DEAD BIRD BBQ

DEAD BIRD BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 39 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2016 and 2022. Their best overall finish is 2nd of 25 at the City Of Springs BBQ Championship (2019), and they have finished Reserve Grand Champion 3 times. They are ranked #668 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#668

of 6,491 rated · rankings

Rating

1646

peak 1666 · rated over 38 contests1 invitational or side-series contest not counted

Contests

in the data

First seen

Sep 30, 2016

latest May 20, 2022 · 5.6 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#116

Master 2019 · every season

Grand champs

3 reserve

Category wins

15 podiums

Overall top-10s

31% of 39 contests

Best top-10 run

straight overall top-10s

Avg finish

top 43%

overall standings

Best overall

701.0972 / 720

Master · Pork-A-Palooza

Perfect 180s

3 🔥

Current form

674.16 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 671.29 (+2.87)

Walk rate

69%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

180 🔥

Pork · Stillwater Elks Lodge Blazathon

Consistency

±16.16

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Pork

avg 170.38 · weakest Brisket (165.65)

Road miles

4,772

across 39 mapped stops · furthest 365 mi

Schedule strength

85%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1615)

Purse competed for

$154K

listed at 13 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

won from 14 state-championship entries

Master avg

671.29 / 720

38 Master contests · 0 GCs

Storylines (16 found in their record)

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

The heartbreaker

2.9028 points from the title

Came within 2.9028 points of the Grand Championship at Pork-A-Palooza (Apr 19, 2019).

Perfect scores on the board

3 perfect 180s

3 perfect 180s in the data — every judge at the table handing back a nine, all in pork.

Pork ×3

A multi-meat day

1 contest with 2+ category wins

They've won two or more meats on the same day 1 time — the best of them 2 category wins at City Of Springs BBQ Championship (May 10, 2019).

Chicken 1st
Pork Ribs 1st

They almost always walk

69% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 27 of 39 contests

A top-10 category call in 69% of their 39 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

701.0972 career-best overall

97.4% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 701.0972 at Pork-A-Palooza — 97.4% of a perfect 720.

Master
Apr 19, 2019

The one to beat

3× one call ahead of them

THE GRISWOLDS has finished one call ahead of DEAD BIRD BBQ 3 times — their closest competition in the data.

Their season

2019 their best year

2019 was the year it came together: 10 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 4 category wins, at an average finish in the top 25%.

10 contests
7 overall top-10s
4 category wins
average top 25%

Show 9 more storylines

A tough matchup

25–7 behind in the head-to-head

BUFFALO'S BBQ ahead in 78% of their meetings

BUFFALO'S BBQ has come out ahead in 25 of their 32 shared contests.

The weak link

−4.7 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 4.73 points below their pork, and turns into a call 29% of the time against 41%.

Brisket avg 165.65
Pork avg 170.38
11 calls in 38 entries

A strong matchup

17–4 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 81% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of POPS' SMOKIN' BBQ in 17 of their 21 shared contests.

Always the bridesmaid

3 reserve championships

Runner-up for the whole thing 3 times against 0 Grand Championships — close enough to touch it, over and over.

0 Grand Championships
39 contests

They cook the hard rooms

1615 average field rating faced

A tougher draw than 85% of rated fields

The fields they enter average a 1615 power rating — a tougher draw than 85% of every rated contest in the data.

38 rated contests

Looking over their shoulder

3× one call behind them

Three Hog Night Smokers has landed one call behind them 3 times.

A May team

Top 23% average finish in May

Something about May: average finish in the top 23% across 5 contests, versus top 43% the rest of the year.

5 May contests
top 43% the rest of the year

The long haul

4,772 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 4,772 miles across 39 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 365 miles to Socially Distanced Smoking - Brisket presented by The BBQ League.

