High-water mark
94.1% of a perfect 720
Their best day on record: 677.6800 at Ridgefield Gone Country BBQ Festival — 94.1% of a perfect 720.
- Master
- 2018-05-05
Each card leads with the number that made it a story — read straight out of their results, no editorialising.
94.1% of a perfect 720
Their best day on record: 677.6800 at Ridgefield Gone Country BBQ Festival — 94.1% of a perfect 720.
DOG STAR BBQ has finished one call ahead of BACKDRAFT BAR-B-Q CT 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
2018 was the year it came together: 9 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 2 category wins, at an average finish in the top 38%.
Rogue Hog BBQ ahead in 95% of their meetings
Rogue Hog BBQ has come out ahead in 40 of their 42 shared contests.
Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 6.39 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 22% of the time against 35%.
Ahead in 83% of their meetings
They've finished ahead of SMOKE THIS L.I. in 10 of their 12 shared contests.
SMOKIN HOGGZ BBQ - MA ahead 73% of the time
Even in their strongest meat, SMOKIN HOGGZ BBQ - MA has out-cooked them in 29 of 40 shared chicken entries.
The rating has slipped 28 points across 4 contests since 2019-08-16 — from 1572 down to 1544.
Field size changes the story: they average a top 52% finish in large fields against top 67% in small ones.
FOUR SMOKING GUYS has landed one call behind them 3 times.
Something about June: average finish in the top 40% across 7 contests, versus top 56% the rest of the year.
Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 9,867 miles across 55 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 1,162 miles to KCBS World Invitational Barbeque Championship.
They've cooked Ridgefield Gone Country BBQ Festival every year from 2016 to 2019 — the contest they never miss.
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.
67 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
2 contests in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team BACKDRAFT BAR-B-Q CT has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-headThey've been 1575 at their best, 31 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.
⚔ Head-to-headFewer contests behind them than BACKDRAFT BAR-B-Q CT has cooked, 21 to 55, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.
⚔ Head-to-headTheir last contest in the data was back in 2017, 3 years before BACKDRAFT BAR-B-Q CT's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Head-to-head18 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 11% top-10 finishes rather than wins.
⚔ Head-to-headBoth teams' first contest in the data came in 2015.
⚔ Head-to-head| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rogue Hog BBQ | 42 | 2 | 40 | 5% | ⚔ compare |
| SMOKIN HOGGZ BBQ - MA | 40 | 1 | 39 | 3% | ⚔ compare |
| PADDY MCQ'S | 36 | 10 | 26 | 28% | ⚔ compare |
| Chicken Chokers | 33 | 10 | 22 | 30% | ⚔ compare |
| BLAZIN' BUTTZ BBQ | 27 | 6 | 21 | 22% | ⚔ compare |
| Q HAVEN BBQ | 26 | 8 | 18 | 31% | ⚔ compare |
| INSANE SWINE BBQ | 26 | 3 | 23 | 12% | ⚔ compare |
| A MAZIE Q | 25 | 8 | 17 | 32% | ⚔ compare |
| FIRE DOWN BELOW | 25 | 4 | 21 | 16% | ⚔ compare |
| ACK-QUE | 23 | 6 | 17 | 26% | ⚔ compare |
| Smokin Aces | 21 | 10 | 11 | 48% | ⚔ compare |
| BIG RAZ BBQ | 21 | 4 | 17 | 19% | ⚔ compare |
| SHORTSVILLE SMOKERS | 21 | 3 | 18 | 14% | ⚔ compare |
| FOUR SMOKING GUYS | 20 | 8 | 12 | 40% | ⚔ compare |
| THE BASIC BBQ TEAM | 19 | 6 | 13 | 32% | ⚔ compare |
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 55 | 19 | 1 | 5 | 176.5944 | 149.0744 | 164.75 | top 47% |
| Pork Ribs | 55 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 174.2972 | 137.0628 | 159.95 | top 56% |
| Pork | 54 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 171.4172 | 138.2628 | 160.00 | top 59% |
| Brisket | 54 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 172.5828 | 135.3716 | 158.36 | top 57% |
“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.
