GEM CITY BBQ

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

Power ranking

#4112

of 6,413 rated · rankings

Rating

1480

peak 1480 · rated over 11 contests ⓘ

Contests

in the data

First seen

2016-07-08

latest 2019-09-20

Best ToY finish

#832

Master 2019

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

2 podiums

Overall top-10s

of 11 contests

Avg finish

top 68%

overall standings

Best overall

678.1828 / 720

Master · Ohio Veterans Barbecue Cook-Off

Perfect 180s

Current form

661.94 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 652.96 (+8.98)

Walk rate

36%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

176.5716

Pork · Our Lady of Victory Holy Smokes BBQ Competition

Consistency

±16.51

std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 165.36 · weakest Pork Ribs (160.58)

Road miles

580

mi across 11 mapped stops · furthest 113 mi

Schedule strength

52%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1566)

Purse competed for

$27K

listed at 4 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

GCs in 6 state-championship entries

Master avg

652.96 / 720

11 Master contests · 0 GCs

⚔ Compare with another team

Storylines (7 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.

High-water mark

678.1828 career-best overall

94.2% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 678.1828 at Ohio Veterans Barbecue Cook-Off — 94.2% of a perfect 720.

Master
2019-07-12

A tough matchup

11–0 behind in the head-to-head

SMOKIN' 4-PLAY BBQ ahead in 100% of their meetings

SMOKIN' 4-PLAY BBQ has come out ahead in 11 of their 11 shared contests.

The weak link

−4.8 points behind their best meat

Pork Ribs is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 4.78 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 9% of the time against 27%.

Pork Ribs avg 160.58
Chicken avg 165.36
1 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 PORK-U-UP in 4 of their 4 shared contests.

Chicken nemesis

9 of 11 shared chicken entries lost

SMOKIN' 4-PLAY BBQ ahead 82% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, SMOKIN' 4-PLAY BBQ has out-cooked them in 9 of 11 shared chicken entries.

A September team

Top 58% average finish in September

Something about September: average finish in the top 58% across 3 contests, versus top 68% the rest of the year.

3 September contests
top 68% the rest of the year

The metronome

±2.29% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±2.29% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 90.7% 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.

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

Twiki G BBQ

#4109 of the rated field

1480 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 11
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 9%
Peak: 1480

No shared contest yet.

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 2026-01-30

⚔ Head-to-head

SMOKIN THE GOOD STUFF

#4096 of the rated field

1480 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 12
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1480

No shared contest yet.

Careers of much the same size, 12 contests to 11, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 12 contests
last seen 2024-10-04

⚔ Head-to-head

MEAT INC.

#4122 of the rated field

1480 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 12
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1480

No shared contest yet.

Their last contest in the data was back in 2016, 3 years before GEM CITY BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 12 contests

⚔ Head-to-head

Mid Valley BBQ

#4095 of the rated field

1480 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 10%
Peak: 1480

No shared contest yet.

They turned up 8 years after GEM CITY BBQ did, first appearing in 2024.

rated over 10 contests
last seen 2025-07-19

⚔ Head-to-head

Panic BBQ

#4123 of the rated field

1480 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1480

No shared contest yet.

Level with GEM CITY BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 10 contests
last seen 2025-06-27

⚔ Head-to-head

SMOKIN HOT BBQ

#4104 of the rated field

1480 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 11
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 18%
Peak: 1515

No shared contest yet.

They've been 1515 at their best, 35 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.

rated over 10 contests
last seen 2018-06-01

⚔ Head-to-head

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
SMOKIN' 4-PLAY BBQ	11	0	11	0%	⚔ compare
HISTORIC BBQ	9	1	8	11%	⚔ compare
HIGH ON THE HOG OHIO	9	0	9	0%	⚔ compare
DUB TOWN SMOKERS	8	1	7	13%	⚔ compare
ALE YEAH BBQ	7	2	5	29%	⚔ compare
GREY STREET BBQ	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN HOOSIERS	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
GETCHA SOME BBQ	6	3	3	50%	⚔ compare
SLIPPERY PETE'S BBQ	6	1	5	17%	⚔ compare
TIRE SMOKE BBQ	6	1	5	17%	⚔ compare
BROTHERS OF OHIO BBQ	6	1	5	17%	⚔ compare
BURNING PIG BBQ	6	1	5	17%	⚔ compare
JMB BBQ	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
BIG DOGG BBQ - CINCINNATI, OH	5	2	3	40%	⚔ compare
CONVICTED PIGS BBQ	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	11	3	0	1	175.4056	154.7656	165.36	top 57%
Pork Ribs	11	1	0	0	168.5256	152.5144	160.58	top 69%
Pork	11	2	1	1	176.5716	154.2056	164.97	top 56%
Brisket	11	1	0	0	169.6800	143.8972	162.04	top 62%

“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
OH	9	0	top 66%
IN	1	0	top 86%

By contest size

Field	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
Medium (20–39)	8	0	top 63%
Large (40+)	3	0	top 80%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
Smokin in The Hills	2	20	top 65%	2019-09-20
Ohio Veterans Barbecue Cook-Off	2	12	top 59%	2019-07-12
*Ohio Veterans Barbecue Cook-Off	2	25	top 78%	2018-07-13

The story so far (16 numbers that describe this team)

