VETERANS Q

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

Power ranking

#2780

of 6,413 rated · rankings

Rating

1511

peak 1511 · rated over 11 contests ⓘ

Contests

in the data

First seen

2016-10-14

latest 2019-05-03

Best ToY finish

#776

Master 2018

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

1 podiums

Overall top-10s

of 11 contests

Avg finish

top 60%

overall standings

Best overall

667.2568 / 720

Master · *Heritage Days BBQ Showdown Day 1

Perfect 180s

Current form

661.60 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 649.01 (+12.59)

Walk rate

36%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

174.8800

Chicken · *McHenry Rotary Blues Brews & BBQ

Consistency

±13.03

std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 165.97 · weakest Pork (158.66)

Road miles

818

mi across 11 mapped stops · furthest 118 mi

Schedule strength

68%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1586)

State championships

0 🏅

GCs in 1 state-championship entries

Master avg

649.01 / 720

11 Master contests · 0 GCs

⚔ Compare with another team

Storylines (9 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.

On the rise

+38 rating points in a year

Their power rating has climbed 38 points across 5 contests since 2018-05-04 — from 1473 up to 1511.

5 contests since 2018-05-04
now 1511

High-water mark

667.2568 career-best overall

92.7% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 667.2568 at *Heritage Days BBQ Showdown Day 1 — 92.7% of a perfect 720.

Master
2018-06-22

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

CHANNABILLY BBQ has finished one call ahead of VETERANS Q 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

Their season

2018 their best year

2018 was the year it came together: 4 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 1 category win, at an average finish in the top 40%.

4 contests
1 overall top-10s
1 category wins
average top 40%

A tough matchup

9–1 behind in the head-to-head

One2BBQ ahead in 90% of their meetings

One2BBQ has come out ahead in 9 of their 10 shared contests.

The weak link

−7.3 points behind their best meat

Pork is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 7.31 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 0% of the time against 18%.

Pork avg 158.66
Chicken avg 165.97
0 calls in 11 entries

A strong matchup

4–0 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 100% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of THE 4 SMOKEMEN BBQ in 4 of their 4 shared contests.

Chicken nemesis

7 of 10 shared chicken entries lost

One2BBQ ahead 70% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, One2BBQ has out-cooked them in 7 of 10 shared chicken entries.

The metronome

±1.81% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±1.81% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 90.1% of a perfect score
11 contests

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.

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

PAPA'S BARBQ

#2764 of the rated field

1512 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 25
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 12%
Peak: 1518

2–0 in 2 shared contests (100% to VETERANS Q)

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

rated over 25 contests
last seen 2019-09-20

⚔ Head-to-head

RACK MASTERS BBQ

#2769 of the rated field

1512 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 58
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 28%
Peak: 1629

3–4 in 7 shared contests (43% to VETERANS Q)

They've been 1629 at their best, 118 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.

rated over 57 contests
last seen 2020-07-17

⚔ Head-to-head

Whole Hog Cafe

#2779 of the rated field

1511 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 11
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1518

No shared contest yet.

Careers of much the same size, 11 contests to 11, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 11 contests
last seen 2022-10-21

⚔ Head-to-head

Scrappy's BBQ

#2767 of the rated field

1512 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 40%
Peak: 1515

No shared contest yet.

They turned up 5 years after VETERANS Q did, first appearing in 2021.

rated over 10 contests
last seen 2026-08-07

⚔ Head-to-head

THIN BLUE QUE

#2781 of the rated field

1511 ▼ 0 power rating

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

No shared contest yet.

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

rated over 10 contests
last seen 2023-05-26

⚔ Head-to-head

Animal House BBQ

#2773 of the rated field

1511 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 13
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1511

No shared contest yet.

13 contests and no Grand Championship yet.

rated over 13 contests
last seen 2026-06-26

⚔ Head-to-head

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
CARNIVORE'S PARADISE	10	3	7	30%	⚔ compare
One2BBQ	10	1	9	10%	⚔ compare
CHANNABILLY BBQ	9	3	6	33%	⚔ compare
CAPTAIN RON'S BREW-N-QUE	9	1	8	11%	⚔ compare
RACK MASTERS BBQ	7	3	4	43%	⚔ compare
THE BBQ BUS	7	2	5	29%	⚔ compare
QUAU	7	2	5	29%	⚔ compare
Carrol Lou's Smokehouse	7	2	5	29%	⚔ compare
SMOKE FREAKS	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
BLUE ISLAND BBQ CO.	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
BIG "E" BBQ	6	1	5	17%	⚔ compare
HATFIELD AND MCCOY BARBECUE	6	1	5	17%	⚔ compare
Its 5 Oclock Somewhere	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
WE WILL ROCK QUE	5	4	1	80%	⚔ compare
STRESS RELIEF BBQ	5	4	1	80%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	11	2	1	1	174.8800	156.5600	165.97	top 48%
Pork Ribs	11	4	0	0	169.1316	151.3716	162.52	top 50%
Pork	11	0	0	0	164.5256	149.6228	158.66	top 71%
Brisket	11	1	0	0	171.4056	156.5028	161.87	top 56%

“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	GCs	Avg finish
IL	10	0	top 58%
IN	1	0	top 78%

By contest size

Field	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
Medium (20–39)	5	0	top 52%
Large (40+)	6	0	top 67%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
Route 66 Smoke Out	3	13	0	top 56%	2019-05-03
CIBR-BBQ Central Illinois Bragging Right BBQ	2	29	0	top 78%	2017-10-13

The story so far (15 numbers that describe this team)

