High-water mark
341.1656
career-best overall
94.8% of a perfect 360
Their best day on record: 341.1656 at Minnesota in May — 94.8% of a perfect 360.
- Backyard
- 2025-05-09
Behemoth BBQ
At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)
Rating
1496
peak 1504 · rated over 8 contests ⓘ
Contests
11
in the data
First seen
2022-08-20
latest 2026-06-12
Best ToY finish
#213
Backyard 2025
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
2
of 11 contests
Avg finish
top 55%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
327.97 ▲
last 5 Backyard vs avg 318.94 (+9.03)
Walk rate
45%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±15.59
std dev of Backyard overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork Ribs
avg 163.26 · weakest Chicken (157.39)
Road miles
1,417
mi across 11 mapped stops · furthest 364 mi
Schedule strength
46%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1560)
Purse competed for
$58K
listed at 9 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
GCs in 5 state-championship entries
Backyard avg
318.94 / 360
8 Backyard contests · 0 GCs
This team cooks the Backyard series — its own boards, records and Team of the Year are here.
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.
A tough matchup
6–0
behind in the head-to-head
WEEZ'S GROOVIN' BBQ ahead in 100% of their meetings
WEEZ'S GROOVIN' BBQ has come out ahead in 6 of their 6 shared contests.
The weak link
−5.9
points behind their best meat
Chicken is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 5.87 points below their pork ribs, and turns into a call 13% of the time against 36%.
- Chicken avg 157.39
- Pork Ribs avg 163.26
- 1 calls in 8 entries
A strong matchup
4–0
ahead in the head-to-head
Ahead in 100% of their meetings
They've finished ahead of UGLY BABY BBQ in 4 of their 4 shared contests.
The comeback
1.8 yrs
off the trail, then back
Off the trail for 1.8 years, then back at Smoke & Fire (BACKYARD ONLY) (2025-04-25).
- last seen 2023-07-14
- back 2025-04-25
Pork Ribs nemesis
6 of 8
shared pork ribs entries lost
WEEZ'S GROOVIN' BBQ ahead 75% of the time
Even in their strongest meat, WEEZ'S GROOVIN' BBQ has out-cooked them in 6 of 8 shared pork ribs entries.
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.
122 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#3395 of the rated field
- Contests
- 8
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1495
No shared contest yet.
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 8 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Head-to-head#3387 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 11%
- Peak
- 1496
No shared contest yet.
Their last contest in the data was back in 2019, 7 years before Behemoth BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Head-to-head#3392 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1495
No shared contest yet.
Fewer contests behind them than Behemoth BBQ has cooked, 7 to 11, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.
⚔ Head-to-head#3385 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1502
No shared contest yet.
Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2022.
⚔ Head-to-head#3381 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1505
No shared contest yet.
Level with Behemoth BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Head-to-head#3393 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1495
No shared contest yet.
Their last contest in the data was back in 2018, 8 years before Behemoth BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Head-to-headFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rudes BBQ | 6 | 2 | 4 | 33% | ⚔ compare |
| WEEZ'S GROOVIN' BBQ | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| Sensuous BBQ | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| SMOKEY GQ | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| DAD BOD BARBEQUE | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| DAWGS BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 173.7028 | 138.7428 | 157.39 | top 60% |
| Pork Ribs | 11 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 170.8228 | 146.7884 | 163.26 | top 44% |
| Pork | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — |
| Brisket | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| WI | 3 | 0 | top 65% |
| MN | 3 | 0 | top 34% |
| IL | 2 | 0 | top 73% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 5 | 0 | top 58% |
| Large (40+) | 3 | 0 | top 50% |
Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota in May | 2 | 12 | 0 | top 33% | 2025-05-09 |
The story so far (17 numbers that describe this team)
On the trail
3.8 yrs
2022-08-20 → 2026-06-12
Busiest season
2023
5 contests
Contests a season
2.8
across 4 seasons in the data
Cooks most in
MN
5 of 11 contests · 3 states/provinces in all
Contests visited
7
1 of them cooked more than once
Most-entered meat
Pork Ribs
11 entries · 0 wins · 4 calls
Strongest meat
Pork Ribs
averages 163.26 · weakest Chicken (157.39)
Walk rate
45%
a top-10 call in 5 of 11 contests
Overall top-10 rate
18%
2 of 11 contests
Backyard average
318.94
out of 360 · 8 contests · 0 GCs
Opponents faced
274
208–240 across every shared overall standing
Road miles
1,417
11 mapped stops · furthest 364 mi
Schedule strength
1560
average field rating faced — tougher than 46% of rated contests
Purse competed for
$57,625
listed at 9 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0
from 5 state-championship entries
Longest layoff
1.8 yrs
2023-07-14 → 2025-04-25
Power rating
1496
peak 1504 · #3389 of 6,413 rated
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
- 2022
- First tracked contest Smoke on the Midway (BACKYARD ONLY)
- First call Best of the Midwest BBQ
- First overall top-10 Best of the Midwest BBQ
- 2023
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score330.2972 Smokin in Steele
- Peak power rating (1504) Smokin in Steele
- 2025
- 10th tracked contest Minnesota in May
- Career-best overall score341.1656 Minnesota in May
- Career-best single call (Chicken)173.7028 Minnesota in May
- 2026
- Most recent contest Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 1 (MASTER & BACKYARD)
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +9.2 | Minnesota in May | 2025-05-09 |
| +6.4 | Best of the Midwest BBQ | 2022-10-14 |
| +5 | Smokin in Steele | 2023-06-02 |
| +1 | Minnesota in May | 2023-05-12 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -8.3 | Smoke on the Midway (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2022-08-20 |
| -6.9 | Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 1 (MASTER & BACKYARD) | 2026-06-12 |
| -6.6 | Smoke & Fire (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2025-04-25 |
| -4.3 | Morris Rhythm & BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2023-06-17 |
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) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 83% | 91.4% | 91.4% |
| 2025 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33% | top 52% | 94.8% | 91.7% |
| 2023 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 60% | top 49% | 91.7% | 90.1% |
| 2022 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 50% | top 54% | 82% | 81.8% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-12 | Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 1 (MASTER & BACKYARD) 🏅 West Salem, WI | 33 / 40 (329.0628) | 28 (166.2284) | 31 (162.8344) | — | — |
| 2025-05-09 | Minnesota in May 🏅 St. Peter, MN | 12 / 58 (341.1656) | 12 (173.7028) | 17 (167.4628) | — | — |
| 2025-05-09 | Minnesota in May (ONE MEAT RIBS) St. Peter, MN | — | — | 22 (168.5828) | — | — |
| 2025-04-25 | Smoke & Fire (BACKYARD ONLY) Stanley, WI | 20 / 24 (318.8228) | 23 (150.8456) | 9 (167.9772) | — | — |
| 2023-07-14 | BBCubed - Brighton Barbeque Bash (ONE MEAT RIBS) Oshkosh, WI | — | — | 9 (163.9772) | — | — |
| 2023-06-17 | Morris Rhythm & BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Morris, IL | 22 / 33 (320.5144) | 29 (154.8344) | 14 (165.6800) | — | — |
| 2023-06-02 | Smokin in Steele 🏅 Owatonna, MN | 10 / 29 (330.2972) | 10 (166.2744) | 12 (164.0228) | — | — |
| 2023-05-12 | Minnesota in May 🏅 St. Peter, MN | 27 / 59 (322.8000) | 27 (159.9428) | 21 (162.8572) | — | — |
| 2023-05-12 | Minnesota in May (One Meat Ribs) St. Peter, MN | — | — | 10 (170.8228) | — | — |
| 2022-10-14 | Best of the Midwest BBQ 🏅 Union Grove, WI | 10 / 36 (293.5428) | 15 (138.7428) | 8 (154.8000) | — | — |
| 2022-08-20 | Smoke on the Midway (BACKYARD ONLY) Fairbury, IL | 16 / 20 (295.3252) | 17 (148.5368) | 14 (146.7884) | — | — |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 ↗ | Backyard | #300 (60 pts) | #304 (60 pts) | #311 (60 pts) | — | — |
| 2025 ↗ | Backyard | #213 (199 pts) | #230 (184 pts) | #176 (309 pts) | — | — |
| 2025 ↗ | Master | — | — | #1250 (75 pts) | — | — |
| 2023 ↗ | Backyard | — | #196 (236 pts) | #121 (561 pts) | — | — |
| 2023 ↗ | Master | — | — | #750 (260 pts) | — | — |
| 2022 ↗ | Backyard | — | #192 (175 pts) | #164 (235 pts) | — | — |