| Where | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| CT | 14 | 0 | top 54% |
| NJ | 11 | 0 | top 71% |
| NY | 7 | 0 | top 46% |
| VT | 4 | 0 | top 51% |
| MD | 3 | 0 | top 65% |
| MA | 3 | 0 | top 47% |
| ME | 3 | 0 | top 34% |
| VA | 2 | 0 | top 63% |
| RI | 2 | 0 | top 62% |
| NH | 2 | 0 | top 31% |
| AR | 1 | 0 | top 86% |
| DE | 1 | 0 | top 27% |
| SC | 1 | 0 | top 100% |
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 4 | 0 | top 67% |
| Medium (20–39) | 28 | 0 | top 58% |
| Large (40+) | 22 | 0 | top 52% |
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ridgefield Gone Country BBQ Festival | 4 | 2 | 0 | top 57% | 2019-05-04 |
| The Harpoon Brewery BBQ Festival | 3 | 13 | 0 | top 45% | 2019-07-27 |
| NYC BBQ Cookoff | 3 | 5 | 0 | top 48% | 2019-04-05 |
| Sun BBQ Fest | 3 | 26 | 0 | top 54% | 2018-06-02 |
| Hudson Valley Ribfest | 2 | 13 | 0 | top 34% | 2019-08-16 |
| Interstate BBQ Festival | 2 | 25 | 0 | top 62% | 2019-04-19 |
| Riverside Blues, Brews & BBQ Festival | 2 | 10 | 0 | top 46% | 2018-10-05 |
| Granite State BBQ Championship | 2 | 9 | 0 | top 31% | 2018-06-09 |
| *Red, White and Que | 2 | 24 | 0 | top 80% | 2017-09-30 |
| New London's Best BBQ Chef Competiton | 2 | 7 | 0 | top 39% | 2017-08-12 |
| Sam's Club National BBQ Tour | 2 | 14 | 0 | top 65% | 2017-08-04 |
| *Smokin at the Ballpark BBQ Fest | 2 | 11 | 0 | top 40% | 2017-07-15 |
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +17.5 | Ridgefield Gone Country BBQ Festival | 2018-05-05 |
| +14.4 | NYC BBQ Cookoff | 2018-04-06 |
| +12.8 | New London's Best BBQ Chef Competiton | 2016-08-13 |
| +12.8 | Granite State BBQ Championship | 2017-06-10 |
| +10.9 | *The Great Catskill MTN BBQ Fest | 2017-08-25 |
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -13.5 | Bear's Smokehouse New England BBQ Championships | 2015-09-05 |
| -9.5 | New Jersey KnoQ-out: DAY 2-CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES | 2020-07-31 |
| -9.3 | New Jersey KnoQ-out: Day 1-CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES | 2020-07-31 |
| -8.8 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional) | 2016-08-26 |
| -8.7 | "Last Chance" KnoQ-out - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES | 2020-07-30 |
| Season | Contests | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2020 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33% | top 92% | 88.8% | 88% |
| 2019 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 55% | top 50% | 92.2% | 91.1% |
| 2018 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 67% | top 38% | 94.1% | 91% |
| 2017 | 18 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 61% | top 55% | 93.1% | 89.2% |
| 2016 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 60% | top 61% | 92.5% | 88.6% |
| 2015 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 87% | 83.4% | 82.2% |
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-04-24 | New Jersey KnoQ-out - One Meat Rib Contest Jackson, NJ | — | — | 12 (157.6572) | — | — |