39 mapped stops
furthest 365 mi

The metronome

±2.22% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±2.22% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 93.2% of a perfect score
39 contests

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
2022 ↗	Master	#791 (189 pts)	#906 (169 pts)	#819 (229 pts)	#908 (169 pts)	#698 (264 pts)
2020 ↗	Master	#309 (366 pts)	#355 (346 pts)	#223 (536 pts)	#346 (351 pts)	#345 (356 pts)
2019 ↗	Master	#116 (1,708 pts)	#77 (1,838 pts)	#157 (1,448 pts)	#145 (1,498 pts)	#226 (1,218 pts)
2018 ↗	Master	#302 (1,070 pts)	#229 (1,255 pts)	#314 (1,030 pts)	#128 (1,575 pts)	#312 (1,050 pts)
2017 ↗	Master	#380 (965 pts)	#478 (810 pts)	#264 (1,235 pts)	#261 (1,250 pts)	#383 (995 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to DEAD BIRD BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.

DIVINE SWINE

#665 of the rated field

1647 power rating

Contests: 90
GCs: 2
Top-10s: 22%
Peak: 1716

14–15 in 29 shared contests (48% to DEAD BIRD BBQ)

These two have cooked 29 of the same contests — DIVINE SWINE ahead 15–14 — so there's a record behind this pairing and not just a matching number.

rated over 85 contests
last seen Sep 29, 2021

⚔ Head-to-head

PEPPER MONKEY BBQ

#669 of the rated field

1646 power rating

Contests: 24
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 50%
Peak: 1646

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 24 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 24 contests
last seen Sep 4, 2015

⚔ Compare careers

SWINE ASSASSINS

#666 of the rated field

1647 power rating

Contests: 20
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 60%
Peak: 1648

Their last contest in the data was back in 2019, 3 years before DEAD BIRD BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 20 contests

⚔ Compare careers

Compete BBQ Team

#667 of the rated field

1647 power rating

Contests: 19
GCs: 3
Top-10s: 79%
Peak: 1647

Fewer contests behind them than DEAD BIRD BBQ has cooked, 19 to 39, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.

rated over 17 contests
last seen Jun 7, 2024

⚔ Compare careers

HEATH RILES BBQ

#670 of the rated field

1646 power rating

Contests: 18
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 56%
Peak: 1646

Their rating is built on 1 Grand Championship in 18 contests, alongside a 56% overall top-10 rate.

rated over 14 contests
last seen Oct 9, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

BOOTIES BBQ

#671 of the rated field

1646 ▼ 1 power rating

Contests: 39
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 49%
Peak: 1648

0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to DEAD BIRD BBQ)

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

rated over 29 contests
last seen Oct 17, 2024

⚔ Head-to-head

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
Three Hog Night Smokers	34	14	20	41%	⚔ compare
BUFFALO'S BBQ	32	7	25	22%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN DAN	31	16	15	52%	⚔ compare
Petie's Smokin Pits BBQ	30	10	20	33%	⚔ compare
DIVINE SWINE	29	14	15	48%	⚔ compare
BUTCHER BBQ	29	7	22	24%	⚔ compare
BIG BUTTS NEED RUBBIN TOO	27	12	15	44%	⚔ compare
THE AMERICAN DREAM BBQ	25	3	22	12%	⚔ compare
4 LEGS UP BBQ	24	4	20	17%	⚔ compare
POPS' SMOKIN' BBQ	21	17	4	81%	⚔ compare
THE GRISWOLDS	18	8	10	44%	⚔ compare
CLARK CREW BBQ	18	2	16	11%	⚔ compare
SPICY SPITFIRE	17	5	12	29%	⚔ compare
HOLLOW Q	15	14	1	93%	⚔ compare
MOVIN' THE CHAINS	15	9	6	60%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	38	13	2	3	177.7028	150.7772	168.20	top 44%
Pork Ribs	38	13	1	5	177.7028	156.5716	167.25	top 43%
Pork	34	14	4	7	180 🔥	159.3600	170.38	top 38%
Brisket	38	11	0	0	177.7028	141.1660	165.65	top 48%

