Hogz Backyard BBQ

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

Power ranking

#2565

of 6,413 rated · rankings

Rating

1518

peak 1518 · rated over 10 contests ⓘ

Contests

in the data

First seen

2017-08-04

latest 2021-08-06

Best ToY finish

#605

Master 2020

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

1 podiums

Overall top-10s

of 11 contests

Avg finish

top 52%

overall standings

Best overall

678.2400 / 720

Master · Rockin BBQ

Perfect 180s

Current form

654.10 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 652.88 (+1.22)

Walk rate

45%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

174.8572

Pork Ribs · All American BBQ Throwdown

Consistency

±13.09

std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Brisket

avg 164.62 · weakest Pork (161.37)

Road miles

845

mi across 11 mapped stops · furthest 157 mi

Schedule strength

51%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1566)

Purse competed for

$48K

listed at 8 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

GCs in 7 state-championship entries

Master avg

652.88 / 720

9 Master contests · 0 GCs

Backyard avg

321.67 / 360

1 Backyard contest · 0 GCs

Master and Backyard overall scores sit on different scales (Master is 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.

⚔ Compare with another team

Storylines (7 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.

High-water mark

678.2400 career-best overall

94.2% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 678.2400 at Rockin BBQ — 94.2% of a perfect 720.

Master
2019-05-10

Their season

2019 their best year

2019 was the year it came together: 4 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 0 category wins, at an average finish in the top 40%.

4 contests
2 overall top-10s
0 category wins
average top 40%

A tough matchup

9–1 behind in the head-to-head

iBQ'n ahead in 90% of their meetings

iBQ'n has come out ahead in 9 of their 10 shared contests.

A strong matchup

8–0 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 100% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of LICENSE TO GRILL in 8 of their 8 shared contests.

The comeback

4.7 yrs off the trail, then back

Off the trail for 4.7 years, then back at Smoke in the Mitten (ONE MEAT RIBS) (2026-05-01).

last seen 2021-08-06
back 2026-05-01

Brisket nemesis

7 of 9 shared brisket entries lost

iBQ'n ahead 78% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, iBQ'n has out-cooked them in 7 of 9 shared brisket entries.

The metronome

±1.77% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±1.77% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 90.5% of a perfect score
11 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.

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

SMOAKWOOD

#2577 of the rated field

1517 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 30%
Peak: 1517

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.

rated over 10 contests
last seen 2025-10-25

⚔ Head-to-head

Fantasy Q

#2553 of the rated field

1518 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 30%
Peak: 1525

No shared contest yet.

Careers of much the same size, 10 contests to 11, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 9 contests
last seen 2024-03-01

⚔ Head-to-head

FIGHTIN' RIBTIPS

#2578 of the rated field

1517 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 9
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 11%
Peak: 1529

No shared contest yet.

Level with Hogz Backyard BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 9 contests
last seen 2019-06-28

⚔ Head-to-head

Saturday Night Swine

#2563 of the rated field

1518 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 12
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 33%
Peak: 1521

No shared contest yet.

12 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 33% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 12 contests
last seen 2024-10-11

⚔ Head-to-head

SMOKIN' WEAD BBQ

#2576 of the rated field

1517 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 12
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 58%
Peak: 1535

No shared contest yet.

Their last contest in the data was back in 2018, 3 years before Hogz Backyard BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 12 contests

⚔ Head-to-head

Ribs in Peace

#2572 of the rated field

1517 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 9
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 78%
Peak: 1518

No shared contest yet.

They turned up 7 years after Hogz Backyard BBQ did, first appearing in 2024.

rated over 8 contests
last seen 2026-07-17

⚔ Head-to-head

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
BAD HABIT BBQ	10	2	8	20%	⚔ compare
iBQ'n	10	0	9	0%	⚔ compare
Q-JITSU	9	4	5	44%	⚔ compare
FIREHOUSE SMOKE	9	3	6	33%	⚔ compare
KEVLAR BBQ	9	0	9	0%	⚔ compare
LICENSE TO GRILL	8	8	0	100%	⚔ compare
Mac Attack BBQ	8	1	7	13%	⚔ compare
THE REAL SMOKIN ACES	8	1	7	13%	⚔ compare
AWW HELL	8	1	7	13%	⚔ compare
Heritage Q	7	6	1	86%	⚔ compare
QUEFELLAS BBQ	7	3	4	43%	⚔ compare
B&R SMOKE	7	2	5	29%	⚔ compare
BO B Q BBQ	7	2	5	29%	⚔ compare
RAMSHACKLE BBQ	6	5	1	83%	⚔ compare
S & G BBQ	6	4	2	67%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	10	1	0	171.4172	155.9544	162.45	top 58%
Pork Ribs	11	3	1	174.8572	153.6916	164.29	top 48%
Pork	9	1	0	168.5372	151.4056	161.37	top 59%
Brisket	9	2	0	173.7028	157.1084	164.62	top 46%

“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
MI	8	0	top 55%
IN	2	0	top 42%

By contest size

Field	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
Medium (20–39)	6	0	top 55%
Large (40+)	4	0	top 47%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
All American BBQ Throwdown	3	17	0	top 55%	2021-08-06
Rockin BBQ	2	7	0	top 42%	2020-05-29

The story so far (18 numbers that describe this team)

