Smokey Bros Barbecue

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

Power ranking

#3648

of 6,413 rated · rankings

Rating

1490

peak 1505 · rated over 8 contests ⓘ

Contests

in the data

First seen

2025-09-19

latest 2026-07-18

Best ToY finish

#71

Backyard 2026

Grand champs

1 reserve

Category wins

1 podiums

Overall top-10s

of 8 contests

Avg finish

top 58%

overall standings

Best overall

687.9544 / 360

Backyard · SmokeHouse Barbeque Showdown (OPEN FORMAT) (REGISTRATION FULL)

Perfect 180s

Current form

370.92 ▲

last 5 Backyard vs avg 359.13 (+11.80)

Walk rate

50%

contests with a top-10 call

Top-10 streak

best run (overall)

Best single call

176.0000

Chicken · SmokeHouse Barbeque Showdown (OPEN FORMAT) (REGISTRATION FULL)

Consistency

±146.02

std dev of Backyard overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Brisket

avg 175.44 · weakest Pork Ribs (163.20)

Road miles

1,034

mi across 8 mapped stops · furthest 223 mi

Schedule strength

48%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1563)

Purse competed for

$29K

listed at 8 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

GCs in 2 state-championship entries

Backyard avg

359.13 / 360

7 Backyard contests · 0 GCs

This team cooks the Backyard series — its own boards, records and Team of the Year are here. Still inside their first twelve months: see what a first season usually looks like.

⚔ Compare with another team

Storylines (6 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.

The heartbreaker

1.6684 points from the title

Came within 1.6684 points of the Grand Championship at SmokeHouse Barbeque Showdown (OPEN FORMAT) (REGISTRATION FULL) (2026-05-01).

High-water mark

687.9544 career-best overall

191.1% of a perfect 360

Their best day on record: 687.9544 at SmokeHouse Barbeque Showdown (OPEN FORMAT) (REGISTRATION FULL) — 191.1% of a perfect 360.

Backyard
2026-05-01

A tough matchup

5–1 behind in the head-to-head

Chester's Twisted Que ahead in 83% of their meetings

Chester's Twisted Que has come out ahead in 5 of their 6 shared contests.

The weak link

−12.2 points behind their best meat

Pork Ribs is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 12.24 points below their brisket, and turns into a call 33% of the time against 100%.

Pork Ribs avg 163.20
Brisket avg 175.44
2 calls in 6 entries

A strong matchup

3–0 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 100% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of Boneheads BBQ in 3 of their 3 shared contests.

Boom or bust

±40.56% swing around their own average

Their overall swings ±40.56% of a perfect score around its own average — when it lands they're dangerous, and when it doesn't the weekend is gone by lunch.

averages 99.8% of a perfect score
best 191.1%

In the record book (1 in the KCBS record book)

Where this team stands in the all-time KCBS record book. A gold line is a record they hold outright; the rest are boards they are on. Rebuilt nightly, so beating one shows up here the next morning.

#8 🏡 Highest Backyard overall score 687.9544 Backyard Series, out of 360 · finished 2nd · 1 May 2026

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.

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

Jessi James Smoking Guns BBQ

#3634 of the rated field

1490 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 7
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 14%
Peak: 1511

1–1 in 2 shared contests (50% to Smokey Bros Barbecue)

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

rated over 7 contests
last seen 2026-08-28

⚔ Head-to-head

Team No Clue BBQ

#3662 of the rated field

1490 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 6
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1490

1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to Smokey Bros Barbecue)

Careers of much the same size, 6 contests to 8, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 6 contests
last seen 2026-04-03

⚔ Head-to-head

Music City Smokers

#3667 of the rated field

1490 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 20%
Peak: 1490

No shared contest yet.

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 8 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 8 contests
last seen 2026-06-12

⚔ Head-to-head

PORK FLOYD

#3647 of the rated field

1490 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 13%
Peak: 1502

No shared contest yet.

They were already cooking in 2017, 8 years before Smokey Bros Barbecue's first contest.

rated over 8 contests
last seen 2025-11-05

⚔ Head-to-head

Barking Gecko BBQ

#3660 of the rated field

1490 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 63%
Peak: 1515

No shared contest yet.

4 straight overall top-10s says this rating is a moving target.

rated over 8 contests
last seen 2025-11-01

⚔ Head-to-head

Morning Wood

#3658 of the rated field

1490 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 13%
Peak: 1517

No shared contest yet.

