames on the Flint Bainbridge, GA	67 / 72 (647.3252)	66 (161.1084)	61 (162.2628)	56 (165.6912)	59 (158.2628)
2014-09-12	Black Dog Music and Que Festival Floyd, VA	10 / 21 (657.0284)	16 (158.2284)	9 (164.0000)	1 (177.1428)	14 (157.6572)
2014-08-22	Up In Smoke On The Square Lincoln, IL	47 / 50 (607.3600)	24 (163.4744)	47 (147.9888)	48 (146.2284)	44 (149.6684)
2014-05-09	BBQ Jamboree Fredericksburg, VA	40 / 64 (613.7140)	18 (160.0112)	54 (145.7144)	28 (158.8684)	43 (149.1200)
2013-07-19	Que & Cruz Louisa, VA	43 / 45 (578.6856)	45 (135.9200)	41 (140.5144)	38 (146.8228)	22 (155.4284)
2013-06-28	Covington Cork and Pork Festival Covington, VA	24 / 25 (593.7140)	18 (156.5714)	24 (145.1428)	23 (147.9998)	24 (144.0000)
2013-05-10	BBQ Jamboree Fredericksburg, VA	55 / 60 (510.8578)	55 (132.0000)	58 (128.0000)	48 (145.1426)	58 (105.7152)

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
2016 ↗	Master	#2982 (52 pts)	#2970 (52 pts)	#2978 (52 pts)	#2321 (62 pts)	#2975 (52 pts)
2015 ↗	Master	#1575 (140 pts)	#1778 (120 pts)	#1776 (120 pts)	#1790 (120 pts)	#1413 (185 pts)
2014 ↗	Master	#1111 (271 pts)	#1158 (281 pts)	#1138 (281 pts)	#866 (421 pts)	#1214 (251 pts)