High-water mark
668.4912
career-best overall
92.8% of a perfect 720
Their best day on record: 668.4912 at Smoke in the Valley — 92.8% of a perfect 720.
- Master
- Oct 10, 2014
Smokey J's BBQ
Smokey J's BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 8 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2013 and 2021. Their best overall finish is 7th of 11 at the Smoke in the Valley (2014). They are ranked #5489 of 6,476 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1451
peak 1504 · rated over 8 contests
Contests
8
in the data
First seen
Sep 27, 2013
latest Jul 23, 2021 · 7.8 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
1
13% of 8 contests
Avg finish
top 79%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
612.45 ▼
last 5 Master vs avg 626.56 (-14.12)
Walk rate
50%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±22.24
spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork
avg 160.63 · weakest Brisket (153.54)
Road miles
982
across 8 mapped stops · furthest 355 mi
Schedule strength
42%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1556)
Purse competed for
$6,000
listed at 1 contest — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
won from 1 state-championship entry
Master avg
626.56 / 720
8 Master contests · 0 GCs
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to Smokey J's BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.
112 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#5,477 of the rated field
- Contests
- 8
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1452
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 8 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Compare careers#5,483 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1451
Careers of much the same size, 9 contests to 8, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#5,490 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1504
Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2013.
⚔ Compare careers#5,474 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1452
Level with Smokey J's BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Compare careers#5,487 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1451
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 9 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Compare careers#5,482 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1451
Careers of much the same size, 6 contests to 8, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FIDDLIN' FATBACK | 6 | 1 | 5 | 17% | ⚔ compare |
| One2BBQ | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| SMOKIN' WET BBQ | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 172 | 135.9544 | 155.50 | top 77% |
| Pork Ribs | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 173.1084 | 134.7656 | 156.90 | top 68% |
| Pork | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 173.2000 | 150.8456 | 160.63 | top 60% |
| Brisket | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 164 | 144.5260 | 153.54 | top 78% |
“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 64% |
| Medium (20–39) | 4 | 0 | top 80% |
| Large (40+) | 3 | 0 | top 83% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central Illinois Bragging Rights | 2 | 35 | 0 | top 77% | Oct 9, 2015 |
More numbers
Busiest season
2018
3 contests
Contests a season
1.6
across 5 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
IL
7 of 8 contests · 2 states in all
Contests visited
7
1 of them more than once
Opponents faced
172
finished ahead 52 times, behind 218
Longest layoff
2.8 yrs
Oct 12, 2018 → Jul 23, 2021
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20211 milestone
- Most recent contest Effingham -Jam
20142 milestones
- First overall top-10 Smoke in the Valley
- Career-best overall score668.4912 Smoke in the Valley
20135 milestones
- First tracked contest Taste of Downtown Danville BBQ Competition
- First call Taste of Downtown Danville BBQ Competition
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score652.6628 Taste of Downtown Danville BBQ Competition
- Peak power rating (1504) Taste of Downtown Danville BBQ Competition
- Career-best single call (Pork)173.2000 Central Illinois Bragging Rights
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +4.1 | Taste of Downtown Danville BBQ Competition | Sep 27, 2013 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -11.4 | Route 66 Smoke Out | May 4, 2018 |
| -10 | CIBR-BBQ Central Illinois Bragging Right BBQ | Oct 12, 2018 |
| -9.9 | Central Illinois Bragging Rights | Oct 9, 2015 |
| -9.8 | I-39 Smokin Car Show | Jun 30, 2018 |
| -6.7 | Effingham -Jam | Jul 23, 2021 |
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 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 93% | 83.4% | 83.4% |
| 2018 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33% | top 92% | 87.1% | 85.3% |
| 2015 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 88% | 85.9% | 85.9% |
| 2014 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 64% | 92.8% | 92.8% |
| 2013 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 55% | 90.6% | 89% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 23, 2021 | Effingham -Jam 🏅 Effingham, IL | 27 / 29 (600.3196) | 27 (151.9656) | 29 (134.7656) | 27 (156.5028) | 25 (157.0856) |
| Oct 12, 2018 | CIBR-BBQ Central Illinois Bragging Right BBQ Arthur, IL | 43 / 45 (601.6004) | 45 (135.9544) | 41 (147.9432) | 32 (157.1428) | 30 (160.5600) |
| Jun 30, 2018 | I-39 Smokin Car Show Minonk, IL | 26 / 29 (614.7544) | 27 (152.5484) | 24 (150.2516) | 8 (167.4284) | 27 (144.5260) |
| May 4, 2018 | Route 66 Smoke Out Dwight, IL | 35 / 38 (626.8116) | 31 (159.4744) | 31 (159.9772) | 34 (154.8000) | 36 (152.5600) |
| Oct 9, 2015 | Central Illinois Bragging Rights Arthur, IL | 42 / 48 (618.7424) | 31 (162.2628) | 38 (156.5256) | 43 (150.8456) | 43 (149.1084) |
| Oct 10, 2014 | Smoke in the Valley Pikeville, TN | 7 / 11 (668.4912) | 5 (172) | 4 (173.1084) | 4 (168) | 8 (155.3828) |
| Oct 11, 2013 | Central Illinois Bragging Rights Arthur, IL | 35 / 53 (629.1316) | 45 (146.2628) | 17 (164.5716) | 4 (173.2000) | 43 (145.0972) |
| Sep 27, 2013 | Taste of Downtown Danville BBQ Competition Danville, IL | 11 / 25 (652.6628) | 14 (163.4972) | 11 (168.0228) | 17 (157.1428) | 9 (164) |