On the trail 4 yrs 2017-08-04 → 2021-08-06

Busiest season 2019 4 contests

Contests a season 1.8 across 6 seasons in the data

Cooks most in MI 9 of 11 contests · 2 states/provinces in all

Contests visited 7 2 of them cooked more than once

Most-entered meat Pork Ribs 11 entries · 0 wins · 3 calls

Strongest meat Brisket averages 164.62 · weakest Pork (161.37)

Walk rate 45% a top-10 call in 5 of 11 contests

Overall top-10 rate 18% 2 of 11 contests

Master average 652.88 out of 720 · 9 contests · 0 GCs

Backyard average 321.67 out of 360 · 1 contest · 0 GCs

Opponents faced 182 200–211 across every shared overall standing

Road miles 845 11 mapped stops · furthest 157 mi

Schedule strength 1566 average field rating faced — tougher than 51% of rated contests

Purse competed for $47,500 listed at 8 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships 0 from 7 state-championship entries

Longest layoff 4.7 yrs 2021-08-06 → 2026-05-01

Power rating 1518 peak 1518 · #2565 of 6,413 rated

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

2017
Aug 4 First tracked contest All American BBQ Throwdown
2018
Oct 12 First call *Smoke & Ale Fall Festival
2019
May 10 First overall top-10 Rockin BBQ
May 10 First overall past 90% of a perfect score678.2400 Rockin BBQ
May 10 Career-best overall score678.2400 Rockin BBQ
2020
Aug 7 Career-best single call (Pork Ribs)174.8572 All American BBQ Throwdown
2021
Aug 6 10th tracked contest All American BBQ Throwdown
Aug 6 Peak power rating (1518) All American BBQ Throwdown
2026
May 1 Most recent contest Smoke in the Mitten (ONE MEAT RIBS)

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+15.4	Rockin BBQ	2019-05-10
+12	Silver Lake Sand Dunes Apple & BBQ Festival	2019-09-13
+3.7	All American BBQ Throwdown	2020-08-07
+0.9	All American BBQ Throwdown	2021-08-06

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-4.8	11th Annual Auburn Hills Barbecue Cook-Off	2019-06-21
-3.4	Westland Area Jaycees All American BBQ Throwdown	2019-08-02
-2.2	All American BBQ Throwdown	2017-08-04
-1.9	Westland Area Jaycee's All American BBQ Throwdown	2018-08-03
-1.6	Rockin BBQ	2020-05-29

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	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2026	1	0	0%	—	—	—
2021	1	0	0%	top 53%	92.3%	92.3%
2020	2	0	50%	top 58%	92.2%	91.1%
2019	4	2	75%	top 40%	94.2%	90.8%
2018	2	0	50%	top 62%	89.7%	89.6%
2017	1	0	0%	top 66%	88.4%	88.4%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2026-05-01	Smoke in the Mitten (ONE MEAT RIBS) Westland, MI	—	—	14 (168.0116)	—	—
2021-08-06	All American BBQ Throwdown 🏅 Westland, MI	17 / 32 (664.4572)	12 (171.4172)	12 (166.2628)	26 (161.0972)	16 (165.6800)
2020-08-07	All American BBQ Throwdown 🏅 Westland, MI	20 / 42 (664.0000)	20 (165.1200)	3 (174.8572)	21 (164.5944)	31 (159.4284)
2020-05-29	Rockin BBQ 🏅 Warsaw, IN	45 / 66 (647.3716)	49 (160.0000)	25 (166.8344)	50 (157.1084)	42 (163.4288)
2019-09-13	Silver Lake Sand Dunes Apple & BBQ Festival 🏅 Mears, MI	5 / 35 (321.6688)	10 (155.9544)	6 (165.7144)	—	—
2019-08-02	Westland Area Jaycees All American BBQ Throwdown 🏅 Westland, MI	23 / 40 (656.4456)	26 (164.0000)	31 (157.0972)	27 (161.6456)	4 (173.7028)
2019-06-21	11th Annual Auburn Hills Barbecue Cook-Off 🏅 Auburn Hills, MI	22 / 30 (638.2284)	11 (167.4744)	20 (162.2400)	26 (151.4056)	18 (157.1084)
2019-05-10	Rockin BBQ 🏅 Warsaw, IN	7 / 42 (678.2400)	29 (162.8572)	6 (174.2628)	12 (167.4172)	5 (173.7028)
2018-10-12	*Smoke & Ale Fall Festival Chelsea, MI	23 / 38 (644.5372)	26 (160.0000)	29 (153.7028)	10 (168.5372)	19 (162.2972)
2018-08-03	Westland Area Jaycee's All American BBQ Throwdown Westland, MI	25 / 39 (646.1144)	32 (157.1200)	20 (164.5372)	21 (159.3716)	14 (165.0856)
2017-08-04	All American BBQ Throwdown Westland, MI	19 / 29 (636.5144)	21 (160.5256)	23 (153.6916)	18 (161.1544)	16 (161.1428)

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
2020 ↗	Master	#605 (145 pts)	#636 (145 pts)	#408 (295 pts)	#644 (140 pts)	#681 (120 pts)
2019 ↗	Master	#905 (305 pts)	#1080 (245 pts)	#950 (315 pts)	#1108 (240 pts)	#693 (485 pts)