| 2020-07-31 | New Jersey KnoQ-out: DAY 2-CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES 🏅 Blairstown, NJ | 26 / 28 (635.8292) | 22 (165.6916) | 26 (151.3488) | 22 (162.8116) | 27 (155.9772) |
| 2020-07-31 | New Jersey KnoQ-out: Day 1-CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES 🏅 Blairstown, NJ | 31 / 35 (639.2228) | 31 (161.0972) | 7 (169.7144) | 29 (159.9428) | 33 (148.4684) |
| 2020-07-30 | "Last Chance" KnoQ-out - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES Blairstown, NJ | 17 / 18 (624.9488) | 14 (168.5488) | 18 (150.2056) | 18 (154.8000) | 15 (151.3944) |
| 2019-08-16 | Hudson Valley Ribfest 🏅 New Paltz, NY | 13 / 53 (663.9200) | 38 (159.9772) | 16 (166.2400) | 11 (166.8572) | 4 (170.8456) |
| 2019-07-27 | The Harpoon Brewery BBQ Festival 🏅 Windsor, VT | 14 / 33 (663.3596) | 12 (169.7256) | 23 (161.6916) | 16 (167.3940) | 12 (164.5484) |
| 2019-06-14 | Hartford Rib Off 🏅 Hartford, CT | 6 / 27 (654.8000) | 8 (159.3944) | 14 (158.8116) | 6 (167.4400) | 7 (170.2628) |
| 2019-06-01 | Sun BBQFest 🏅 Uncasville, CT | 20 / 61 (662.7772) | 26 (166.2628) | 14 (169.1200) | 48 (155.9772) | 7 (171.4172) |
| 2019-05-04 | Ridgefield Gone Country BBQ Festival 🏅 Ridgefield, CT | 16 / 29 (649.0284) | 26 (149.0744) | 10 (166.2972) | 15 (162.2512) | 6 (171.4056) |
| 2019-04-19 | Interstate BBQ Festival 🏅 Hagerstown, MD | 25 / 54 (661.0284) | 15 (170.8800) | 34 (161.6684) | 18 (167.9772) | 40 (160.5028) |
| 2019-04-05 | NYC BBQ Cookoff 🏅 Staten Island, NY | 19 / 26 (642.7656) | 19 (157.1316) | 19 (157.6456) | 22 (155.4056) | 4 (172.5828) |
| 2019-03-23 | BBQ Gives Back-IV (DAY 2) 🏅 Urbanna, VA | 37 / 52 (648.5032) | 23 (170.8572) | 42 (157.7260) | 35 (161.1200) | 36 (158.8000) |
| 2019-03-22 | BBQ Gives Back-III (Day 1) 🏅 Urbanna, VA | 34 / 63 (654.1712) | 49 (159.9428) | 48 (158.8456) | 18 (166.8572) | 13 (168.5256) |
| 2019-03-08 | Mid Atlantic BBQ Expo Atlantic City, NJ | 26 / 66 (655.9544) | 6 (173.7256) | 48 (156.0116) | 31 (163.3944) | 34 (162.8228) |
| 2019-02-08 | KCBS World Invitational Barbeque Championship 🏅 unrated Little Rock, AR | 79 / 92 (662.7200) | 52 (170.2628) | 12 (173.1200) | 90 (154.2400) | 70 (165.0972) |
| 2018-10-20 | Ocean Sate BBQ Championship-CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES West Kingston, RI | 18 / 37 (645.6228) | 18 (164.5600) | 14 (161.6800) | 19 (161.1316) | 20 (158.2512) |
| 2018-10-05 | Riverside Blues, Brews & BBQ Festival Greenfield, MA | 16 / 31 (651.3256) | 2 (174.8572) | 21 (157.6800) | 20 (164.0000) | 24 (154.7884) |
| 2018-08-17 | Hudson Valley Ribfest New Paltz, NY | 25 / 58 (649.6112) | 24 (166.8572) | 12 (168.5484) | 32 (159.9428) | 39 (154.2628) |
| 2018-07-28 | The Harpoon Brewery BBQ Festival WINDSOR, VT | 13 / 34 (651.9544) | 19 (164.5828) | 16 (163.4172) | 8 (167.4400) | 21 (156.5144) |
| 2018-06-09 | Granite State BBQ Championship Hancock, NH | 15 / 41 (665.0856) | 4 (173.1316) | 22 (163.4056) | 31 (158.8456) | 10 (169.7028) |
