High-water mark
675.9200
career-best overall
93.9% of a perfect 720
Their best day on record: 675.9200 at Lodi BeerFest & BBQ Championship — 93.9% of a perfect 720.
- Master
- 2023-04-28
POPS BBQ
At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)
Rating
1485
peak 1485 · rated over 5 contests ⓘ
Contests
5
in the data
First seen
2013-04-12
latest 2023-04-28
Best ToY finish
#917
Master 2023
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
1
of 5 contests
Avg finish
top 66%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
647.05
last 5 Master vs avg 647.05 (+0.00)
Walk rate
40%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±26.64
std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 164.80 · weakest Brisket (158.50)
Road miles
2,202
mi across 5 mapped stops · furthest 1828 mi
Schedule strength
20%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1528)
Purse competed for
$12K
listed at 2 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
GCs in 2 state-championship entries
Master avg
647.05 / 720
5 Master contests · 0 GCs
Storylines (4 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
3–0
behind in the head-to-head
BIG WHIT AND THE BOYS ahead in 100% of their meetings
BIG WHIT AND THE BOYS has come out ahead in 3 of their 3 shared contests.
The weak link
−6.3
points behind their best meat
Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 6.30 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 0% of the time against 20%.
- Brisket avg 158.50
- Chicken avg 164.80
- 0 calls in 5 entries
The comeback
8.4 yrs
off the trail, then back
Off the trail for 8.4 years, then back at The Golden State Battle V (2023-03-03).
- last seen 2014-10-17
- back 2023-03-03
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.
150 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#3890 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1485
No shared contest yet.
Careers of much the same size, 5 contests to 5, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Head-to-head#3881 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1504
No shared contest yet.
They turned up 10 years after POPS BBQ did, first appearing in 2023.
⚔ Head-to-head#3879 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 20%
- Peak
- 1506
No shared contest yet.
Level with POPS BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Head-to-head#3911 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1502
No shared contest yet.
Careers of much the same size, 5 contests to 5, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Head-to-head#3869 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1486
No shared contest yet.
Careers of much the same size, 5 contests to 5, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Head-to-head#3902 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1485
No shared contest yet.
Careers of much the same size, 5 contests to 5, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Head-to-headBy meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 176.0000 | 149.1428 | 164.80 | top 54% |
| Pork Ribs | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 171.4288 | 141.1438 | 163.10 | top 49% |
| Pork | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 173.1084 | 146.8570 | 160.66 | top 69% |
| Brisket | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 162.8570 | 152.5712 | 158.50 | top 70% |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| MS | 3 | 0 | top 74% |
| CA | 2 | 0 | top 54% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 4 | 0 | top 68% |
| Large (40+) | 1 | 0 | top 60% |
The story so far (17 numbers that describe this team)
On the trail
10 yrs
2013-04-12 → 2023-04-28
Busiest season
2023
2 contests
Contests a season
1.7
across 3 seasons in the data
Cooks most in
MS
3 of 5 contests · 2 states/provinces in all
Contests visited
5
0 of them cooked more than once
Most-entered meat
Chicken
5 entries · 0 wins · 1 calls
Strongest meat
Chicken
averages 164.80 · weakest Brisket (158.50)
Walk rate
40%
a top-10 call in 2 of 5 contests
Overall top-10 rate
20%
1 of 5 contests
Master average
647.05
out of 720 · 5 contests · 0 GCs
Opponents faced
119
50–95 across every shared overall standing
Road miles
2,202
5 mapped stops · furthest 1,828 mi
Schedule strength
1528
average field rating faced — tougher than 20% of rated contests
Purse competed for
$12,000
listed at 2 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0
from 2 state-championship entries
Longest layoff
8.4 yrs
2014-10-17 → 2023-03-03
Power rating
1485
peak 1485 · #3888 of 6,413 rated
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
- 2013
- First tracked contest Grilling on the River '13
- Peak power rating (1487) Grilling on the River '13
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score656.5708 The Desoto Shrine Club 5th Annual 2013 BBQ Cookoff
- 2023
- First call The Golden State Battle V
- Career-best single call (Chicken)176.0000 The Golden State Battle V
- First overall top-10 Lodi BeerFest & BBQ Championship
- Career-best overall score675.9200 Lodi BeerFest & BBQ Championship
- Most recent contest Lodi BeerFest & BBQ Championship
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +7.1 | Lodi BeerFest & BBQ Championship | 2023-04-28 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -13.4 | Grilling on the River '13 | 2013-04-12 |
| -4.2 | Roast N' Boast | 2014-10-17 |
| -2.2 | The Desoto Shrine Club 5th Annual 2013 BBQ Cookoff | 2013-06-14 |
| -2.2 | The Golden State Battle V | 2023-03-03 |
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)
Season by season
| Season | Contests | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 54% | 93.9% | 93.1% |
| 2014 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 68% | 88.6% | 88.6% |
| 2013 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 77% | 91.2% | 87.3% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-04-28 | Lodi BeerFest & BBQ Championship 🏅 Lodi, CA | 10 / 27 (675.9200) | 11 (170.8344) | 11 (170.2972) | 7 (173.1084) | 17 (161.6800) |
| 2023-03-03 | The Golden State Battle V 🏅 Hollister, CA | 20 / 28 (665.0172) | 5 (176.0000) | 7 (171.4288) | 26 (160.5028) | 23 (157.0856) |
| 2014-10-17 | Roast N' Boast Columbus, MS | 17 / 25 (637.7368) | 15 (163.4284) | 12 (164.0456) | 24 (151.9656) | 15 (158.2972) |
| 2013-06-14 | The Desoto Shrine Club 5th Annual 2013 BBQ Cookoff Hernando, MS | 24 / 40 (656.5708) | 24 (164.5714) | 13 (168.5712) | 12 (170.8570) | 34 (152.5712) |
| 2013-04-12 | Grilling on the River '13 Columbus, MS | 29 / 31 (600.0006) | 29 (149.1428) | 31 (141.1438) | 31 (146.8570) | 19 (162.8570) |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 ↗ | Master | #917 (127 pts) | #1008 (122 pts) | #1109 (122 pts) | #874 (157 pts) | #1175 (92 pts) |