SCRUM DOWN SMOKERS

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

Power ranking

#2726

of 6,413 rated · rankings

Rating

1513

peak 1532 · rated over 21 contests ⓘ

Contests

in the data

First seen

2015-08-21

latest 2020-08-21

Best ToY finish

#415

Master 2017

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

6 podiums

Overall top-10s

of 21 contests

Avg finish

top 58%

overall standings

Best overall

682.1940 / 720

Master · BBQ in the Badlands

Perfect 180s

Current form

649.19 ▼

last 5 Master vs avg 653.94 (-4.75)

Walk rate

81%

contests with a top-10 call

Top-10 streak

best run (overall)

Best single call

179.4400

Chicken · Hill City Wine Brew & BBQ

Consistency

±33.24

std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 170.43 · weakest Pork (157.86)

Road miles

5,806

mi across 21 mapped stops · furthest 372 mi

Schedule strength

64%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1580)

Purse competed for

$25K

listed at 2 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

GCs in 3 state-championship entries

Master avg

653.94 / 720

21 Master contests · 0 GCs

⚔ Compare with another team

Storylines (10 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.

They almost always walk

81% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 17 of 21 contests

A top-10 category call in 81% of their 21 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

682.1940 career-best overall

94.7% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 682.1940 at BBQ in the Badlands — 94.7% of a perfect 720.

Master
2017-09-29

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

BIG DADDY QUE has finished one call ahead of SCRUM DOWN SMOKERS 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

Their season

2017 their best year

2017 was the year it came together: 8 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 1 category win, at an average finish in the top 47%.

8 contests
3 overall top-10s
1 category wins
average top 47%

A tough matchup

17–2 behind in the head-to-head

PARROTHEAD SMOKERS ahead in 89% of their meetings

PARROTHEAD SMOKERS has come out ahead in 17 of their 19 shared contests.

The weak link

−12.6 points behind their best meat

Pork is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 12.57 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 33% of the time against 57%.

Pork avg 157.86
Chicken avg 170.43
7 calls in 21 entries

A strong matchup

4–0 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 100% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of SMOKIN JERKS in 4 of their 4 shared contests.

Chicken nemesis

11 of 17 shared chicken entries lost

LAST CALL HEROES BBQ ahead 65% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, LAST CALL HEROES BBQ has out-cooked them in 11 of 17 shared chicken entries.

The long haul

5,806 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 5,806 miles across 21 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 372 miles to Pepsi WY State Championship BBQ & Bluegrass Festival.

21 mapped stops
furthest 372 mi

A standing appointment

5 years running at one contest

They've cooked Hill City Wine Brew & BBQ every year from 2015 to 2019 — the contest they never miss.

5 visits in all
best finish 10th

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.

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

PURE SMOKE

#2742 of the rated field

1512 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 20
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 5%
Peak: 1512

0–2 in 2 shared contests (0% to SCRUM DOWN SMOKERS)

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

rated over 20 contests
last seen 2026-06-05

⚔ Head-to-head

RUB Q LONG TIME

#2736 of the rated field

1512 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 21
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 29%
Peak: 1518

No shared contest yet.

Their last contest in the data was back in 2016, 4 years before SCRUM DOWN SMOKERS's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 21 contests

⚔ Head-to-head

OOPS

#2738 of the rated field

1512 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 20
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1515

No shared contest yet.

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 20 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 20 contests
last seen 2022-09-08

⚔ Head-to-head

MAGUIRE UNIVERSITY CULINARY INSTITUTE

#2744 of the rated field

1512 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 19
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1533

No shared contest yet.

Careers of much the same size, 19 contests to 21, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 19 contests
last seen 2019-08-16

⚔ Head-to-head

Rum Runners BBQ

#2716 of the rated field

1513 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 23
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 13%
Peak: 1515

No shared contest yet.

23 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 13% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 18 contests
last seen 2026-07-09

⚔ Head-to-head

RED BARN BBQ

#2741 of the rated field

1512 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 18
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 6%
Peak: 1530

No shared contest yet.