“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	GCs	Avg finish
Medium (20–39)	26	0	top 44%
Large (40+)	13	0	top 41%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	Avg finish
OK	31	top 45%
MO	2	top 29%
KS	2	top 46%
AR	2	top 31%
TX	1	top 41%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
Stillwater Elks Lodge Blazathon	3	4	top 37%	Apr 5, 2019
City of Springs BBQ Championship	2	2	top 24%	May 20, 2022
Pork-A-Palooza	2	2	top 43%	Apr 15, 2022
Firelake BBQ Cook Off-Day 1	2	2	top 40%	Oct 23, 2020
Beats, Brews, & BBQ	2	7	top 52%	Jun 12, 2020
Cherokee Strip BBQ Cook-Off	2	9	top 35%	Sep 20, 2019
Boots and BBQ Festival (JUDGES FULL)	2	12	top 43%	Jun 1, 2018

More numbers

Busiest season 2018 11 contests

Contests a season 6.5 across 6 seasons in the data

Most contests held in OK 31 of 39 contests · 5 states in all

Contests visited 31 7 of them more than once

Opponents faced 689 finished ahead 952 times, behind 676

Longest layoff 1.5 yrs Oct 23, 2020 → Apr 15, 2022

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

20221 milestone

May 20 Most recent contest City of Springs BBQ Championship

20196 milestones

Mar 22 First overall podium Firelake BBQ Cook Off Day 1
Mar 22 First Reserve Championship Firelake BBQ Cook Off Day 1
Apr 19 25th tracked contest Pork-A-Palooza
Apr 19 Career-best overall score701.0972 Pork-A-Palooza
May 10 First multi-meat day City Of Springs BBQ Championship
Jun 22 Peak power rating (1666) Festival of the Pig - Oklahoma BBQ Championship

20182 milestones

Apr 6 First category win (Pork) Stillwater Elks Lodge Blazathon
Apr 6 First perfect 180 (Pork) Stillwater Elks Lodge Blazathon

20173 milestones

Apr 21 First overall past 90% of a perfect score673.0056 Roberts Ranch Smokin Red Dirt BBQ
May 19 First overall top-10 Grand Lake BBQ & Festival
Sep 29 10th tracked contest Smokin-in-Sapulpa 4th Annual BBQ

20162 milestones

Sep 30 First tracked contest 3rd Annual Smokin in Sapulpa
Sep 30 First call 3rd Annual Smokin in Sapulpa

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+17.9	Firelake BBQ Cook Off Day 1	Mar 22, 2019
+15.3	Grand Lake BBQ & Festival	May 19, 2017
+15.2	17th Annual Bordertown Bash	Jul 13, 2018
+15.2	Pork-A-Palooza	Apr 19, 2019
+13.5	City Of Springs BBQ Championship	May 10, 2019

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-9.2	Firelake BBQ Cook Off-Day 1	Oct 23, 2020
-8.7	Beats, Brews, & BBQ	Jun 12, 2020
-8.6	Mocklahoma Ribs & Roll BBQ Championship-Day 1	Jun 9, 2017
-8.4	Pork-A-Palooza	Apr 15, 2022
-7.3	Carlton Landing's 2nd Annual Smoke on the Water BBQ Comptition	Jun 16, 2017

