Pop's Smoke on the Hill GA
Rating
1533
peak 1533 · rated over 15 contests
Best runs
3
straight top-10s
Contests
16
in the data
First seen
2019-10-11
latest 2026-04-17
Best ToY finish
#904
Master 2014
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
7 podiums
Overall top-10s
6
of 16 contests
Avg finish
top 44%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
1 🔥
Current form
686.67 ▲
last 5 Master vs avg 680.95 (+5.72)
Walk rate
69%
contests with a top-10 call
Top-10 streak
3
and counting
Consistency
±10.25
std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork
avg 171.46 · weakest Chicken (167.75)
Road miles
1925
mi across 16 mapped stops · furthest 283 mi
Schedule strength
50%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1545)
Purse competed for
$169K
listed at 13 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
GCs in 15 state-championship entries
Master avg
680.95 / 720
12 Master contests · 0 GCs
Backyard avg
427.57 / 360
3 Backyard contests · 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.
Storylines
🎯 The one to beat
MAYA JANE BBQ CO. has finished one call ahead of Pop's Smoke on the Hill 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
⚔️ A strong matchup
They've finished ahead of K & E's Little Smokers in 8 of their 10 shared contests.
😤 Pork nemesis
Even in their strongest meat, MAYA JANE BBQ CO. has out-cooked them in 6 of 9 shared pork entries.
📅 A October team
Something about October: average finish in the top 33% across 5 contests, versus top 44% the rest of the year.
🐣 Announced themselves early
Finished 3 of 27 at their very first tracked contest, The Real Squeal BBQ & Music Festival (2019-10-11).
Teams like this (closest power rating, GA first)
Familiar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MAYA JANE BBQ CO. | 11 | 3 | 8 | 27% | ⚔ compare |
| K & E's Little Smokers | 10 | 8 | 2 | 80% | ⚔ compare |
| YES, DEAR BBQ | 10 | 3 | 7 | 30% | ⚔ compare |
| SMOKE SHOW MAFIA | 9 | 3 | 6 | 33% | ⚔ compare |
| Quenut BBQ | 8 | 6 | 2 | 75% | ⚔ compare |
| SMOKIN' SWEETMEATS | 8 | 6 | 2 | 75% | ⚔ compare |
| HOLD YOUR HORSES BBQ | 8 | 3 | 5 | 38% | ⚔ compare |
| Mad Dog BBQ | 8 | 0 | 8 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| PeachCoast BBQ | 7 | 7 | 0 | 100% | ⚔ compare |
| QMEISTERS | 7 | 5 | 2 | 71% | ⚔ compare |
| ELITE BBQ SMOKERS | 7 | 4 | 3 | 57% | ⚔ compare |
| COOL HAND QUE | 7 | 2 | 5 | 29% | ⚔ compare |
| Smoke Central BBQ | 7 | 2 | 5 | 29% | ⚔ compare |
| Kings BBQ Team | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| OLD HENRY'S BBQ | 6 | 6 | 0 | 100% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 15 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 177.7144 | 151.4172 | 167.75 | top 48% |
| Pork Ribs | 16 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 175.4288 | 142.8572 | 168.01 | top 44% |
| Pork | 13 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 180.0000 🔥 | 163.3828 | 171.46 | top 42% |
| Brisket | 13 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 177.7028 | 157.6800 | 168.59 | top 48% |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| GA | 9 | 0 | top 39% |
| FL | 6 | 0 | top 51% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 11 | 0 | top 44% |
| Large (40+) | 4 | 0 | top 44% |
Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Real Squeal BBQ & Music Festival | 5 | 3 | 0 | top 33% | 2025-10-03 |
| The Downtown BBQ Showdown | 2 | 8 | 0 | top 47% | 2026-04-17 |
| Smoketember Fest | 2 | 15 | 0 | top 59% | 2023-09-15 |
The story so far
- Busiest season: 2023 (4 contests)
- Cooks mostly in GA (9 of 16 contests)
- Most-entered category: Pork Ribs (16 entries)
- Average Master overall score: 680.95 / 720
- Average Backyard overall score: 427.57 / 360
- 1 perfect 180 on the books 🔥
Milestones
- 🚩 2019-10-11 — First tracked contest · The Real Squeal BBQ & Music Festival
- 📣 2019-10-11 — First call · The Real Squeal BBQ & Music Festival
- 🔥 2022-09-16 — First perfect 180 (Pork) · Smoketember Fest
- ⭐ 2026-04-17 — Career-best overall score (698.2400) · The Downtown BBQ Showdown
