A tough matchup
9–0
behind in the head-to-head
DRILLING & GRILLING ahead in 100% of their meetings
DRILLING & GRILLING has come out ahead in 9 of their 9 shared contests.
Hillcrest Smokers BBQ
At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)
Rating
1434
peak 1434 · rated over 10 contests ⓘ
Contests
10
in the data
First seen
2016-10-14
latest 2021-08-27
Best ToY finish
#716
Master 2021
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
1 podiums
Overall top-10s
0
of 10 contests
Avg finish
top 83%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
637.13 ▲
last 5 Master vs avg 623.03 (+14.10)
Walk rate
40%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±17.01
std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 157.95 · weakest Brisket (153.90)
Road miles
367
mi across 10 mapped stops · furthest 77 mi
Schedule strength
72%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1591)
Purse competed for
$34K
listed at 4 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
GCs in 5 state-championship entries
Master avg
623.03 / 720
10 Master contests · 0 GCs
Storylines (6 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.
The weak link
−4.0
points behind their best meat
Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 4.05 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 20% of the time against 0%.
- Brisket avg 153.90
- Chicken avg 157.95
- 2 calls in 10 entries
A strong matchup
3–1
ahead in the head-to-head
Ahead in 75% of their meetings
They've finished ahead of SOUTH BOWIE SMOKE in 3 of their 4 shared contests.
The comeback
1.7 yrs
off the trail, then back
Off the trail for 1.7 years, then back at Interstate BBQ Festival - Day 1 (2021-04-16).
- last seen 2019-07-26
- back 2021-04-16
Chicken nemesis
8 of 8
shared chicken entries lost
3 EYZ BBQ ahead 100% of the time
Even in their strongest meat, 3 EYZ BBQ has out-cooked them in 8 of 8 shared chicken entries.
The metronome
±2.36%
swing around their own average
Their overall lands within ±2.36% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.
- averages 86.5% of a perfect score
- 10 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.
#5970 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1434
No shared contest yet.
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 10 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Head-to-head#5971 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1501
No shared contest yet.
Careers of much the same size, 10 contests to 10, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Head-to-head#5976 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 10%
- Peak
- 1433
No shared contest yet.
Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2016.
⚔ Head-to-head#5972 of the rated field
- Contests
- 11
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1433
No shared contest yet.
Level with Hillcrest Smokers BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Head-to-head#5973 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1433
No shared contest yet.
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 10 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Head-to-head#5963 of the rated field
- Contests
- 11
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1434
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.
⚔ Head-to-headFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DRILLING & GRILLING | 9 | 0 | 9 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| 3 EYZ BBQ | 8 | 0 | 8 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| BAD AZZ MULE BBQ | 8 | 0 | 8 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| FRED VEGAS SMOKERS | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| BAR-B-QUE MAYHAM | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| Team Meat Coma | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| CHECKERED FLAG 500 BBQ | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| SHORTSVILLE SMOKERS | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| Rogue Hog BBQ | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| APORKALYPSE NOW | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| SMOKECRAFT - MD | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| LO' -N- SLO' BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 171.4056 | 143.3028 | 157.95 | top 73% |
| Pork Ribs | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 163.3828 | 143.9316 | 156.47 | top 74% |
| Pork | 10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 172.6172 | 143.9656 | 154.71 | top 75% |