Scores over time (% of a perfect score, averaged over 5 contests — 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	Top-10s	Category wins	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2022	2	1	0	50%	top 60%	95.1%	93.1%
2020	5	1	0	20%	top 48%	95.7%	93.4%
2019	10	7	4	90%	top 25%	97.4%	94.9%
2018	11	2	3	73%	top 40%	96.2%	93.5%
2017	10	1	0	70%	top 55%	95.8%	91.6%
2016	1	0	0	100%	top 62%	89.4%	89.4%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
May 20, 2022	City of Springs BBQ Championship 🏅 Sulphur, OK	10 / 25 (685.0400)	15 (167.3828)	7 (170.8344)	12 (173.1200)	6 (173.7028)
Apr 15, 2022	Pork-A-Palooza 🏅 Weatherford, OK	23 / 29 (655.2228)	22 (165.0972)	21 (165.0856)	26 (159.3600)	16 (165.6800)
Oct 23, 2020	Firelake BBQ Cook Off-Day 1 🏅 Shawnee, OK	50 / 64 (667.8972)	42 (169.6800)	46 (165.6800)	—	53 (158.2744)
Aug 7, 2020	15th Annual HANOR Smokin' Red Dirt BBQ 🏅 Enid, OK	19 / 54 (673.5656)	14 (171.9772)	18 (169.6800)	—	19 (168.5256)
Jun 19, 2020	Ozarks BBQ Fest 🏅 Springfield, MO	7 / 26 (689.0628)	13 (170.2628)	2 (173.7028)	6 (173.1200)	8 (171.9772)
Jun 12, 2020	Beats, Brews, & BBQ 🏅 Wagoner, OK	39 / 55 (664.4912)	44 (163.4056)	11 (173.1772)	—	38 (164.5256)
Apr 6, 2020	Socially Distanced Smoking - Brisket presented by The BBQ League unrated washington, MO	34 / 109 (166.8344)	—	—	—	—
Sep 20, 2019	Cherokee Strip BBQ Cook-Off 🏅 Ponca City, OK	11 / 28 (669.0056)	10 (170.2628)	18 (159.9428)	7 (169.6800)	6 (169.1200)
Jul 26, 2019	Dodge City Days Smokin Saddles BBQ Competition 🏅 Dodge City, KS	16 / 39 (671.8972)	16 (170.2972)	32 (158.8000)	13 (171.9772)	16 (170.8228)
Jun 22, 2019	Festival of the Pig - Oklahoma BBQ Championship 🏅 Oklahoma City, OK	9 / 27 (677.0512)	1 (176.5600)	20 (162.2400)	11 (168.5484)	10 (169.7028)
Jun 7, 2019	Beats, Brews, & BBQ Wagoner, OK	7 / 21 (682.1596)	5 (172.5600)	2 (171.9656)	—	18 (164.5140)
May 10, 2019	City Of Springs BBQ Championship 🏅 Sulphur, OK	2 / 25 (689.6916)	1 (177.1428)	1 (174.2744)	13 (164)	5 (174.2744)
May 3, 2019	Bixby BBQ'n Blues Festival 🏅	10 / 56 (683.9200)	16 (170.2512)	6 (174.2744)	8 (175.4172)	26 (163.9772)
Apr 26, 2019	14th Annual HANOR Smokin' Red Dirt BBQ 🏅 Enid, OK	21 / 39 (666.1372)	6 (174.8456)	28 (158.8116)	25 (163.9428)	16 (168.5372)
Apr 19, 2019	Pork-A-Palooza Weatherford, OK	2 / 33 (701.0972)	5 (176.5600)	2 (177.7028)	3 (176.5716)	14 (170.2628)
Apr 5, 2019	Stillwater Elks Lodge Blazathon 🏅 Stillwater, OK	4 / 34 (693.6800)	5 (173.7028)	19 (166.2744)	1 (180)	8 (173.7028)
Mar 22, 2019	Firelake BBQ Cook Off Day 1 🏅 Shawnee, OK	2 / 74 (695.3600)	3 (176.5600)	13 (171.4172)	16 (173.1200)	11 (174.2628)
Sep 28, 2018	Bikes, Blues and BBQ Fayetteville, AR	21 / 49 (667.2796)	26 (165.1084)	20 (165.6684)	22 (167.3828)	14 (169.1200)
Sep 21, 2018	Cherokee Strip BBQ Cook-Off Ponca City, OK	9 / 29 (670.7656)	15 (162.8228)	12 (166.2856)	2 (176.5600)	13 (165.0972)
Aug 31, 2018	Bedford Blues & BBQ Festival Bedford, TX	30 / 74 (661.6912)	16 (172.5828)	23 (167.4516)	40 (164.5256)	54 (157.1312)
Jul 27, 2018	Canadian County CASA's All Fired Up for Kids BBQ El Reno, OK	12 / 23 (671.8976)	6 (171.4172)	9 (169.6916)	19 (163.9544)	10 (166.8344)