Level with SCRUM DOWN SMOKERS on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 18 contests
last seen 2019-04-26

⚔ Head-to-head

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
PARROTHEAD SMOKERS	19	2	17	11%	⚔ compare
LAST CALL HEROES BBQ	17	1	16	6%	⚔ compare
RICHIE Z's	15	5	10	33%	⚔ compare
SIN CIRCLE BBQ	14	2	12	14%	⚔ compare
YOU QUE'D ME ALL NIGHT LONG	14	1	13	7%	⚔ compare
PAPA'S PIT CREW	13	7	6	54%	⚔ compare
SPITFIRE	13	1	12	8%	⚔ compare
ROLLIN' SMOKE BBQ SD	12	6	6	50%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN HOT BUTTS BBQ	11	1	10	9%	⚔ compare
Backdraft BBQ	10	1	9	10%	⚔ compare
B-S BBQ OUTLAWS	10	1	9	10%	⚔ compare
LONESTAR SMOKE RANGERS	9	3	6	33%	⚔ compare
Eggspert BBQ	9	1	8	11%	⚔ compare
BIG DADDY QUE	8	1	7	13%	⚔ compare
SMOKE ON THE PRAIRIE BBQ - WY	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	21	12	3	4	179.4400	149.6340	170.43	top 35%
Pork Ribs	21	3	0	1	175.4172	149.0400	163.26	top 62%
Pork	21	7	0	0	175.4056	20.0000	157.86	top 55%
Brisket	21	6	1	1	176.0000	143.3256	162.39	top 55%

“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
SD	14	top 59%
WY	4	top 63%
MT	3	top 45%

By contest size

Field	Contests	Avg finish
Small (<20 teams)	1	top 50%
Medium (20–39)	16	top 55%
Large (40+)	4	top 70%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
Hill City Wine Brew & BBQ	5	10	top 62%	2019-08-23
BBQ in the Badlands	2	9	top 50%	2018-09-28
Ribs, Rod & Rock'n Roll	2	17	top 61%	2018-09-07
*Original SD BBQ Championships	2	15	top 60%	2017-06-02

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

On the trail 5 yrs 2015-08-21 → 2020-08-21

Busiest season 2017 8 contests

Contests a season 3.5 across 6 seasons in the data

Cooks most in SD 14 of 21 contests · 3 states/provinces in all

Contests visited 14 4 of them cooked more than once

Most-entered meat Chicken 21 entries · 3 wins · 12 calls

Strongest meat Chicken averages 170.43 · weakest Pork (157.86)

Walk rate 81% a top-10 call in 17 of 21 contests

Overall top-10 rate 24% 5 of 21 contests

Best top-10 run 2 straight contests

Master average 653.94 out of 720 · 21 contests · 0 GCs

Opponents faced 254 264–362 across every shared overall standing

Road miles 5,806 21 mapped stops · furthest 372 mi

Schedule strength 1580 average field rating faced — tougher than 64% of rated contests

Purse competed for $24,500 listed at 2 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships 0 from 3 state-championship entries

Power rating 1513 peak 1532 · #2726 of 6,413 rated

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

2015
Aug 21 First tracked contest Hill City Wine, Brew & BBQ
Aug 21 First call Hill City Wine, Brew & BBQ
Aug 21 First category win (Brisket) Hill City Wine, Brew & BBQ
Aug 21 First overall top-10 Hill City Wine, Brew & BBQ
Aug 21 First overall past 90% of a perfect score675.3828 Hill City Wine, Brew & BBQ
2017
Jul 14 10th tracked contest Cookin On Kampeska
Sep 29 Career-best overall score682.1940 BBQ in the Badlands
Sep 29 Peak power rating (1532) BBQ in the Badlands
2018
Aug 24 Career-best single call (Chicken)179.4400 Hill City Wine Brew & BBQ
2020
Aug 21 Most recent contest Hill City Wine Brew and BBQ Fest

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+13	Ribs, Rods and Rock'n Roll	2016-09-09
+7.3	Miles City Cowtown Cookoff	2017-06-16
+7.3	BBQ in the Badlands	2017-09-29
+7.2	Hill City Wine, Brew & BBQ	2015-08-21
+4.5	Hill City Wine Brew & BBQ	2017-08-25

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-10.8	Best of the West	2016-08-12
-6.6	Hill City Wine Brew and BBQ Fest	2020-08-21
-6	Original SD BBQ Championships	2016-06-03
-5.6	Hill City Wine Brew & BBQ	2016-08-26
-4.8	Hill City Wine Brew & BBQ	2019-08-23

