BACKYARD SMOKERS

BACKYARD SMOKERS is a competition barbecue team with 9 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2013 and 2019. Their best overall finish is 13th of 14 at the New London's Best BBQ Chef Competiton (2017). They are ranked #5775 of 6,477 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

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At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#5,775

of 6,477 rated · rankings

Rating

1443

peak 1443 · rated over 9 contests

Contests

in the data

First seen

Jul 19, 2013

latest Jun 1, 2019 · 5.9 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#1540

Master 2015 · every season

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

0 podiums

Overall top-10s

0% of 9 contests

Avg finish

top 82%

overall standings

Best overall

647.9772 / 720

Master · Sun BBQFest

Perfect 180s

Current form

613.91 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 610.68 (+3.22)

Walk rate

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

168.0116

Pork · Sun BBQFest

Consistency

±22.02

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Pork

avg 155.67 · weakest Brisket (149.68)

Road miles

8,232

across 9 mapped stops · furthest 3,557 mi

Schedule strength

44%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1557)

Purse competed for

$27K

listed at 1 contest — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

won from 1 state-championship entry

Master avg

610.68 / 720

9 Master contests · 0 GCs

Storylines (7 found in their record)

Each card leads with the number behind the story, straight from their results.

A tough matchup

7–0 behind in the head-to-head

ACK-QUE ahead in 100% of their meetings

ACK-QUE has come out ahead in 7 of their 7 shared contests.

The weak link

−6.0 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 5.99 points below their pork, and turns into a call 0% of the time against 0%.

Brisket avg 149.68
Pork avg 155.67
0 calls in 9 entries

A strong matchup

5–0 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 100% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of THE OUTLAW BBQ NY in 5 of their 5 shared contests.

The comeback

1.9 yrs off the trail, then back

Off the trail for 1.9 years, then back at Sun BBQ Fest (Jun 13, 2015).

last seen Jul 19, 2013
back Jun 13, 2015

Pork nemesis

7 of 7 shared pork entries lost

Rogue Hog BBQ ahead 100% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, Rogue Hog BBQ has out-cooked them in 7 of 7 shared pork entries.

The long haul

8,232 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 8,232 miles across 9 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 3,557 miles to Farm Meat De Vaartse Hoeve BBQ Contest.

9 mapped stops
furthest 3,557 mi

A standing appointment

4 years running at one contest

They've cooked Sun BBQ Fest every year from 2015 to 2018 — the contest they never miss.

4 visits in all
best finish 42nd

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
2019 ↗	Master	#1955 (60 pts)	#2049 (60 pts)	#2026 (60 pts)	#2000 (65 pts)	#1945 (70 pts)
2018 ↗	Master	#1954 (60 pts)	#2012 (60 pts)	#1996 (60 pts)	#2030 (60 pts)	#1990 (60 pts)
2017 ↗	Master	#1552 (159 pts)	#1608 (164 pts)	#1614 (164 pts)	#1593 (164 pts)	#1644 (154 pts)
2016 ↗	Master	#2274 (60 pts)	#2353 (60 pts)	#2349 (60 pts)	#2326 (60 pts)	#2345 (60 pts)
2015 ↗	Master	#1540 (147 pts)	#1662 (142 pts)	#1661 (147 pts)	#1610 (157 pts)	#1647 (142 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to BACKYARD SMOKERS, each with one reason worth a look.

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

CROWN POINT BBQ

#5,766 of the rated field

1443 power rating

Contests: 9
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1443

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 9 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 9 contests
last seen Aug 9, 2019

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MUDDY BUTTS BBQ

#5,770 of the rated field

1443 power rating

Contests: 9
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1443

Their last contest in the data was back in 2015, 4 years before BACKYARD SMOKERS's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 9 contests

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DBL-D BARBEQUE.COM

#5,788 of the rated field

1443 power rating

Contests: 9
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1501

Careers of much the same size, 9 contests to 9, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 9 contests
last seen Jul 17, 2015

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ARKANSAW HOG SAUCE

#5,784 of the rated field

1443 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1503

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

rated over 10 contests
last seen Nov 5, 2025

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Bear Bonz Competition BBQ

#5,767 of the rated field

1443 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1443

They turned up 7 years after BACKYARD SMOKERS did, first appearing in 2020.

rated over 10 contests
last seen Oct 2, 2021

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Smokin Swine BBQ

#5,763 of the rated field

1444 power rating

Contests: 11
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 9%
Peak: 1444

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 11 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 11 contests
last seen Jul 1, 2023