Jul 13, 2018	17th Annual Bordertown Bash Fort Smith, AR	6 / 32 (692.5032)	5 (177.7028)	20 (169.7032)	1 (176.5600)	13 (168.5372)
Jun 1, 2018	Boots and BBQ Festival (JUDGES FULL) Claremore, OK	12 / 30 (676.4684)	10 (171.9772)	9 (168.5372)	10 (171.4056)	17 (164.5484)
May 4, 2018	Bixby BBQ'n Blues Festival Bixby, OK	18 / 68 (678.6968)	7 (175.4056)	12 (173.1200)	1 (180)	52 (150.1712)
Apr 20, 2018	13th Annual Hanor Smokin' Red Dirt BBQ Enid, OK	15 / 49 (685.7032)	7 (174.8572)	19 (169.7488)	22 (169.1200)	16 (171.9772)
Apr 6, 2018	Stillwater Elks Lodge Blazathon Stillwater, OK	11 / 26 (657.5772)	17 (153.6572)	10 (167.3828)	1 (180)	16 (156.5372)
Mar 24, 2018	Fire Lake BBQ Cook-off Day 2 Shawnee, OK	35 / 79 (681.7260)	19 (173.7144)	69 (162.2860)	52 (168.0228)	7 (177.7028)
Mar 23, 2018	Fire Lake BBQ Cook-off Day 1 Shawnee, OK	60 / 84 (659.2568)	71 (159.3484)	31 (169.7028)	55 (165.1200)	52 (165.0856)
Oct 27, 2017	Smokin the Fort BBQ & Blue Grass Festival Fort Gibson, OK	13 / 32 (667.3944)	15 (165.1200)	12 (166.8572)	20 (163.9884)	7 (171.4288)
Sep 29, 2017	Smokin-in-Sapulpa 4th Annual BBQ Sapulpa, OK	13 / 30 (672.4916)	18 (165.6916)	7 (172.0116)	5 (176.5600)	22 (158.2284)
Jul 28, 2017	Smokin Hot Cars & BBQ Iola, KS	14 / 27 (666.7544)	12 (169.6800)	19 (158.2744)	13 (167.9772)	8 (170.8228)
Jun 16, 2017	Carlton Landing's 2nd Annual Smoke on the Water BBQ Comptition Carlton Landing, OK	22 / 26 (633.4740)	22 (150.7772)	10 (163.3828)	17 (163.9656)	22 (155.3484)
Jun 9, 2017	Mocklahoma Ribs & Roll BBQ Championship-Day 1 Okmulgee, OK	26 / 29 (642.0912)	24 (155.3712)	24 (157.0744)	15 (165.1084)	18 (164.5372)
Jun 2, 2017	Boots and BBQ Festival Claremore, OK	13 / 28 (667.3144)	18 (164.5372)	12 (166.8344)	12 (169.1200)	14 (166.8228)
May 19, 2017	Grand Lake BBQ & Festival Langley, OK	8 / 36 (689.6684)	30 (163.9656)	8 (173.7372)	2 (176.5600)	6 (175.4056)
Apr 21, 2017	Roberts Ranch Smokin Red Dirt BBQ Enid, OK	17 / 47 (673.0056)	25 (163.3712)	2 (176.5716)	23 (169.6800)	25 (163.3828)
Apr 7, 2017	Chillin n Grillin BBQ Festival Sands Springs, OK	26 / 33 (643.8628)	20 (169.1200)	25 (157.6800)	25 (162.8000)	28 (154.2628)
Mar 31, 2017	Stillwater Elks Lodge Blazathon Stillwater, OK	21 / 37 (640)	21 (162.8228)	18 (162.9028)	6 (173.1084)	37 (141.1660)
Sep 30, 2016	3rd Annual Smokin in Sapulpa Sapulpa, OK	23 / 37 (643.9544)	27 (156)	28 (156.5716)	10 (172.5600)	22 (158.8228)

An unrated contest — an invitational, or a Competitor or Kosher Series board — is in the record but doesn’t move the power rating.

DEAD BIRD BBQ

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

Rating

Contests

First seen

Best ToY finish

Grand champs

Category wins

Overall top-10s

Best top-10 run

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 (16 found in their record)

The heartbreaker

Perfect scores on the board

A multi-meat day

They almost always walk

High-water mark

The one to beat

Their season

A tough matchup

The weak link

A strong matchup

Always the bridesmaid

They cook the hard rooms

Looking over their shoulder

A May team

The long haul

The metronome

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, averaged over 5 contests — 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)