POP & SON'S COOKERS

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

Power ranking

#1776

of 6,413 rated · rankings

Rating

1548

peak 1548 · rated over 7 contests ⓘ

Contests

in the data

First seen

2017-08-11

latest 2019-08-30

Best ToY finish

#813

Master 2019

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

4 podiums

Overall top-10s

of 8 contests

Avg finish

top 41%

overall standings

Best overall

686.2168 / 720

Master · *Shotgun Fred BBQ Showdown

Perfect 180s

Current form

670.07

last 5 Master vs avg 669.61 (+0.46)

Walk rate

63%

contests with a top-10 call

Top-10 streak

best run (overall)

Best single call

175.4056

Brisket · Shotgun Fred BBQ Showdown

Consistency

±12.14

std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Pork

avg 168.54 · weakest Chicken (165.32)

Road miles

1,459

mi across 8 mapped stops · furthest 544 mi

Schedule strength

47%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1561)

Purse competed for

$11K

listed at 1 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

GCs in 2 state-championship entries

Master avg

669.61 / 720

8 Master contests · 0 GCs

⚔ Compare with another team

Storylines (8 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.

They almost always walk

63% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 5 of 8 contests

A top-10 category call in 63% of their 8 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

686.2168 career-best overall

95.3% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 686.2168 at *Shotgun Fred BBQ Showdown — 95.3% of a perfect 720.

Master
2018-02-16

A tough matchup

7–0 behind in the head-to-head

Texas-car-b-que ahead in 100% of their meetings

Texas-car-b-que has come out ahead in 7 of their 7 shared contests.

A strong matchup

4–1 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 80% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of Rollin' Smoke BBQ Texas in 4 of their 5 shared contests.

Pork nemesis

6 of 7 shared pork entries lost

Texas-car-b-que ahead 86% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, Texas-car-b-que has out-cooked them in 6 of 7 shared pork entries.

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

TINY E BBQ has landed one call behind them 2 times.

An August team

Top 33% average finish in August

Something about August: average finish in the top 33% across 3 contests, versus top 41% the rest of the year.

3 August contests
top 41% the rest of the year

The metronome

±1.69% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±1.69% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 93.0% of a perfect score
8 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.

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

PIPKIN CREEK BBQ CO.

#1779 of the rated field

1548 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 9
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 78%
Peak: 1560

No shared contest yet.

Careers of much the same size, 9 contests to 8, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 9 contests
last seen 2026-04-25

⚔ Head-to-head

Sizzlin Bones BBQ

#1780 of the rated field

1548 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 50%
Peak: 1556

No shared contest yet.

Their last contest in the data was back in 2015, 4 years before POP & SON'S COOKERS's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 9 contests

⚔ Head-to-head

Grill and Chill

#1782 of the rated field

1548 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 6
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 67%
Peak: 1548

No shared contest yet.

Their rating is built on 1 Grand Championship in 6 contests, alongside a 67% overall top-10 rate.

rated over 5 contests
last seen 2026-07-12

⚔ Head-to-head

SMACKDOWN BBQ

#1774 of the rated field

1548 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 5
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 40%
Peak: 1548

No shared contest yet.

Level with POP & SON'S COOKERS on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 5 contests
last seen 2019-05-31

⚔ Head-to-head

WINE COUNTRY BARBECUE

#1775 of the rated field

1548 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 70%
Peak: 1555

No shared contest yet.

6 straight overall top-10s says this rating is a moving target.

rated over 10 contests
last seen 2026-08-01

⚔ Head-to-head

K-10 BBQ

#1771 of the rated field

1548 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 11
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 27%
Peak: 1553

No shared contest yet.

They turned up 7 years after POP & SON'S COOKERS did, first appearing in 2024.

rated over 11 contests
last seen 2026-08-21

⚔ Head-to-head

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
Texas-car-b-que	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
FAT BOYS BBQ - TEMPLE, TX	6	2	4	33%	⚔ compare
LA PASADITA	6	2	4	33%	⚔ compare
BUCKSHOT BBQ - TX	6	2	4	33%	⚔ compare
Rio Valley Meat BBQ	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
BOOMERANG BBQ	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
Rollin' Smoke BBQ Texas	5	4	1	80%	⚔ compare
THE REPUBLIC OF 'QUE	5	3	2	60%	⚔ compare
First Class BBQ	5	2	3	40%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	8	2	1	1	175.4056	149.0972	165.32	top 50%
Pork Ribs	8	4	1	1	173.1428	158.2512	168.12	top 42%
Pork	8	3	0	0	173.7028	162.7884	168.54	top 44%
Brisket	8	4	0	2	175.4056	158.8456	167.62	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 state / province

Where	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
TX	6	0	top 32%
KS	2	0	top 68%