Level with Smokey Bros Barbecue on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 8 contests
last seen 2025-09-26

⚔ Head-to-head

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
Smoke N Poke BBQ	6	2	4	33%	⚔ compare
Chester's Twisted Que	6	1	5	17%	⚔ compare
Rudes BBQ	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
DAWGS BBQ	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
Family Tradition BBQ	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
SMOKEY GQ	5	0	5	0%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	7	4	0	176.0000	165.6684	169.36	top 50%
Pork Ribs	6	2	0	167.3828	158.8000	163.20	top 76%
Pork	1	1	0	173.7144	173.7144	173.71	top 59%
Brisket	1	1	1	175.4400	175.4400	175.44	top 18%

“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
IA	5	top 57%
MO	2	top 85%
IL	1	top 41%

By contest size

Field	Contests	Avg finish
Small (<20 teams)	3	top 35%
Medium (20–39)	3	top 85%
Large (40+)	1	top 48%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
Great River Threshers BBQ Contest (BACKYARD ONLY) (Day 2)	2	20	0	top 86%	2026-07-18

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

On the trail 0.8 yrs 2025-09-19 → 2026-07-18

Busiest season 2026 7 contests

Contests a season 4 across 2 seasons in the data

Cooks most in IA 5 of 8 contests · 3 states/provinces in all

Contests visited 7 1 of them cooked more than once

Most-entered meat Chicken 7 entries · 0 wins · 4 calls

Strongest meat Brisket averages 175.44 · weakest Pork Ribs (163.20)

Walk rate 50% a top-10 call in 4 of 8 contests

Overall top-10 rate 38% 3 of 8 contests

Best top-10 run 2 straight contests

Backyard average 359.13 out of 360 · 7 contests · 0 GCs

Opponents faced 143 97–138 across every shared overall standing

Road miles 1,034 8 mapped stops · furthest 223 mi

Schedule strength 1563 average field rating faced — tougher than 48% of rated contests

Purse competed for $29,300 listed at 8 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships 0 from 2 state-championship entries

Power rating 1490 peak 1505 · #3648 of 6,413 rated

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

2025
Sep 19 First tracked contest Smokin Ribs for the Kids (BACKYARD ONLY)
Sep 19 First call Smokin Ribs for the Kids (BACKYARD ONLY)
Sep 19 First overall top-10 Smokin Ribs for the Kids (BACKYARD ONLY)
Sep 19 First overall past 90% of a perfect score329.0628 Smokin Ribs for the Kids (BACKYARD ONLY)
Sep 19 Peak power rating (1505) Smokin Ribs for the Kids (BACKYARD ONLY)
2026
May 1 First overall podium SmokeHouse Barbeque Showdown (OPEN FORMAT) (REGISTRATION FULL)
May 1 First Reserve Championship SmokeHouse Barbeque Showdown (OPEN FORMAT) (REGISTRATION FULL)
May 1 Career-best overall score687.9544 SmokeHouse Barbeque Showdown (OPEN FORMAT) (REGISTRATION FULL)
May 1 Career-best single call (Chicken)176.0000 SmokeHouse Barbeque Showdown (OPEN FORMAT) (REGISTRATION FULL)
Jul 18 Most recent contest Great River Threshers BBQ Contest (BACKYARD ONLY) (Day 2)

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+17.9	SmokeHouse Barbeque Showdown (OPEN FORMAT) (REGISTRATION FULL)	2026-05-01
+5.3	Smokin Ribs for the Kids (BACKYARD ONLY)	2025-09-19
+4.8	Iowa State BBQ Championship	2026-04-03
+0.7	Rib Fest (BACKYARD ONLY)	2026-06-26

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-15.3	American Royal World Series of Barbecue Steak Cook-Off	2026-03-20
-12.5	Great River Threshers BBQ Contest (BACKYARD ONLY) (Day 1)	2026-07-17
-8.4	American Royal World Series of Barbecue Backyard Contest	2026-03-20
-2.6	Great River Threshers BBQ Contest (BACKYARD ONLY) (Day 2)	2026-07-18

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)

Season by season

Season	Contests	GCs	Top-10s	Category wins	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2026	7	0	2	0	43%	top 61%	191.1%	101.1%
2025	1	0	1	0	100%	top 41%	91.4%	91.4%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2026-07-18	Great River Threshers BBQ Contest (BACKYARD ONLY) (Day 2) Miles, IA	20 / 28 (334.2288)	4 (175.4288)	24 (158.8000)	—	—
2026-07-17	Great River Threshers BBQ Contest (BACKYARD ONLY) (Day 1) Miles, IA	27 / 27 (165.6684)	22 (165.6684)	—	—	—
2026-06-26	Rib Fest (BACKYARD ONLY) Sioux City, IA	10 / 19 (330.2744)	8 (165.7144)	10 (164.5600)	—	—
2026-05-01	SmokeHouse Barbeque Showdown (OPEN FORMAT) (REGISTRATION FULL) 🏅 Cambridge, IA	2 / 17 (687.9544)	7 (176.0000)	26 (162.8000)	10 (173.7144)	3 (175.4400)
2026-04-03	Iowa State BBQ Championship 🏅 Altoona, IA	20 / 42 (336.4912)	22 (169.1084)	22 (167.3828)	—	—
2026-03-20	American Royal World Series of Barbecue Backyard Contest Kansas City, MO	28 / 33 (330.2056)	23 (167.4056)	25 (162.8000)	—	—
2026-03-20	American Royal World Series of Barbecue Steak Cook-Off Kansas City, MO	12 (157.0740)	—	—	—	—
2025-09-19	Smokin Ribs for the Kids (BACKYARD ONLY) Loves Park, IL	7 / 17 (329.0628)	8 (166.2284)	6 (162.8344)	—	—

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
2026 ↗	Backyard	#71 (658 pts)	#62 (703 pts)	#89 (575 pts)	—	—