A tough matchup
6–0
behind in the head-to-head
SON OF SMOKE ahead in 100% of their meetings
SON OF SMOKE has come out ahead in 6 of their 6 shared contests.
TEAM BACON
TEAM BACON is a competition barbecue team with 12 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2013 and 2021. Their best overall finish is 5th of 33 at the Mark Marley's Go Big or Go Home BBQ Bash (DAY 1) (2021). They are ranked #5110 of 6,476 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1460
peak 1460 · rated over 9 contests
Contests
12
in the data
First seen
May 24, 2013
latest May 14, 2021 · 8 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
1
8% of 12 contests
Avg finish
top 75%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
630.68 ▲
last 5 Master vs avg 598.93 (+31.74)
Walk rate
42%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±44.79
spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork
avg 156.18 · weakest Brisket (143.44)
Road miles
6,452
across 12 mapped stops · furthest 1,904 mi
Schedule strength
45%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1558)
Purse competed for
$65K
listed at 5 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
won from 5 state-championship entries
Master avg
598.93 / 720
8 Master contests · 0 GCs
Backyard avg
283.27 / 360
1 Backyard contest · 0 GCs
These overall scores sit on different scales (Master 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.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 ↗ | Master | #939 (292 pts) | #1025 (267 pts) | #912 (337 pts) | #734 (442 pts) | #1039 (272 pts) |
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to TEAM BACON, each with one reason worth a look.
128 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#5,102 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1460
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 9 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Compare careers#5,120 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1460
Their last contest in the data was back in 2017, 4 years before TEAM BACON's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careers#5,091 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1461
Careers of much the same size, 9 contests to 12, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#5,098 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 10%
- Peak
- 1510
Level with TEAM BACON on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Compare careers#5,129 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 10%
- Peak
- 1460
Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2013.
⚔ Compare careers#5,114 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1502
They've been 1502 at their best, 42 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SON OF SMOKE | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| Smokey and the Pirate | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| BIG B'S DOWN-N-DIRTY BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| RIDGE ROUTE BOYS BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| Old Town Franklin BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 162.2972 | 133.7140 | 149.89 | top 80% |
| Pork Ribs | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 163.9772 | 120.5714 | 147.65 | top 68% |
| Pork | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 173.1200 | 130.8572 | 156.18 | top 62% |
| Brisket | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 160.5028 | 119.3828 | 143.44 | top 83% |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 1 | 0 | top 65% |
| Medium (20–39) | 5 | 0 | top 70% |
| Large (40+) | 3 | 0 | top 87% |
More numbers
Busiest season
2019
4 contests
Contests a season
1.7
across 7 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
CA
8 of 12 contests · 4 states in all
Contests visited
9
a different one every time
Opponents faced
216
finished ahead 72 times, behind 234
Longest layoff
1.7 yrs
Aug 5, 2016 → May 4, 2018
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20212 milestones
- First overall top-10 Mark Marley's Go Big or Go Home BBQ Bash (DAY 1)
- Most recent contest Mark Marley's Go Big or Go Home BBQ Bash (DAY 1)
20193 milestones
- Career-best overall score635.8172 Elk Grove Western Festival and BBQ Championship
- 10th tracked contest Throwdown in the Vineyards
- Career-best single call (Pork)173.1200 5th Annual Hot Q's & Cold Brews BBQ Championship
20133 milestones
- First tracked contest Blues, Brews & BBQ
- Peak power rating (1485) Blues, Brews & BBQ
- First call Brentwood Cook Off and Car Show
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +14.2 | Mark Marley's Go Big or Go Home BBQ Bash (DAY 1) | May 14, 2021 |
| +1 | Throwdown in the Vineyards | May 31, 2019 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -15.5 | Blues, Brews & BBQ | May 24, 2013 |
| -10.3 | Brentwood Cook Off & Car Show | Aug 8, 2014 |
| -8.5 | 5th Annual Hot Q's & Cold Brews BBQ Championship | Sep 20, 2019 |
| -7.2 | Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge | Jan 18, 2019 |
| -5.8 | 4th Annual Hot Q's & Cold Brews BBQ Championship | Sep 14, 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 | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 15% | 78.7% | 78.7% |
| 2019 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 75% | top 82% | 88.3% | 87.5% |
| 2018 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 81% | 87.9% | 87.9% |
| 2016 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2015 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2014 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 88% | 74.7% | 74.7% |
| 2013 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50% | top 82% | 81.2% | 76.4% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 14, 2021 | Mark Marley's Go Big or Go Home BBQ Bash (DAY 1) 🏅 Plainview, TX | 5 / 33 (283.2684) | 4 (149.6456) | 6 (133.6228) | — | — |
| Sep 20, 2019 | 5th Annual Hot Q's & Cold Brews BBQ Championship 🏅 | 40 / 44 (628.3428) | 42 (151.3484) | 34 (159.3832) | 9 (173.1200) | 42 (144.4912) |
| May 31, 2019 | Throwdown in the Vineyards 🏅 Murphy, CA | 13 / 20 (634.7312) | 16 (156.5828) | 10 (163.4400) | 12 (159.9428) | 14 (154.7656) |
| May 3, 2019 | Elk Grove Western Festival and BBQ Championship 🏅 Elk Grove, CA | 22 / 27 (635.8172) | 24 (155.3828) | 16 (163.9772) | 10 (169.1200) | 25 (147.3372) |
| Jan 18, 2019 | Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge 🏅 Bullhead City, AZ | 56 / 63 (621.4972) | 50 (162.2972) | 60 (150.2056) | 53 (157.6572) | 52 (151.3372) |
| Sep 14, 2018 | 4th Annual Hot Q's & Cold Brews BBQ Championship Oroville, CA | 35 / 43 (633.0056) | 39 (156) | 26 (162.2400) | 35 (154.2628) | 29 (160.5028) |
| May 4, 2018 | Elk Grove Western Festival and BBQ Championship Elk Grove, CA | — | — | — | — | — |
| Aug 5, 2016 | Ribs, Pigs & Watermelons Huntington Beach, CA | — | — | — | — | — |
| Jan 17, 2015 | Certified BBQ Judging Class - Cancelled Hartselle, AL | — | — | — | — | — |
| Aug 8, 2014 | Brentwood Cook Off & Car Show Brentwood, CA | 23 / 26 (538.1940) | 24 (141.7256) | 23 (133.1312) | 20 (143.9544) | 26 (119.3828) |
| Aug 9, 2013 | Brentwood Cook Off and Car Show Brentwood, CA | 11 / 17 (584.4576) | 14 (142.2744) | 11 (142.2516) | 6 (160.5372) | 12 (139.3944) |
| May 24, 2013 | Blues, Brews & BBQ Brentwood, CA | 34 / 34 (515.4282) | 33 (133.7140) | 34 (120.5714) | 34 (130.8572) | 30 (130.2856) |