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
ACK-QUE	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
FOUR SMOKING GUYS	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
Rogue Hog BBQ	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
BIG ROCK BBQ	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
JOHN'S TWISTED Q	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
TWO LITTLE PIGS BBQ EAST	6	1	5	17%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN HOGGZ BBQ - MA	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
BLAZIN' BUTTZ BBQ	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
THE OUTLAW BBQ NY	5	5	0	100%	⚔ compare
LITTLEMAN' TEXAS BBQ	5	2	3	40%	⚔ compare
Handsome Devil	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
GREENWITCH QUE CO.	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
THAT'S OUR QUE	5	0	5	0%	⚔ compare
Chicken Chokers	5	0	5	0%	⚔ compare
INSANE SWINE BBQ	5	0	5	0%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	9	160.0572	140.5712	152.77	top 84%
Pork Ribs	9	161.7028	138.7884	152.56	top 78%
Pork	9	168.0116	147.3712	155.67	top 73%
Brisket	9	166.2744	126.8344	149.68	top 72%

“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	Avg finish
Small (<20 teams)	2	top 93%
Medium (20–39)	1	top 81%
Large (40+)	6	top 78%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
CT	7	0	top 81%
MO	1	0	top 81%

Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
Sun BBQ Fest	4	42	0	top 80%	Jun 2, 2018

More numbers

Busiest season 2018 2 contests

Contests a season 1.5 across 6 seasons in the data

Most contests held in CT 7 of 9 contests · 2 states in all

Contests visited 6 1 of them more than once

Opponents faced 228 finished ahead 90 times, behind 322

Longest layoff 1.9 yrs Jul 19, 2013 → Jun 13, 2015

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

20193 milestones

Jun 1 Career-best overall score647.9772 Sun BBQFest
Jun 1 Career-best single call (Pork)168.0116 Sun BBQFest
Jun 1 Most recent contest Sun BBQFest

20132 milestones

Jul 19 First tracked contest Smokin' on the River
Jul 19 Peak power rating (1491) Smokin' on the River

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+2.8	Sun BBQFest	Jun 1, 2019

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-9.9	The Best BBQ Chef Competition	Aug 29, 2015
-9.6	New London's Best BBQ Chef Competiton	Aug 12, 2017
-9.5	Farm Meat De Vaartse Hoeve BBQ Contest	Sep 8, 2018
-9.1	Smokin' on the River	Jul 19, 2013
-7.5	Sun BBQ Fest	Jun 11, 2016

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	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2019	1	0%	top 59%	90%	90%
2018	2	0%	top 85%	85.9%	84.3%
2017	2	0%	top 82%	86.6%	83.8%
2016	1	0%	top 87%	83.7%	83.7%
2015	2	0%	top 87%	86.3%	83%
2013	1	0%	top 81%	87.3%	87.3%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Jun 1, 2019	Sun BBQFest 🏅 Uncasville, CT	36 / 61 (647.9772)	48 (158.8800)	44 (154.8228)	24 (168.0116)	23 (166.2628)
Sep 8, 2018	Farm Meat De Vaartse Hoeve BBQ Contest Dongen	36 / 40 (595.9432)	38 (145.1544)	39 (144.5372)	35 (151.3828)	28 (154.8688)
Jun 2, 2018	Sun BBQ Fest Uncasville, CT	47 / 59 (618.2060)	48 (155.3828)	43 (154.8572)	44 (155.4516)	45 (152.5144)
Aug 12, 2017	New London's Best BBQ Chef Competiton New London, CT	13 / 14 (584)	12 (151.4400)	12 (149.7256)	12 (156)	14 (126.8344)
Jun 3, 2017	Sun BBQ Fest Uncasville, CT	52 / 73 (623.4056)	54 (154.2740)	45 (158.8572)	46 (157.7372)	54 (152.5372)
Jun 11, 2016	Sun BBQ Fest Uncasville, CT	60 / 69 (602.8112)	45 (160.0572)	68 (138.7884)	25 (164.0228)	65 (139.9428)
Aug 29, 2015	The Best BBQ Chef Competition New London, CT	16 / 17 (574.1368)	17 (140.5712)	16 (149.7028)	14 (151.9656)	17 (131.8972)
Jun 13, 2015	Sun BBQ Fest Uncasville, CT	42 / 52 (621.1312)	41 (157.7372)	35 (160.0228)	47 (147.3712)	32 (156)
Jul 19, 2013	Smokin' on the River Glasgow, MO	29 / 36 (628.5256)	34 (151.4284)	19 (161.7028)	35 (149.1200)	12 (166.2744)

BACKYARD SMOKERS

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

Rating

Contests

First seen

Best ToY finish

Grand champs

Category wins

Overall top-10s

Avg finish

Best overall

Perfect 180s

Current form

Walk rate

Best single call

Consistency

Strongest meat

Road miles

Schedule strength

Purse competed for

State championships

Master avg

Storylines (7 found in their record)

A tough matchup

The weak link

A strong matchup

The comeback

Pork nemesis

The long haul

A standing appointment

Team of the Year (rank per category by season — the year links to the full board on kcbs.us)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

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

By meat

By field size and state

By contest size

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)

More numbers

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

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

📉 Toughest weekends

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

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

Career map (orange GC · green top-10 · grey the rest — tap a pin)