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)
2020	1	0	0	0%	top 86%	89.7%	89.7%
2019	1	0	1	100%	top 77%	91.2%	91.2%
2018	4	0	1	100%	top 66%	91.8%	90.4%
2017	8	3	1	88%	top 47%	94.7%	92.9%
2016	5	1	0	60%	top 66%	93.5%	87%
2015	2	1	1	100%	top 43%	93.8%	93.4%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2020-08-21	Hill City Wine Brew and BBQ Fest 🏅 Hill City, SD	37 / 43 (646.1256)	28 (167.9772)	33 (162.8344)	36 (157.0856)	34 (158.2284)
2019-08-23	Hill City Wine Brew & BBQ 🏅 Hill City, SD	24 / 31 (656.3768)	1 (177.7028)	21 (167.3828)	26 (159.3600)	30 (151.9312)
2018-09-28	BBQ in the Badlands Glendive, MT	17 / 26 (661.0168)	5 (172.5828)	17 (164.5372)	14 (166.2512)	19 (157.6456)
2018-09-14	Smoke & Soul Fest Casper, WY	18 / 28 (645.5080)	12 (169.7028)	13 (163.9428)	27 (150.7540)	10 (161.1084)
2018-09-07	Ribs, Rod & Rock'n Roll Vermillion, SD	17 / 25 (636.9256)	7 (169.6800)	18 (161.6800)	16 (162.2400)	22 (143.3256)
2018-08-24	Hill City Wine Brew & BBQ Hill City, SD	18 / 27 (659.8400)	1 (179.4400)	27 (149.0400)	23 (157.0628)	4 (174.2972)
2017-09-29	BBQ in the Badlands Glendive, MT	9 / 26 (682.1940)	11 (171.4056)	16 (167.3828)	5 (175.4056)	13 (168.0000)
2017-09-22	Smoke & Soul Fest Casper, WY	9 / 18 (657.0280)	5 (170.8572)	14 (157.1084)	11 (163.3940)	6 (165.6684)
2017-09-08	Ribs, Rod & Rock'n Roll Vermillion, SD	17 / 31 (670.7884)	3 (175.4400)	9 (171.4172)	21 (161.6568)	20 (162.2744)
2017-08-25	Hill City Wine Brew & BBQ Hill City, SD	12 / 26 (671.3024)	15 (166.2400)	9 (170.8112)	10 (168.5600)	16 (165.6912)
2017-08-18	Pepsi WY State Championship BBQ & Bluegrass Festival 🏅 Worland, WY	13 / 28 (657.0056)	9 (169.1200)	15 (160.5372)	9 (166.8228)	12 (160.5256)
2017-07-14	Cookin On Kampeska Watertown, SD	31 / 48 (664.3996)	17 (170.8228)	38 (162.2400)	18 (168.5256)	33 (162.8112)
2017-06-16	Miles City Cowtown Cookoff Miles City, MT	9 / 26 (677.0396)	1 (179.4400)	3 (175.4172)	13 (161.6340)	17 (160.5484)
2017-06-02	*Original SD BBQ Championships Huron, SD	15 / 32 (669.0396)	8 (170.8228)	15 (166.8228)	7 (173.1428)	26 (158.2512)
2016-09-09	Ribs, Rods and Rock'n Roll Vermillion, SD	8 / 34 (673.0856)	4 (174.8572)	19 (161.0856)	8 (168.5600)	10 (168.5828)
2016-08-26	Hill City Wine Brew & BBQ Hill City, SD	25 / 31 (647.2800)	5 (175.4172)	30 (150.2056)	26 (160.5028)	22 (161.1544)
2016-08-12	Best of the West Sheridan, WY	24 / 26 (516.5032)	9 (167.3828)	12 (169.1432)	26 (20.0000)	15 (159.9772)
2016-07-15	Cookin' on Kampeska Watertown, SD	24 / 41 (660.4344)	25 (167.3944)	32 (160.5600)	17 (168.5372)	23 (163.9428)
2016-06-03	Original SD BBQ Championships Huron, SD	32 / 44 (635.2568)	41 (149.6340)	31 (161.6800)	27 (162.2400)	19 (161.7028)
2015-09-18	Taste of Autumn BBQ Championships Spearfish, SD	14 / 30 (670.1484)	13 (171.9656)	25 (156.5372)	5 (173.1200)	9 (168.5256)
2015-08-21	Hill City Wine, Brew & BBQ Hill City, SD	10 / 26 (675.3828)	18 (161.1200)	12 (168.0000)	8 (170.2628)	1 (176.0000)

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
2020 ↗	Master	#856 (60 pts)	#896 (60 pts)	#913 (60 pts)	#899 (60 pts)	#883 (60 pts)
2019 ↗	Master	#1947 (61 pts)	#996 (281 pts)	#1924 (76 pts)	#2512 (56 pts)	#2509 (56 pts)
2018 ↗	Master	#866 (356 pts)	#504 (726 pts)	#960 (341 pts)	#987 (316 pts)	#741 (476 pts)
2017 ↗	Master	#415 (892 pts)	#235 (1287 pts)	#398 (967 pts)	#384 (997 pts)	#511 (772 pts)
2016 ↗	Master	#884 (391 pts)	#633 (646 pts)	#963 (381 pts)	#912 (421 pts)	#807 (466 pts)
2015 ↗	Master	#1199 (236 pts)	#1401 (201 pts)	#1535 (171 pts)	#1033 (326 pts)	#861 (416 pts)