They almost always walk
75%
of contests with a top-10 call
A call in 6 of 8 contests
A top-10 category call in 75% of their 8 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.
4 Paws BBQ
At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)
Rating
1539
peak 1539 · rated over 8 contests ⓘ
Contests
8
in the data
First seen
2023-04-28
latest 2026-06-12
Best ToY finish
#175
Backyard 2026
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
2 podiums
Overall top-10s
4
of 8 contests
Avg finish
top 39%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
338.21 ▼
last 5 Backyard vs avg 356.48 (-18.27)
Walk rate
75%
contests with a top-10 call
Top-10 streak
2
best run (overall)
Consistency
±53.36
std dev of Backyard overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork Ribs
avg 168.46 · weakest Brisket (157.97)
Road miles
414
mi across 8 mapped stops · furthest 107 mi
Schedule strength
46%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1560)
Purse competed for
$48K
listed at 8 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
GCs in 3 state-championship entries
Backyard avg
356.48 / 360
8 Backyard contests · 0 GCs
This team cooks the Backyard series — its own boards, records and Team of the Year are here.
Storylines (8 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
496.4456
career-best overall
137.9% of a perfect 360
Their best day on record: 496.4456 at BBQ Boogie & Blues — 137.9% of a perfect 360.
- Backyard
- 2023-04-28
A tough matchup
3–0
behind in the head-to-head
Modest Meats ahead in 100% of their meetings
Modest Meats has come out ahead in 3 of their 3 shared contests.
A strong matchup
3–0
ahead in the head-to-head
Ahead in 100% of their meetings
They've finished ahead of Blue Smoke Q in 3 of their 3 shared contests.
The comeback
2 yrs
off the trail, then back
Off the trail for 2 years, then back at High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) (2026-05-15).
- last seen 2024-05-17
- back 2026-05-15
Pork Ribs nemesis
3 of 4
shared pork ribs entries lost
Dogpatch Q ahead 75% of the time
Even in their strongest meat, Dogpatch Q has out-cooked them in 3 of 4 shared pork ribs entries.
Looking over their shoulder
2×
one call behind them
DUVALL'S PORK PIT CREW has landed one call behind them 2 times.
Boom or bust
±14.82%
swing around their own average
Their overall swings ±14.82% of a perfect score around its own average — when it lands they're dangerous, and when it doesn't the weekend is gone by lunch.
- averages 99.0% of a perfect score
- best 137.9%
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.
72 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#1955 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 44%
- Peak
- 1540
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#1970 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 44%
- Peak
- 1542
No shared contest yet.
Careers of much the same size, 9 contests to 8, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Head-to-head#1976 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1539
No shared contest yet.
Their last contest in the data was back in 2018, 8 years before 4 Paws BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Head-to-head#1954 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 22%
- Peak
- 1546
No shared contest yet.
They were already cooking in 2013, 10 years before 4 Paws BBQ's first contest.
⚔ Head-to-head#1957 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 57%
- Peak
- 1550
No shared contest yet.
Their rating is built on 1 Grand Championship in 7 contests, alongside a 57% overall top-10 rate.
⚔ Head-to-head#1972 of the rated field
- Contests
- 11
- GCs
- 2
- Top-10s
- 64%
- Peak
- 1539
No shared contest yet.