On the trail 3.2 yrs 2016-07-08 → 2019-09-20

Busiest season 2019 4 contests

Contests a season 2.8 across 4 seasons in the data

Cooks most in OH 9 of 11 contests · 2 states/provinces in all

Contests visited 8 3 of them cooked more than once

Most-entered meat Chicken 11 entries · 0 wins · 3 calls

Strongest meat Chicken averages 165.36 · weakest Pork Ribs (160.58)

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

Overall top-10 rate 0% 0 of 11 contests

Master average 652.96 out of 720 · 11 contests · 0 GCs

Opponents faced 167 118–251 across every shared overall standing

Road miles 580 11 mapped stops · furthest 113 mi

Schedule strength 1566 average field rating faced — tougher than 52% of rated contests

Purse competed for $27,100 listed at 4 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships 0 from 6 state-championship entries

Power rating 1480 peak 1480 · #4112 of 6,413 rated

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

2016
Jul 8 First tracked contest Ohio Veterans Barbecue Cook-Off
Jul 8 Peak power rating (1492) Ohio Veterans Barbecue Cook-Off
2017
Sep 22 First call Smokin in The Hills (Limited to the first 25 teams)
Sep 22 First overall past 90% of a perfect score667.3140 Smokin in The Hills (Limited to the first 25 teams)
2019
Jul 12 Career-best overall score678.1828 Ohio Veterans Barbecue Cook-Off
Aug 2 First category win (Pork) Our Lady of Victory Holy Smokes BBQ Competition
Aug 2 10th tracked contest Our Lady of Victory Holy Smokes BBQ Competition
Aug 2 Career-best single call (Pork)176.5716 Our Lady of Victory Holy Smokes BBQ Competition
Sep 20 Most recent contest Smokin in The Hills

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+9.5	Ohio Veterans Barbecue Cook-Off	2019-07-12
+4.7	Our Lady of Victory Holy Smokes BBQ Competition	2019-08-02
+4.2	Smokin in The Hills (Limited to the first 25 teams)	2017-09-22

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-11.9	*Ohio Veterans Barbecue Cook-Off	2017-07-07
-7.7	Ohio Veterans Barbecue Cook-Off	2016-07-08
-5.9	PigMania Lebanon State Championship BBQ & Music Festival	2018-08-31
-4.9	PigMania Franklin State Championship BBQ Competition	2019-03-22
-4.3	PigMania Hilliard State Championship BBQ & Music Festival	2018-06-29

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	Category wins	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2019	4	1	75%	top 59%	94.2%	92.4%
2018	4	0	0%	top 72%	91.1%	90.2%
2017	2	0	50%	top 68%	92.7%	88.9%
2016	1	0	0%	top 82%	89%	89%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2019-09-20	Smokin in The Hills 🏅	24 / 38 (660.4568)	26 (165.6800)	28 (160.5140)	17 (168.5828)	18 (165.6800)
2019-08-02	Our Lady of Victory Holy Smokes BBQ Competition 🏅 CINCINNATI, OH	15 / 31 (668.9944)	21 (165.0972)	25 (157.6456)	1 (176.5716)	10 (169.6800)
2019-07-12	Ohio Veterans Barbecue Cook-Off 🏅 Kettering, OH	12 / 33 (678.1828)	7 (172.5600)	16 (168.5256)	7 (170.8572)	16 (166.2400)
2019-03-22	PigMania Franklin State Championship BBQ Competition 🏅 Franklin, IN	25 / 29 (654.7432)	10 (171.4172)	23 (163.9544)	26 (159.3944)	25 (159.9772)
2018-09-21	*Smokin in The Hills Hillsboro, OH	20 / 30 (647.3144)	13 (165.1316)	16 (165.6800)	24 (158.2628)	23 (158.2400)
2018-08-31	PigMania Lebanon State Championship BBQ & Music Festival 🏅 Lebanon, OH	39 / 46 (648.4344)	39 (163.9428)	42 (155.9200)	37 (163.4172)	31 (165.1544)
2018-07-13	*Ohio Veterans Barbecue Cook-Off Kettering, OH	25 / 40 (655.8860)	33 (158.7884)	15 (166.8460)	14 (169.1544)	26 (161.0972)
2018-06-29	PigMania Hilliard State Championship BBQ & Music Festival 🏅 Hilliard, OH	25 / 33 (647.2460)	12 (170.8460)	28 (152.5144)	30 (154.2056)	15 (169.6800)
2017-09-22	Smokin in The Hills (Limited to the first 25 teams) Hillsboro, OH	11 / 25 (667.3140)	3 (175.4056)	10 (166.2284)	14 (165.7028)	14 (159.9772)
2017-07-07	*Ohio Veterans Barbecue Cook-Off Kettering, OH	38 / 41 (612.9256)	38 (154.7656)	32 (155.9772)	30 (158.2856)	38 (143.8972)
2016-07-08	Ohio Veterans Barbecue Cook-Off Kettering, OH	28 / 34 (641.0400)	30 (155.3600)	33 (152.5944)	16 (170.2628)	22 (162.8228)

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	#832 (348 pts)	#767 (428 pts)	#1023 (283 pts)	#578 (598 pts)	#823 (383 pts)
2018 ↗	Master	#1045 (258 pts)	#913 (358 pts)	#984 (328 pts)	#1037 (293 pts)	#1022 (293 pts)
2017 ↗	Master	#1392 (180 pts)	#1161 (285 pts)	#1480 (185 pts)	#1579 (165 pts)	#1583 (165 pts)
2016 ↗	Master	#2841 (59 pts)	#2859 (59 pts)	#2866 (59 pts)	#1466 (208 pts)	#2277 (74 pts)