- 📈 2026-04-17 — Peak power rating (1533) · The Downtown BBQ Showdown
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +13.8 | The Real Squeal BBQ & Music Festival | 2020-10-09 |
| +13.8 | Okefenokee Smoke (formerly Swamptown Showdown) | 2025-03-21 |
| +12 | The Real Squeal BBQ & Music Festival | 2019-10-11 |
| +11.9 | The Downtown BBQ Showdown | 2026-04-17 |
| +7.5 | Southern Sunshine BBQ Fest | 2022-01-07 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -9.8 | Grills Gone Wild | 2024-02-09 |
| -9.1 | The Real Squeal BBQ & Music Festival | 2021-10-08 |
| -7.3 | The Downtown BBQ Showdown | 2023-04-14 |
| -5.2 | Smoketember Fest | 2023-09-15 |
| -3.7 | 8th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam & Car Show | 2024-01-04 |
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 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 50% | top 20% | 97% | 97% |
| 2025 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 100% | top 25% | 96.4% | 96.3% |
| 2024 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 68% | 93.8% | 93.6% |
| 2023 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50% | top 59% | 94.8% | 93.8% |
| 2022 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 39% | 182.8% | 124.3% |
| 2021 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 77% | 92.6% | 92.6% |
| 2020 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 8% | 91.7% | 91.7% |
| 2019 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 11% | 81.7% | 81.7% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-04-17 | The Downtown BBQ Showdown 🏅 Lake City, FL | 8 / 41 (698.2400) | 3 (177.7144) | 18 (171.4172) | 9 (176.0000) | 14 (173.1084) |
| 2026-04-17 | The Downtown BBQ Showdown (ONE MEAT RIBS) Lake City, FL | — | — | 16 (170.8344) | — | — |
| 2025-10-03 | The Real Squeal BBQ & Music Festival 🏅 Lyons, GA | 10 / 32 (693.0744) | 24 (168.5256) | 6 (175.4288) | 4 (177.7028) | 18 (171.4172) |
| 2025-03-21 | Okefenokee Smoke (formerly Swamptown Showdown) 🏅 Waycross, GA | 5 / 26 (694.2172) | 3 (177.7144) | 19 (168.5372) | 14 (171.4056) | 3 (176.5600) |
| 2024-02-09 | Grills Gone Wild 🏅 Davenport, FL | 24 / 28 (672.4572) | 21 (168.5372) | 14 (173.1200) | 26 (163.3828) | 19 (167.4172) |
| 2024-01-04 | 8th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam & Car Show 🏅 Elkton, FL | 22 / 43 (675.3716) | 36 (162.2516) | 16 (173.7144) | 20 (170.8456) | 18 (168.5600) |
| 2023-10-06 | The Real Squeal BBQ & Music Festival 🏅 Lyons, GA | 11 / 29 (682.7660) | 20 (165.1088) | 13 (171.4172) | 8 (174.2744) | 12 (171.9656) |
| 2023-09-15 | Smoketember Fest 🏅 Baxley, GA | 17 / 25 (677.0172) | 22 (165.0972) | 7 (173.1200) | 17 (167.9656) | 9 (170.8344) |
| 2023-04-14 | The Downtown BBQ Showdown 🏅 Lake City, FL | 24 / 32 (664.4228) | 19 (170.8344) | 20 (166.2516) | 26 (164.5484) | 24 (162.7884) |
| 2023-02-03 | Budweiser Smoke on the Water 🏅 Winter Haven, FL | 26 / 47 (677.6456) | 15 (174.2744) | 15 (173.1084) | 15 (172.5828) | 40 (157.6800) |
| 2022-09-16 | Smoketember Fest 🏅 Baxley, GA | 15 / 30 (685.6000) | 14 (170.8228) | 7 (173.1316) | 2 (180.0000) | 22 (161.6456) |
| 2022-08-05 | Swine At the Shrine 🏅 Savannah, GA | 24 / 49 (683.9200) | 32 (168.5600) | 31 (170.2744) | 32 (167.3828) | 5 (177.7028) |
| 2022-01-07 | Southern Sunshine BBQ Fest 🏅 Lake Wales, FL | 5 / 29 (658.2056) | 8 (162.2400) | 7 (158.8116) | 2 (169.7256) | 4 (167.4284) |
| 2021-10-08 | The Real Squeal BBQ & Music Festival 🏅 Lyons, GA | 20 / 26 (666.6856) | 14 (169.6800) | 24 (159.3600) | 7 (173.1200) | 19 (164.5256) |
| 2020-10-09 | The Real Squeal BBQ & Music Festival 🏅 Lyons, GA | 3 / 37 (330.2396) | 4 (163.4056) | 3 (166.8340) | — | — |
| 2019-10-11 | The Real Squeal BBQ & Music Festival 🏅 Lyons, GA | 3 / 27 (294.2744) | 3 (151.4172) | 6 (142.8572) | — | — |
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 | #1170 (76 pts) | #1104 (106 pts) | #1577 (56 pts) | #848 (156 pts) | #1165 (81 pts) |
| 2014 ↗ | Master | #904 (362 pts) | #882 (407 pts) | #774 (472 pts) | #932 (382 pts) | #873 (392 pts) |