| 2018-06-02 | Sun BBQ Fest Uncasville, CT | 26 / 59 (656.4916) | 1 (175.4400) | 44 (154.8228) | 15 (169.1200) | 32 (157.1088) |
| 2018-05-05 | Ridgefield Gone Country BBQ Festival Ridgefield, CT | 2 / 40 (677.6800) | 2 (176.5944) | 4 (173.1428) | 32 (159.4056) | 8 (168.5372) |
| 2018-04-28 | New Jersey KnoQ-out-CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES Blairstown, NJ | 24 / 40 (643.8628) | 15 (167.3828) | 18 (163.4056) | 18 (162.2400) | 34 (150.8344) |
| 2018-04-06 | NYC BBQ Cookoff Staten Island, NY | 5 / 36 (652.4796) | 2 (173.1428) | 29 (154.2400) | 1 (171.4056) | 24 (153.6912) |
| 2017-10-21 | Ocean Sate BBQ Championship West Kingston, RI | 18 / 24 (632.9484) | 19 (158.2516) | 13 (160.5600) | 13 (163.3828) | 18 (150.7540) |
| 2017-10-14 | Bay State BBQ Championship Monson, MA | 15 / 30 (663.9200) | 12 (167.9772) | 11 (167.9772) | 10 (169.7256) | 22 (158.2400) |
| 2017-10-06 | Riverside Blues, Brews & BBQ Festival Greenfield, MA | 10 / 25 (665.6344) | 4 (171.9772) | 18 (160.5372) | 9 (167.4400) | 12 (165.6800) |
| 2017-09-30 | *Red, White and Que Cresskill, NJ | 24 / 31 (613.5428) | 20 (163.9656) | 26 (153.6688) | 26 (154.2628) | 27 (141.6456) |
| 2017-09-22 | *Great Maine BBQ Challenge Bangor, ME | 6 / 29 (637.6116) | 10 (163.9540) | 7 (167.9772) | 20 (156.5256) | 16 (157.6800) |
| 2017-09-15 | Smoke on the Water New Jersey State Barbecue Championship Atlantic City, NJ | 18 / 42 (651.2456) | 11 (169.7028) | 33 (154.7772) | 4 (171.4172) | 28 (155.3484) |
| 2017-09-09 | Green Mountain BBQ Championship Randolph, VT | 22 / 32 (636.9944) | 29 (155.4056) | 29 (151.9316) | 26 (160.5144) | 12 (169.1428) |
| 2017-08-25 | *The Great Catskill MTN BBQ Fest Fleischmanns, NY | 4 / 17 (654.8348) | 2 (171.4744) | 5 (159.4288) | 11 (157.6688) | 4 (166.2628) |
| 2017-08-12 | New London's Best BBQ Chef Competiton New London, CT | 7 / 14 (662.2976) | 8 (164.0116) | 3 (172.5716) | 5 (165.1544) | 8 (160.5600) |
| 2017-08-04 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour South Windsor, CT | 23 / 30 (637.0512) | 10 (168.5372) | 14 (163.9884) | 24 (157.6800) | 27 (146.8456) |
| 2017-07-29 | The Harpoon Brewery BBQ Festival WINDSOR, VT | 16 / 30 (641.0628) | 8 (169.1772) | 10 (165.1200) | 23 (156.5256) | 22 (150.2400) |
| 2017-07-15 | *Smokin at the Ballpark BBQ Fest Old Orchard Beach, ME | 11 / 29 (670.2856) | 19 (158.2972) | 5 (174.2972) | 11 (166.2628) | 7 (171.4284) |
| 2017-06-10 | Granite State BBQ Championship Hancock, NH | 9 / 35 (657.1088) | 9 (168.0344) | 14 (165.7028) | 22 (160.5488) | 16 (162.8228) |
| 2017-06-03 | Sun BBQ Fest Uncasville, CT | 41 / 73 (635.3028) | 25 (166.2628) | 32 (164.5716) | 69 (145.0856) | 42 (159.3828) |
| 2017-05-06 | Ridgefield Gone Country BBQ Festival Ridgefield, CT | 30 / 38 (602.7200) | 20 (157.0856) | 19 (156.5372) | 25 (150.2972) | 31 (138.8000) |
| 2017-04-14 | *Interstate BBQ Festival Hagerstown, MD | 45 / 58 (634.1256) | 48 (157.7144) | 23 (166.8228) | 45 (157.6456) | 47 (151.9428) |
