A tough matchup
4–0
behind in the head-to-head
WHEN PIGS DIE ahead in 100% of their meetings
WHEN PIGS DIE has come out ahead in 4 of their 4 shared contests.
KICKIN BULL BBQ
At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)
Rating
1480
peak 1480 · rated over 7 contests ⓘ
Contests
7
in the data
First seen
2013-10-19
latest 2023-06-23
Best ToY finish
#1652
Master 2017
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
1
of 7 contests
Avg finish
top 71%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
633.93 ▲
last 5 Master vs avg 629.86 (+4.07)
Walk rate
14%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±14.50
std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork
avg 161.59 · weakest Brisket (151.87)
Road miles
804
mi across 7 mapped stops · furthest 421 mi
Schedule strength
55%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1570)
Purse competed for
$2K
listed at 1 contests — purses, not winnings
Master avg
629.86 / 720
6 Master contests · 0 GCs
Backyard avg
322.27 / 360
1 Backyard contest · 0 GCs
Master and Backyard overall scores sit on different scales (Master is out of 720, Backyard out of 360), so they're kept separate — averaging them together would be misleading.
This team cooks the Backyard series — its own boards, records and Team of the Year are here.
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.
The weak link
−9.7
points behind their best meat
Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 9.72 points below their pork, and turns into a call 0% of the time against 0%.
- Brisket avg 151.87
- Pork avg 161.59
- 0 calls in 6 entries
The comeback
5.8 yrs
off the trail, then back
Off the trail for 5.8 years, then back at Camp High Hopes Rib Fest (BACKYARD ONLY) (2023-06-23).
- last seen 2017-08-25
- back 2023-06-23
Looking over their shoulder
2×
one call behind them
B.F.S. BBQ has landed one call behind them 2 times.
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.
149 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#4139 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1480
No shared contest yet.
Careers of much the same size, 7 contests to 7, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Head-to-head#4117 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 14%
- Peak
- 1514
No shared contest yet.
They've been 1514 at their best, 34 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.
⚔ Head-to-head#4110 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1515
No shared contest yet.
Level with KICKIN BULL BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Head-to-head#4130 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1480
No shared contest yet.
Their last contest in the data was back in 2019, 4 years before KICKIN BULL BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Head-to-head#4148 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1479
No shared contest yet.
Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2013.
⚔ Head-to-head#4129 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1480
No shared contest yet.
Their last contest in the data was back in 2017, 6 years before KICKIN BULL BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Head-to-headBy meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 167.4056 | 150.8000 | 160.39 | top 70% |
| Pork Ribs | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 165.7144 | 143.3944 | 156.86 | top 69% |
| Pork | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 168.5372 | 158.2400 | 161.59 | top 59% |
| Brisket | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 157.6572 | 144.5488 | 151.87 | 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 | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| NE | 4 | 0 | top 73% |
| AR | 2 | 0 | top 80% |
| IA | 1 | 0 | top 47% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 1 | 0 | top 47% |
| Medium (20–39) | 3 | 0 | top 75% |
| Large (40+) | 3 | 0 | top 75% |
The story so far (17 numbers that describe this team)
On the trail
9.7 yrs
2013-10-19 → 2023-06-23
Busiest season
2017
2 contests
Contests a season
1.4
across 5 seasons in the data
Cooks most in
NE
4 of 7 contests · 3 states/provinces in all
Contests visited
7
0 of them cooked more than once
Most-entered meat
Chicken
7 entries · 0 wins · 1 calls
Strongest meat
Pork
averages 161.59 · weakest Brisket (151.87)
Walk rate
14%
a top-10 call in 1 of 7 contests
Overall top-10 rate
14%
1 of 7 contests
Master average
629.86
out of 720 · 6 contests · 0 GCs
Backyard average
322.27
out of 360 · 1 contest · 0 GCs
Opponents faced
184
71–180 across every shared overall standing
Road miles
804
7 mapped stops · furthest 421 mi
Schedule strength
1570
average field rating faced — tougher than 55% of rated contests
Purse competed for
$1,750
listed at 1 contests — purses, not winnings
Longest layoff
5.8 yrs
2017-08-25 → 2023-06-23
Power rating
1480
peak 1480 · #4128 of 6,413 rated
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
- 2013
- First tracked contest 13th Annual Bordertown Bash
- Peak power rating (1493) 13th Annual Bordertown Bash
- 2015
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score653.5428 Biggest Buck and Best Rack
- Career-best overall score653.5428 Biggest Buck and Best Rack
- 2017
- Career-best single call (Pork)168.5372 6th Annual Valley Veterans BBQ Competition
- 2023
- First call Camp High Hopes Rib Fest (BACKYARD ONLY)
- First overall top-10 Camp High Hopes Rib Fest (BACKYARD ONLY)
- Most recent contest Camp High Hopes Rib Fest (BACKYARD ONLY)
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +4.1 | Camp High Hopes Rib Fest (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2023-06-23 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -8.7 | 5th Annual Valley Veteran's BBQ Competition | 2016-05-20 |
| -7.1 | 13th Annual Bordertown Bash | 2013-10-19 |
| -3.3 | 6th Annual Valley Veterans BBQ Competition | 2017-05-19 |
| -2.7 | Biggest Buck and Best Rack | 2015-09-11 |
| -1.3 | 24th Annual State BBQ Championship of Nebraska | 2016-08-05 |
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 | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 47% | 89.5% | 89.5% |
| 2017 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 69% | 88.4% | 88.2% |
| 2016 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 77% | 87.7% | 86.5% |
| 2015 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 76% | 90.8% | 90.8% |
| 2013 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 84% | 84.7% | 84.7% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-06-23 | Camp High Hopes Rib Fest (BACKYARD ONLY) Sioux City, IA | 7 / 15 (322.2744) | 10 (156.5600) | 6 (165.7144) | — | — |
| 2017-08-25 | BBQ on the Bricks Kearney, NE | 22 / 34 (636.4116) | 18 (166.2744) | 22 (157.6684) | 20 (160.5372) | 29 (151.9316) |
| 2017-05-19 | 6th Annual Valley Veterans BBQ Competition Valley, NE | 34 / 47 (633.5888) | 29 (162.2628) | 34 (158.2400) | 13 (168.5372) | 43 (144.5488) |
| 2016-08-05 | 24th Annual State BBQ Championship of Nebraska Omaha, NE | 49 / 70 (631.3372) | 44 (161.6800) | 34 (161.6572) | 44 (159.4172) | 60 (148.5828) |
| 2016-05-20 | 5th Annual Valley Veteran's BBQ Competition Valley, NE | 35 / 42 (614.7888) | 34 (157.7144) | 39 (143.3944) | 33 (158.2400) | 27 (155.4400) |
| 2015-09-11 | Biggest Buck and Best Rack Alma, AR | 19 / 25 (653.5428) | 18 (167.4056) | 18 (163.9544) | 15 (164.5256) | 22 (157.6572) |
| 2013-10-19 | 13th Annual Bordertown Bash Fort Smith, AR | 21 / 25 (609.4856) | 24 (150.8000) | 24 (147.3600) | 17 (158.2628) | 17 (153.0628) |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 ↗ | Backyard | — | #271 (115 pts) | #236 (155 pts) | — | — |
| 2017 ↗ | Master | #1652 (134 pts) | #1649 (154 pts) | #1745 (134 pts) | #1395 (204 pts) | #1923 (119 pts) |
| 2016 ↗ | Master | #2274 (60 pts) | #2353 (60 pts) | #2349 (60 pts) | #2326 (60 pts) | #2345 (60 pts) |