On the trail 2.5 yrs 2016-10-14 → 2019-05-03

Busiest season 2017 5 contests

Contests a season 2.8 across 4 seasons in the data

Cooks most in IL 10 of 11 contests · 2 states/provinces in all

Contests visited 8 2 of them cooked more than once

Most-entered meat Chicken 11 entries · 1 win · 2 calls

Strongest meat Chicken averages 165.97 · weakest Pork (158.66)

Walk rate 36% a top-10 call in 4 of 11 contests

Overall top-10 rate 9% 1 of 11 contests

Master average 649.01 out of 720 · 11 contests · 0 GCs

Opponents faced 201 171–267 across every shared overall standing

Road miles 818 11 mapped stops · furthest 118 mi

Schedule strength 1586 average field rating faced — tougher than 68% of rated contests

State championships 0 from 1 state-championship entries

Power rating 1511 peak 1511 · #2780 of 6,413 rated

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

2016
Oct 14 First tracked contest CIBR-BBQ Central Illinois Bragging Right BBQ
2017
May 5 First call *Route 66 Smoke Out
Jul 14 First overall past 90% of a perfect score648.9940 Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
2018
Jun 22 Career-best overall score667.2568 *Heritage Days BBQ Showdown Day 1
Aug 18 First category win (Chicken) *McHenry Rotary Blues Brews & BBQ
Aug 18 First overall top-10 *McHenry Rotary Blues Brews & BBQ
Aug 18 10th tracked contest *McHenry Rotary Blues Brews & BBQ
Aug 18 Career-best single call (Chicken)174.8800 *McHenry Rotary Blues Brews & BBQ
2019
May 3 Peak power rating (1511) Route 66 Smoke Out
May 3 Most recent contest Route 66 Smoke Out

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+15.9	*McHenry Rotary Blues Brews & BBQ	2018-08-18
+10.1	*Heritage Days BBQ Showdown Day 1	2018-06-22
+6.8	Route 66 Smoke Out	2019-05-03
+5.7	*Heritage Days BBQ Showdown Day 2	2018-06-23
+1.6	*Route 66 Smoke Out	2018-05-04

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-8.3	CIBR-BBQ Central Illinois Bragging Right BBQ	2016-10-14
-5	*RED, WHITE and BAR-B-Q ( DAY 2)	2017-05-27
-4.4	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	2017-07-14
-4.3	*Route 66 Smoke Out	2017-05-05
-3.9	*Heritage Days BBQ Showdown	2017-06-23

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)
2019	1	0	0	0%	top 39%	91.7%	91.7%
2018	4	1	1	50%	top 40%	92.7%	91.9%
2017	5	0	0	40%	top 75%	90.1%	88.6%
2016	1	0	0	0%	top 85%	89.3%	89.3%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2019-05-03	Route 66 Smoke Out 🏅 Dwight, IL	13 / 33 (660.4340)	11 (169.1200)	14 (165.7028)	20 (164.5256)	19 (161.0856)
2018-08-18	*McHenry Rotary Blues Brews & BBQ McHenry, IL	5 / 30 (663.3488)	1 (174.8800)	9 (163.3944)	15 (163.4172)	13 (161.6572)
2018-06-23	*Heritage Days BBQ Showdown Day 2 Belvidere, IL	23 / 44 (659.9772)	27 (165.1428)	8 (169.1316)	38 (154.2972)	8 (171.4056)
2018-06-22	*Heritage Days BBQ Showdown Day 1 Belvidere, IL	19 / 51 (667.2568)	22 (168.5372)	15 (168.5256)	21 (164.5256)	24 (165.6684)
2018-05-04	*Route 66 Smoke Out Dwight, IL	21 / 38 (656.9828)	19 (165.6800)	26 (161.6572)	24 (162.2628)	16 (167.3828)
2017-10-13	CIBR-BBQ Central Illinois Bragging Right BBQ Arthur, IL	29 / 41 (642.7656)	13 (168.5828)	19 (162.2972)	36 (151.9428)	27 (159.9428)
2017-07-14	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour South Bend, IN	21 / 27 (648.9940)	10 (169.7028)	8 (167.9656)	24 (154.7884)	20 (156.5372)
2017-06-23	*Heritage Days BBQ Showdown Belvidere, IL	31 / 42 (633.5540)	25 (161.1428)	36 (156.5484)	28 (159.3600)	32 (156.5028)
2017-05-27	*RED, WHITE and BAR-B-Q ( DAY 2) Westmont, IL	48 / 59 (624.9488)	40 (160.5372)	48 (154.2400)	57 (149.6228)	30 (160.5488)
2017-05-05	*Route 66 Smoke Out Dwight, IL	21 / 29 (638.1600)	27 (156.5600)	10 (166.8344)	20 (158.2628)	21 (156.5028)
2016-10-14	CIBR-BBQ Central Illinois Bragging Right BBQ Authur, IL	47 / 55 (642.7316)	26 (165.7372)	49 (151.3716)	36 (162.2400)	38 (163.3828)

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
2019 ↗	Master	#1581 (118 pts)	#1539 (128 pts)	#1719 (113 pts)	#1888 (83 pts)	#1825 (88 pts)
2018 ↗	Master	#776 (420 pts)	#706 (505 pts)	#767 (465 pts)	#999 (310 pts)	#780 (440 pts)
2017 ↗	Master	#1015 (326 pts)	#926 (421 pts)	#817 (486 pts)	#1106 (316 pts)	#1046 (331 pts)
2016 ↗	Master	#2274 (60 pts)	#2353 (60 pts)	#2349 (60 pts)	#2326 (60 pts)	#2345 (60 pts)