AGAINST THE GRAIN BBQ

AGAINST THE GRAIN BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 12 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2017 and 2023. Their best overall finish is 4th of 27 at the Tri City BBQ Fest (2018). They are ranked #1483 of 6,476 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#1,483

of 6,476 rated · rankings

Rating

1566

peak 1566 · rated over 12 contests

Contests

in the data

First seen

May 19, 2017

latest Jan 27, 2023 · 5.7 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#592

Master 2018 · every season

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

3 podiums

Overall top-10s

25% of 12 contests

Avg finish

top 44%

overall standings

Best overall

686.2056 / 720

Master · 7th Annual Valley Veterans BBQ Competition

Perfect 180s

Current form

673.63 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 667.21 (+6.41)

Walk rate

67%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

176.0116

Pork Ribs · Tri City BBQ Fest

Consistency

±16.51

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Brisket

avg 167.68 · weakest Pork Ribs (166.12)

Road miles

475

across 12 mapped stops · furthest 68 mi

Schedule strength

82%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1607)

Purse competed for

$36K

listed at 3 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

won from 4 state-championship entries

Master avg

667.21 / 720

12 Master contests · 0 GCs

Storylines (10 found in their record)

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

They almost always walk

67% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 8 of 12 contests

A top-10 category call in 67% of their 12 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

686.2056 career-best overall

95.3% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 686.2056 at 7th Annual Valley Veterans BBQ Competition — 95.3% of a perfect 720.

Master
May 18, 2018

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

WHEN PIGS DIE has finished one call ahead of AGAINST THE GRAIN BBQ 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

A strong matchup

9–1 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 90% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of BLAIR'S BIGFOOT BBQ in 9 of their 10 shared contests.

The comeback

1.7 yrs off the trail, then back

Off the trail for 1.7 years, then back at 9th Annual Valley Veterans BBQ Competition (May 28, 2021).

last seen Sep 20, 2019
back May 28, 2021

Brisket nemesis

7 of 9 shared brisket entries lost

DIRT ROAD BBQ ahead 78% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, DIRT ROAD BBQ has out-cooked them in 7 of 9 shared brisket entries.

They cook the hard rooms

1607 average field rating faced

A tougher draw than 82% of rated fields

The fields they enter average a 1607 power rating — a tougher draw than 82% of every rated contest in the data.

12 rated contests

Show 3 more storylines

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

IOWA BONEHEAD BBQ has landed one call behind them 2 times.

A September team

Top 32% average finish in September

Something about September: average finish in the top 32% across 3 contests, versus top 44% the rest of the year.

3 September contests
top 44% 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 92.7% of a perfect score
12 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
2023 ↗	Master	#826 (161 pts)	#955 (141 pts)	#1407 (66 pts)	#747 (206 pts)	#717 (231 pts)
2021 ↗	Master	#1236 (60 pts)	#1183 (85 pts)	#1309 (60 pts)	#1262 (60 pts)	#1170 (80 pts)
2019 ↗	Master	#1107 (224 pts)	#1348 (174 pts)	#1220 (204 pts)	#1021 (274 pts)	#884 (344 pts)
2018 ↗	Master	#592 (582 pts)	#804 (422 pts)	#760 (472 pts)	#761 (462 pts)	#673 (542 pts)
2017 ↗	Master	#1163 (255 pts)	#1269 (245 pts)	#993 (375 pts)	#1213 (265 pts)	#911 (410 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to AGAINST THE GRAIN BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.

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

LUCKY 13 BARBEQUE

#1,484 of the rated field

1565 power rating

Contests: 13
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 38%
Peak: 1572

Their last contest in the data was back in 2015, 8 years before AGAINST THE GRAIN BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 12 contests

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Buckeye Flavor

#1,487 of the rated field

1565 power rating

Contests: 9
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 33%
Peak: 1565

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 9 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 9 contests
last seen Sep 5, 2025

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STRESS RELIEF BBQ

#1,489 of the rated field

1565 power rating

Contests: 18
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 17%
Peak: 1566

A longer road to the same neighbourhood — 18 contests to 12.

rated over 18 contests
last seen Jun 22, 2019

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Knights of the Holy Grill

#1,482 of the rated field

1566 power rating

Contests: 23
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1584

23 contests and no Grand Championship yet.

rated over 23 contests
last seen Sep 18, 2026

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DADDY O'S SMOKIN' BBQ

#1,486 of the rated field

1565 power rating

Contests: 26
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 12%
Peak: 1574

Level with AGAINST THE GRAIN BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 26 contests
last seen Sep 23, 2022

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BRUTUS AND COMPANY

#1,485 of the rated field

1565 power rating

Contests: 29
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 31%
Peak: 1593

Their last contest in the data was back in 2019, 4 years before AGAINST THE GRAIN BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 28 contests

⚔ Compare careers

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
BLAIR'S BIGFOOT BBQ	10	9	1	90%	⚔ compare
SPITFIRE	10	3	7	30%	⚔ compare
TEAM BREW & QUE	9	7	2	78%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN' LEFTY'S BBQ	9	6	3	67%	⚔ compare
WHEN PIGS DIE	9	1	8	11%	⚔ compare
DIRT ROAD BBQ	9	1	8	11%	⚔ compare
ELWOOD BBQ	8	7	1	88%	⚔ compare
HOT GRILL ON GRILL ACTION	8	5	3	63%	⚔ compare
HELPING U BBQ	8	3	5	38%	⚔ compare
OMAHA'S BLOWIN' SMOKE	7	5	2	71%	⚔ compare
2FishQ	6	5	1	83%	⚔ compare
TREEFROG BBQ	6	3	3	50%	⚔ compare
913 BBQ	6	2	4	33%	⚔ compare
SLAPS BBQ	6	1	5	17%	⚔ compare
TIMBONE BARBECUE	6	1	5	17%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	12	2	0	175.4056	157.6456	166.87	top 49%
Pork Ribs	12	3	1	176.0116	155.9544	166.12	top 49%
Pork	12	4	0	175.4628	150.2284	166.54	top 47%
Brisket	12	6	2	175.4056	147.9084	167.68	top 35%