| 2017-04-07 | NYC BBQ Cookoff Staten Island, NY | 25 / 43 (630.2628) | 10 (164.5828) | 20 (159.4172) | 18 (159.4056) | 35 (146.8572) |
| 2017-03-03 | The Great Brunswick BBQ Throwdown Brunswick, MD | 36 / 50 (627.7828) | 32 (161.6800) | 39 (148.5028) | 32 (158.2400) | 28 (159.3600) |
| 2016-10-21 | Boo-B-Que Rehobeth Beach, DE | 18 / 67 (655.9316) | 41 (160.5372) | 19 (165.1200) | 12 (166.8800) | 19 (163.3944) |
| 2016-10-08 | Smoke on the Water Barbecue Championship Atlantic City, NJ | 26 / 48 (654.1828) | 28 (162.8228) | 24 (161.0972) | 32 (159.4172) | 6 (170.8456) |
| 2016-09-24 | Red White and Que Cresskill, NJ | 28 / 41 (625.5656) | 37 (149.1084) | 32 (150.2056) | 27 (157.6916) | 6 (168.5600) |
| 2016-08-26 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional) N. Charleston, SC | 30 / 30 (636.9828) | 28 (163.3828) | 27 (160.5144) | 30 (154.8572) | 29 (158.2284) |
| 2016-08-19 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour South Windsor, CT | 14 / 26 (655.4172) | 9 (166.8572) | 10 (164.0000) | 21 (159.4628) | 11 (165.0972) |
| 2016-08-13 | New London's Best BBQ Chef Competiton New London, CT | 7 / 25 (666.2972) | 9 (168.5828) | 7 (169.7372) | 9 (165.7028) | 11 (162.2744) |
| 2016-07-16 | *Smokin at the Ballpark BBQ Fest Old Orchard Beach, ME | 11 / 26 (653.6232) | 6 (165.7028) | 20 (159.9772) | 7 (167.9772) | 16 (159.9660) |
| 2016-06-11 | Sun BBQ Fest Uncasville, CT | 42 / 69 (645.6688) | 10 (171.4400) | 35 (162.3088) | 29 (162.8456) | 54 (149.0744) |
| 2016-04-30 | Ridgefield Gone Country BBQ Festival Ridgefield, CT | 35 / 39 (597.0860) | 21 (158.2744) | 36 (146.8116) | 38 (141.7028) | 28 (150.2972) |
| 2016-04-08 | NYC BBQ Cookoff Staten Island, NY | 29 / 35 (591.1768) | 18 (161.1084) | 31 (142.2400) | 33 (142.7656) | 26 (145.0628) |
| 2015-10-09 | Smokin Hot Atlantic City BBQ Championship $15,000 Atlantic City, NJ | 36 / 46 (600.3776) | 29 (158.2172) | 34 (149.1200) | 36 (150.8572) | 36 (142.1832) |
| 2015-09-26 | Red, White and Que Cresskill, NJ | 29 / 35 (592.3316) | 11 (165.1084) | 33 (138.2060) | 25 (153.6456) | 32 (135.3716) |
| 2015-09-05 | Bear's Smokehouse New England BBQ Championships Hartford, CT | 17 / 17 (582.1600) | 15 (154.8800) | 17 (137.0628) | 17 (138.2628) | 12 (151.9544) |
| Year | Series | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 ↗ | Master | — | — | #1150 (104 pts) | — | — |
| 2020 ↗ | Master | #503 (196 pts) | #498 (226 pts) | #407 (296 pts) | #520 (206 pts) | #527 (206 pts) |
| 2019 ↗ | Master | #347 (905 pts) | #343 (915 pts) | #391 (845 pts) | #344 (940 pts) | #179 (1325 pts) |
| 2018 ↗ | Master | #308 (1055 pts) | #133 (1630 pts) | #389 (920 pts) | #340 (995 pts) | #489 (760 pts) |
| 2017 ↗ | Master | #295 (1228 pts) | #173 (1515 pts) | #211 (1398 pts) | #270 (1233 pts) | #316 (1150 pts) |
| 2016 ↗ | Master | #484 (832 pts) | #394 (982 pts) | #509 (807 pts) | #482 (842 pts) | #393 (1012 pts) |
| 2015 ↗ | Master | #1306 (202 pts) | #1121 (282 pts) | #1389 (202 pts) | #1446 (202 pts) | #1283 (227 pts) |