HERE COME THE JUDGE BBQ TEAM

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

Power ranking

#5891

of 6,413 rated · rankings

Rating

1437

peak 1437 · rated over 13 contests ⓘ

Contests

in the data

First seen

2016-04-01

latest 2018-10-05

Best ToY finish

#955

Master 2017

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

1 podiums

Overall top-10s

of 14 contests

Avg finish

top 81%

overall standings

Best overall

643.7596 / 720

Master · *Chillin & Grillin in the Glades (JUDGES FULL)

Perfect 180s

Current form

625.32 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 614.87 (+10.44)

Walk rate

36%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

170.2744

Pork · *Gettysburg BBQ Festival (JUDGES FULL)

Consistency

±18.41

std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 158.82 · weakest Brisket (148.30)

Road miles

2,584

mi across 14 mapped stops · furthest 378 mi

Schedule strength

71%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1589)

Master avg

614.87 / 720

13 Master contests · 0 GCs

⚔ Compare with another team

Storylines (4 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.

A tough matchup

9–0 behind in the head-to-head

3 EYZ BBQ ahead in 100% of their meetings

3 EYZ BBQ has come out ahead in 9 of their 9 shared contests.

The weak link

−10.5 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 10.52 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 8% of the time against 15%.

Brisket avg 148.30
Chicken avg 158.82
1 calls in 13 entries

A strong matchup

3–0 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 100% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of Buddhist From Mecca BBQ in 3 of their 3 shared contests.

Chicken nemesis

8 of 9 shared chicken entries lost

3 EYZ BBQ ahead 89% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, 3 EYZ BBQ has out-cooked them in 8 of 9 shared chicken entries.

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.

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

KING COAL AND THE SOUL SMOKERS

#5895 of the rated field

1437 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 13
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1437

No shared contest yet.

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 13 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 13 contests
last seen 2020-10-17

⚔ Head-to-head

Backwoods Grillin'

#5893 of the rated field

1437 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 14
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1437

No shared contest yet.

Careers of much the same size, 14 contests to 14, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 14 contests
last seen 2017-10-20

⚔ Head-to-head

Chubby Cheeks BBQ

#5887 of the rated field

1437 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 12
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1437

No shared contest yet.

12 contests and no Grand Championship yet.

rated over 12 contests
last seen 2026-08-14

⚔ Head-to-head

Gettin' Piggy With It!

#5900 of the rated field

1437 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 12
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1437

No shared contest yet.

Level with HERE COME THE JUDGE BBQ TEAM on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 12 contests
last seen 2026-06-12

⚔ Head-to-head

Hickswood BBQ

#5890 of the rated field

1437 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 12
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1437

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 2024-05-04

⚔ Head-to-head

SMOKIN CHEESE HEADS

#5899 of the rated field

1437 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 12
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1437

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 2019-07-13

⚔ Head-to-head

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
3 EYZ BBQ	9	0	9	0%	⚔ compare
4:20 Q	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare
LO' -N- SLO' BBQ	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare
CHECKERED FLAG 500 BBQ	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare
DRILLING & GRILLING	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
BAR-B-QUE MAYHAM	6	1	5	17%	⚔ compare
FRED VEGAS SMOKERS	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
SAUCE THIS BBQ	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
PIG PEN BBQ	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
LAKEVIEW BBQ	5	0	5	0%	⚔ compare
OLD COLONY SMOKEHOUSE	5	0	5	0%	⚔ compare
2 RHODIES BBQ	5	0	5	0%	⚔ compare
BIG UGLY'S BBQ - MD	5	0	5	0%	⚔ compare
BONE TO BARK BBQ	5	0	5	0%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	13	2	1	169.7028	147.9544	158.82	top 66%
Pork Ribs	13	1	0	164.5828	138.2632	152.71	top 76%
Pork	13	1	0	170.2744	140.4800	155.04	top 74%
Brisket	13	1	0	169.1084	128.4800	148.30	top 80%

“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	6	top 80%
PA	5	top 81%
MD	2	top 83%

By contest size

Field	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
Medium (20–39)	8	0	top 81%
Large (40+)	5	0	top 80%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
*Chillin & Grillin in the Glades (JUDGES FULL)	2	24	top 89%	2018-07-20
*Shenandoah Valley BBQ Fest	2	22	top 74%	2017-10-13
The Ironman	2	32	top 71%	2017-03-31

The story so far (14 numbers that describe this team)

On the trail 2.5 yrs 2016-04-01 → 2018-10-05

Busiest season 2017 6 contests

Contests a season 4.7 across 3 seasons in the data

Cooks most in VA 6 of 14 contests · 3 states/provinces in all

Contests visited 10 3 of them cooked more than once

Most-entered meat Chicken 13 entries · 0 wins · 2 calls

Strongest meat Chicken averages 158.82 · weakest Brisket (148.30)