“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)	6	0	top 32%
Large (40+)	6	0	top 56%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
NE	9	0	top 48%
IA	3	0	top 32%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
Tri City BBQ Fest	3	4	0	top 32%	Sep 20, 2019

More numbers

Busiest season 2018 4 contests

Contests a season 2.4 across 5 seasons in the data

Most contests held in NE 9 of 12 contests · 2 states in all

Contests visited 10 1 of them more than once

Opponents faced 195 finished ahead 255 times, behind 211

Longest layoff 1.7 yrs Sep 20, 2019 → May 28, 2021

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

20232 milestones

Jan 27 Peak power rating (1566) SJV Winter Rub
Jan 27 Most recent contest SJV Winter Rub

20191 milestone

Sep 20 10th tracked contest Tri City BBQ Fest

20182 milestones

May 18 First overall top-10 7th Annual Valley Veterans BBQ Competition
May 18 Career-best overall score686.2056 7th Annual Valley Veterans BBQ Competition

20174 milestones

May 19 First tracked contest 6th Annual Valley Veterans BBQ Competition
Aug 4 First overall past 90% of a perfect score657.6000 Omaha Steaks Nebraska BBQ Championship Day -1
Aug 5 First call Omaha Steaks Nebraska BBQ Championship Day -2
Sep 22 Career-best single call (Pork Ribs)176.0116 Tri City BBQ Fest

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+17.4	7th Annual Valley Veterans BBQ Competition	May 18, 2018
+14.2	Tri City BBQ Fest	Sep 21, 2018
+10.1	SJV Winter Rub	Jan 27, 2023
+9.2	Tri City BBQ Fest	Sep 22, 2017
+8.6	8th Annual Valley Veterans BBQ Competition	May 31, 2019

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-6.9	6th Annual Valley Veterans BBQ Competition	May 19, 2017
-4.9	Q for a Cause	Apr 20, 2018

Scores over time (% of a perfect score — 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	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2023	1	1	100%	top 23%	94.8%	94.8%
2021	1	0	0%	top 59%	92.8%	92.8%
2019	2	0	100%	top 41%	94%	93.3%
2018	4	2	75%	top 37%	95.3%	92.8%
2017	4	0	50%	top 55%	94.4%	91.7%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Jan 27, 2023	SJV Winter Rub 🏅 Omaha, NE	7 / 31 (682.8228)	9 (171.4172)	23 (161.6800)	4 (175.4628)	3 (174.2628)
May 28, 2021	9th Annual Valley Veterans BBQ Competition 🏅 Valley, NE	27 / 46 (668.4912)	20 (169.1084)	25 (167.4172)	36 (161.6684)	21 (170.2972)
Sep 20, 2019	Tri City BBQ Fest 🏅 Denison, IA	18 / 34 (666.1600)	14 (169.1200)	30 (155.9544)	15 (169.1200)	10 (171.9656)
May 31, 2019	8th Annual Valley Veterans BBQ Competition 🏅 Valley, NE	11 / 39 (677.0284)	32 (157.6456)	9 (171.9772)	7 (173.1200)	4 (174.2856)
Sep 21, 2018	Tri City BBQ Fest Denison, IA	4 / 27 (673.6228)	11 (166.8228)	11 (167.4172)	13 (166.8228)	3 (172.5600)
Aug 10, 2018	26th Annual State BBQ Championship of Nebraska Arlington, NE	14 / 30 (669.5540)	23 (159.3600)	11 (169.1200)	10 (171.9656)	9 (169.1084)
May 18, 2018	7th Annual Valley Veterans BBQ Competition Valley, NE	4 / 42 (686.2056)	6 (175.4056)	7 (173.1428)	13 (169.6800)	14 (167.9772)
Apr 20, 2018	Q for a Cause Papillion, NE	32 / 41 (642.6512)	26 (165.0972)	25 (162.2628)	17 (167.3828)	39 (147.9084)
Sep 22, 2017	Tri City BBQ Fest Denison, IA	11 / 37 (679.9200)	28 (161.6684)	3 (176.0116)	9 (171.4172)	11 (170.8228)
Aug 5, 2017	Omaha Steaks Nebraska BBQ Championship Day -2 Omaha, NE	24 / 50 (675.2684)	26 (170.8344)	39 (162.7884)	31 (166.2400)	6 (175.4056)
Aug 4, 2017	Omaha Steaks Nebraska BBQ Championship Day -1 Omaha, NE	33 / 54 (657.6000)	12 (171.4056)	21 (167.4172)	52 (150.2284)	16 (168.5488)
May 19, 2017	6th Annual Valley Veterans BBQ Competition Valley, NE	38 / 47 (627.2344)	23 (164.5600)	32 (158.2400)	36 (155.3600)	40 (149.0744)

AGAINST THE GRAIN BBQ

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

Rating

Contests

First seen

Best ToY finish

Grand champs

Category wins

Overall top-10s

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 (10 found in their record)

They almost always walk

High-water mark

The one to beat

A strong matchup

The comeback

Brisket nemesis

They cook the hard rooms

Looking over their shoulder

A September team

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 — 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)