By contest size

Field	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
Medium (20–39)	4	0	top 30%
Large (40+)	4	0	top 53%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
Bedford Blues & BBQ Festival	2	15	top 37%	2019-08-30
Shotgun Fred BBQ Showdown	2	6	top 29%	2019-02-15
39th American Royal World Series of Barbecue (OPEN)	2	147	top 68%	2018-09-15

The story so far (17 numbers that describe this team)

On the trail 2.1 yrs 2017-08-11 → 2019-08-30

Busiest season 2018 4 contests

Contests a season 2.7 across 3 seasons in the data

Cooks most in TX 6 of 8 contests · 2 states/provinces in all

Contests visited 5 3 of them cooked more than once

Most-entered meat Chicken 8 entries · 1 win · 2 calls

Strongest meat Pork averages 168.54 · weakest Chicken (165.32)

Walk rate 63% a top-10 call in 5 of 8 contests

Overall top-10 rate 38% 3 of 8 contests

Best top-10 run 2 straight contests

Master average 669.61 out of 720 · 8 contests · 0 GCs

Opponents faced 609 430–446 across every shared overall standing

Road miles 1,459 8 mapped stops · furthest 544 mi

Schedule strength 1561 average field rating faced — tougher than 47% of rated contests

Purse competed for $11,000 listed at 1 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships 0 from 2 state-championship entries

Power rating 1548 peak 1548 · #1776 of 6,413 rated

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

2017
Aug 11 First tracked contest *Q'ing to Cure Childhood Cancer BBQ Cookoff
Aug 11 First call *Q'ing to Cure Childhood Cancer BBQ Cookoff
Aug 11 First category win (Pork Ribs) *Q'ing to Cure Childhood Cancer BBQ Cookoff
Aug 11 First overall top-10 *Q'ing to Cure Childhood Cancer BBQ Cookoff
Aug 11 First overall past 90% of a perfect score661.0168 *Q'ing to Cure Childhood Cancer BBQ Cookoff
2018
Feb 16 Career-best overall score686.2168 *Shotgun Fred BBQ Showdown
2019
Feb 15 Career-best single call (Brisket)175.4056 Shotgun Fred BBQ Showdown
Aug 30 Peak power rating (1548) Bedford Blues & BBQ Festival
Aug 30 Most recent contest Bedford Blues & BBQ Festival

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+14	*Shotgun Fred BBQ Showdown	2018-02-16
+10.1	*Q'ing to Cure Childhood Cancer BBQ Cookoff	2017-08-11
+8.8	Bedford Blues & BBQ Festival	2019-08-30
+6.1	Shotgun Fred BBQ Showdown	2019-02-15
+3.9	4th Annual Southern Sate BBQ Cook-off	2019-05-24

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	3	1	0	100%	top 35%	95.1%	94.1%
2018	4	1	1	25%	top 50%	95.3%	92.5%
2017	1	1	1	100%	top 23%	91.8%	91.8%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2019-08-30	Bedford Blues & BBQ Festival 🏅 Bedford, TX	15 / 58 (683.3832)	28 (169.1316)	9 (173.1200)	31 (168.5600)	10 (172.5716)
2019-05-24	4th Annual Southern Sate BBQ Cook-off Conroe, TX	9 / 24 (664.4344)	8 (165.6800)	10 (167.9772)	10 (166.2400)	9 (164.5372)
2019-02-15	Shotgun Fred BBQ Showdown 🏅 Huntsville, TX	14 / 33 (685.0396)	20 (165.6684)	9 (173.1428)	15 (170.8228)	3 (175.4056)
2018-09-15	39th American Royal World Series of Barbecue (OPEN) Kansas City, KS	221 / 467 (662.8112)	230 (166.8228)	211 (166.8572)	102 (170.2856)	324 (158.8456)
2018-09-14	39th American Royal World Series of Barbecue (INVITATIONAL) unrated Kansas City, KS	147 / 164 (654.6968)	149 (162.8228)	143 (163.3828)	136 (165.0856)	138 (163.4056)
2018-08-31	*Bedford Blues & BBQ Festival Bedford, TX	36 / 74 (659.2680)	27 (167.9656)	55 (158.2512)	48 (162.7884)	18 (170.2628)
2018-02-16	*Shotgun Fred BBQ Showdown Huntsville, TX	6 / 38 (686.2168)	1 (175.4056)	15 (170.2628)	6 (173.7028)	11 (166.8456)
2017-08-11	*Q'ing to Cure Childhood Cancer BBQ Cookoff Conroe, TX	6 / 26 (661.0168)	20 (149.0972)	1 (172.0000)	6 (170.8112)	3 (169.1084)

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	#813 (357 pts)	#982 (287 pts)	#785 (412 pts)	#989 (292 pts)	#670 (502 pts)
2018 ↗	Master	#868 (355 pts)	#745 (465 pts)	#1053 (290 pts)	#908 (355 pts)	#926 (345 pts)
2017 ↗	Master	#1513 (166 pts)	#2176 (76 pts)	#1192 (276 pts)	#1575 (166 pts)	#1322 (226 pts)