Walk rate 36% a top-10 call in 5 of 14 contests

Overall top-10 rate 0% 0 of 14 contests

Master average 614.87 out of 720 · 13 contests · 0 GCs

Opponents faced 261 101–392 across every shared overall standing

Road miles 2,584 14 mapped stops · furthest 378 mi

Schedule strength 1589 average field rating faced — tougher than 71% of rated contests

Power rating 1437 peak 1437 · #5891 of 6,413 rated

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

2016
Apr 1 First tracked contest The Ironman
Apr 1 Peak power rating (1499) The Ironman
Aug 26 First call Boydton's Big Bad BBQ
2017
Oct 13 10th tracked contest *Shenandoah Valley BBQ Fest
2018
May 25 Career-best single call (Pork)170.2744 *Gettysburg BBQ Festival (JUDGES FULL)
Jul 20 Career-best overall score643.7596 *Chillin & Grillin in the Glades (JUDGES FULL)
Oct 5 Most recent contest Que & Cruz

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

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-12.6	Pit at the Park	2016-08-05
-8.7	*Smoke in the Grove(JUDGES FULL)	2017-07-28
-7.4	*Chillin & Grillin In The Glades	2017-07-14
-7.1	The Ironman	2017-03-31
-6.7	Boydton's Big Bad BBQ	2016-08-26

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	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2018	4	75%	top 78%	89.4%	87.8%
2017	6	17%	top 85%	88.8%	84.6%
2016	4	25%	top 77%	87.5%	84.8%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2018-10-05	Que & Cruz Louisa, VA	19 / 25 (620.9252)	19 (155.9312)	9 (164.5828)	25 (147.9084)	20 (152.5028)
2018-08-25	*HAVA Nagrilla 2018 (KOSHER SERIES)(JUDGES FULL) Wynnewood, PA	—	—	—	—	—
2018-07-20	*Chillin & Grillin in the Glades (JUDGES FULL) Wise, VA	24 / 29 (643.7596)	19 (165.0856)	29 (149.0400)	26 (160.5256)	10 (169.1084)
2018-05-25	*Gettysburg BBQ Festival (JUDGES FULL) Gettysburg, PA	26 / 35 (631.8744)	28 (157.6684)	29 (153.1316)	10 (170.2744)	29 (150.8000)
2017-10-13	*Shenandoah Valley BBQ Fest Woodstock, VA	22 / 30 (639.3028)	10 (169.7028)	18 (162.2744)	20 (159.9428)	28 (147.3828)
2017-07-28	*Smoke in the Grove(JUDGES FULL) Spring Grove, PA	47 / 51 (590.7196)	49 (147.9544)	46 (146.8228)	44 (147.9540)	45 (147.9884)
2017-07-14	*Chillin & Grillin In The Glades Wise, VA	25 / 26 (585.4516)	25 (151.9888)	25 (146.2056)	26 (140.4800)	23 (146.7772)
2017-04-14	*Interstate BBQ Festival Hagerstown, MD	47 / 58 (625.6460)	31 (165.1316)	49 (154.2744)	37 (161.7028)	51 (144.5372)
2017-03-31	The Ironman Greencastle, PA	49 / 59 (604.9948)	41 (155.9428)	56 (138.2632)	21 (162.2744)	46 (148.5144)
2017-03-03	The Great Brunswick BBQ Throwdown Brunswick, MD	42 / 50 (607.8164)	43 (153.0968)	36 (151.9540)	40 (151.4056)	40 (151.3600)
2016-10-14	Shenandoah Valley BBQ Fest Woodstock, VA	28 / 38 (619.8172)	31 (154.8000)	29 (151.9428)	22 (159.9428)	28 (153.1316)
2016-08-26	Boydton's Big Bad BBQ Boydton, VA	22 / 28 (596.4572)	3 (168.5600)	22 (148.0000)	23 (151.4172)	26 (128.4800)
2016-08-05	Pit at the Park Macungie, PA	22 / 23 (596.3996)	15 (156.5372)	18 (155.3828)	22 (148.5256)	22 (135.9540)
2016-04-01	The Ironman Greencastle, PA	32 / 54 (630.1712)	25 (162.2972)	19 (163.3828)	39 (153.1084)	38 (151.3828)

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
2018 ↗	Master	#1213 (199 pts)	#1207 (224 pts)	#1139 (249 pts)	#1172 (239 pts)	#1096 (264 pts)
2017 ↗	Master	#955 (361 pts)	#926 (421 pts)	#986 (381 pts)	#952 (391 pts)	#992 (356 pts)
2016 ↗	Master	#1182 (251 pts)	#850 (446 pts)	#1119 (301 pts)	#1248 (261 pts)	#1307 (236 pts)