| Brisket | 10 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 173.7144 | 132.4344 | 153.90 | top 72% |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| MD | 5 | 0 | top 82% |
| PA | 3 | 0 | top 80% |
| WV | 1 | 0 | top 93% |
| VA | 1 | 0 | top 79% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 3 | 0 | top 85% |
| Large (40+) | 7 | 0 | top 81% |
Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Interstate BBQ Festival | 2 | 50 | 0 | top 90% | 2019-04-19 |
The story so far (17 numbers that describe this team)
On the trail
4.9 yrs
2016-10-14 → 2021-08-27
Busiest season
2021
3 contests
Contests a season
2
across 5 seasons in the data
Cooks most in
MD
5 of 10 contests · 4 states/provinces in all
Contests visited
9
1 of them cooked more than once
Most-entered meat
Chicken
10 entries · 0 wins · 0 calls
Strongest meat
Chicken
averages 157.95 · weakest Brisket (153.90)
Walk rate
40%
a top-10 call in 4 of 10 contests
Overall top-10 rate
0%
0 of 10 contests
Master average
623.03
out of 720 · 10 contests · 0 GCs
Opponents faced
289
79–482 across every shared overall standing
Road miles
367
10 mapped stops · furthest 77 mi
Schedule strength
1591
average field rating faced — tougher than 72% of rated contests
Purse competed for
$34,000
listed at 4 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0
from 5 state-championship entries
Longest layoff
1.7 yrs
2019-07-26 → 2021-04-16
Power rating
1434
peak 1434 · #5969 of 6,413 rated
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
- 2016
- First tracked contest Shenandoah Valley BBQ Fest
- First call Shenandoah Valley BBQ Fest
- Peak power rating (1495) Shenandoah Valley BBQ Fest
- 2021
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score648.4456 York County BBQ Festival
- Career-best overall score648.4456 York County BBQ Festival
- Career-best single call (Brisket)173.7144 York County BBQ Festival
- 10th tracked contest Dirty Boots BBQ and Meat Contest - Day 1
- Most recent contest Dirty Boots BBQ and Meat Contest - Day 1
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -11 | Interstate BBQ Festival | 2019-04-19 |
| -7.4 | Gettysburg BBQ Festival Day 1 | 2019-05-24 |
| -7.1 | *Interstate BBQ Festival | 2017-04-14 |
| -7 | *West Virginia BBQ Festival (JUDGES FULL) | 2018-08-31 |
| -6.9 | Smoke in the Grove | 2019-07-26 |
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 | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 67% | top 75% | 90.1% | 89.2% |
| 2019 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33% | top 88% | 88.3% | 85.8% |
| 2018 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 93% | 84.2% | 84.2% |
| 2017 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 81% | 86.8% | 85.9% |
| 2016 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 79% | 84.4% | 84.4% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-08-27 | Dirty Boots BBQ and Meat Contest - Day 1 Boonsboro, MD | 19 / 24 (633.6108) | 14 (163.9540) | 17 (157.7372) | 24 (145.0968) | 10 (166.8228) |
| 2021-06-18 | York County BBQ Festival 🏅 Delta, PA | 29 / 41 (648.4456) | 15 (171.4056) | 39 (149.0856) | 39 (154.2400) | 3 (173.7144) |
| 2021-04-16 | Interstate BBQ Festival - Day 1 🏅 Hagerstown, MD | 36 / 47 (644.4684) | 40 (159.9656) | 37 (158.8572) | 33 (161.1200) | 31 (164.5256) |
| 2019-07-26 | Smoke in the Grove 🏅 Spring Grove, PA | 39 / 53 (635.9316) | 45 (156.5372) | 30 (161.0856) | 10 (170.2972) | 47 (148.0116) |
| 2019-05-24 | Gettysburg BBQ Festival Day 1 🏅 Gettysburg, PA | 32 / 33 (623.1888) | 33 (143.3028) | 23 (163.3828) | 30 (157.1088) | 26 (159.3944) |
| 2019-04-19 | Interstate BBQ Festival 🏅 Hagerstown, MD | 51 / 54 (593.4964) | 50 (151.3940) | 49 (152.4912) | 54 (143.9656) | 52 (145.6456) |
| 2018-08-31 | *West Virginia BBQ Festival (JUDGES FULL) Ranson, WV | 37 / 40 (606.0568) | 36 (145.0284) | 23 (160.5028) | 35 (143.9884) | 28 (156.5372) |
| 2017-04-14 | *Interstate BBQ Festival Hagerstown, MD | 50 / 58 (612.3544) | 41 (162.2400) | 43 (159.3828) | 54 (151.9200) | 54 (138.8116) |
| 2017-03-03 | The Great Brunswick BBQ Throwdown Brunswick, MD | 38 / 50 (624.9600) | 20 (166.8228) | 27 (158.2516) | 44 (146.7884) | 38 (153.0972) |
| 2016-10-14 | Shenandoah Valley BBQ Fest Woodstock, VA | 30 / 38 (607.7944) | 27 (158.8112) | 36 (143.9316) | 4 (172.6172) | 38 (132.4344) |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 ↗ | Master | #716 (199 pts) | #613 (274 pts) | #767 (209 pts) | #811 (174 pts) | #465 (419 pts) |
| 2019 ↗ | Master | #1267 (178 pts) | #1331 (178 pts) | #1269 (188 pts) | #1074 (253 pts) | #1312 (178 pts) |