Level with 4 Paws BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Head-to-headFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bentley Que | 6 | 2 | 4 | 33% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 174.2628 | 155.8968 | 167.10 | top 49% |
| Pork Ribs | 8 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 174.8456 | 161.0972 | 168.46 | top 35% |
| Pork | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 175.4056 | 161.6684 | 168.25 | top 24% |
| Brisket | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 161.1088 | 154.8228 | 157.97 | top 17% |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| TN | 3 | 0 | top 45% |
| GA | 3 | 0 | top 20% |
| AL | 2 | 0 | top 58% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 7 | 0 | top 43% |
| Large (40+) | 1 | 0 | top 8% |
Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2 | 9 | 0 | top 36% | 2024-05-17 |
| BBQ, Boogie & Blues | 2 | 7 | 0 | top 26% | 2024-04-26 |
The story so far (18 numbers that describe this team)
On the trail
3.1 yrs
2023-04-28 → 2026-06-12
Busiest season
2023
4 contests
Contests a season
2.7
across 3 seasons in the data
Cooks most in
TN
3 of 8 contests · 3 states/provinces in all
Contests visited
6
2 of them cooked more than once
Most-entered meat
Chicken
8 entries · 0 wins · 4 calls
Strongest meat
Pork Ribs
averages 168.46 · weakest Brisket (157.97)
Walk rate
75%
a top-10 call in 6 of 8 contests
Overall top-10 rate
50%
4 of 8 contests
Best top-10 run
2
straight contests
Backyard average
356.48
out of 360 · 8 contests · 0 GCs
Opponents faced
226
233–111 across every shared overall standing
Road miles
414
8 mapped stops · furthest 107 mi
Schedule strength
1560
average field rating faced — tougher than 46% of rated contests
Purse competed for
$48,350
listed at 8 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0
from 3 state-championship entries
Longest layoff
2 yrs
2024-05-17 → 2026-05-15
Power rating
1539
peak 1539 · #1962 of 6,413 rated
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
- 2023
- First tracked contest BBQ Boogie & Blues
- First call BBQ Boogie & Blues
- First overall top-10 BBQ Boogie & Blues
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score496.4456 BBQ Boogie & Blues
- Career-best overall score496.4456 BBQ Boogie & Blues
- Career-best single call (Pork)175.4056 Atlanta BBQ Store Classic
- 2026
- Peak power rating (1539) Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY)
- Most recent contest Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY)
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +16.3 | Atlanta BBQ Store Classic | 2023-11-17 |
| +11.5 | The High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2023-05-19 |
| +9 | BBQ, Boogie & Blues | 2024-04-26 |
| +5.2 | Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2026-06-12 |
| +5 | BBQ Boogie & Blues | 2023-04-28 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -7.5 | Scottsboro BBQ Festival (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE ONLY) | 2023-10-13 |
| -3.2 | High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2026-05-15 |
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) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50% | top 50% | 95.2% | 94.2% |
| 2024 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 33% | 93.6% | 92.8% |
| 2023 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 75% | top 36% | 137.9% | 104.6% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-12 | Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY) Huntsville, AL | 12 / 31 (342.7884) | 17 (169.6684) | 8 (173.1200) | — | — |
| 2026-05-15 | High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Winchester, TN | 18 / 29 (335.3484) | 24 (164.5256) | 12 (170.8228) | — | — |
| 2024-05-17 | The High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Winchester, TN | 18 / 39 (337.0628) | 9 (174.2628) | 29 (162.8000) | 20 (161.6684) | — |
| 2024-04-26 | BBQ, Boogie & Blues 🏅 Calhoun, GA | 7 / 34 (330.7656) | 7 (165.0972) | 7 (165.6684) | 3 (168.5600) | 7 (154.8228) |
| 2023-11-17 | Atlanta BBQ Store Classic 🏅 Cumming, GA | 5 / 60 (345.0856) | 7 (171.9656) | 9 (173.1200) | 5 (175.4056) | — |
| 2023-10-13 | Scottsboro BBQ Festival (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE ONLY) Scottsboro, AL | 21 / 27 (322.1368) | 26 (155.8968) | 16 (166.2400) | — | — |
| 2023-05-19 | The High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Winchester, TN | 9 / 34 (342.2284) | 23 (167.3828) | 3 (174.8456) | — | — |
| 2023-04-28 | BBQ Boogie & Blues 🏅 Calhoun, GA | 10 / 32 (496.4456) | 10 (167.9656) | 10 (161.0972) | 9 (167.3828) | 4 (161.1088) |
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 | #175 (210 pts) | #214 (155 pts) | #155 (270 pts) | — | — |