The heartbreaker
0.0348
points from the title
Came within 0.0348 points of the Grand Championship at The Downtown BBQ Showdown (Apr 14, 2023).
Cooters N Smoke
Cooters N Smoke is a competition barbecue team with 29 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2018 and 2026. Their best overall finish is 2nd of 32 at The Downtown BBQ Showdown (2023), and they have finished Reserve Grand Champion once. They are ranked #1313 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings. Also listed in KCBS results as “COOTER'S N SMOKE” and “Cooters' N Smoke”.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1578
peak 1591 · rated over 25 contests2 invitational or side-series contests not counted
Contests
29
in the data
First seen
Jul 12, 2018
latest Mar 20, 2026 · 7.7 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
1 reserve
Category wins
1
9 podiums
Overall top-10s
6
21% of 29 contests
Best top-10 run
2
straight overall top-10s
Avg finish
top 41%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
2 🔥
Current form
683.67 ▲
last 5 Master vs avg 679.64 (+4.03)
Walk rate
66%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±11.31
spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork Ribs
avg 171.10 · weakest Pork (168.86)
Road miles
6,263
across 29 mapped stops · furthest 1,110 mi
Schedule strength
51%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1567)
Purse competed for
$427K
listed at 22 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
won from 23 state-championship entries
Master avg
679.64 / 720
27 Master contests · 0 GCs
Team of the Year (rank per category by season — the year links to the full board on kcbs.us)
| Year | Series | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 ↗ | Master | #977 (94 pts) | #1094 (79 pts) | #1151 (79 pts) | #730 (184 pts) | #1028 (89 pts) |
| 2024 ↗ | Master | #567 (307 pts) | #729 (232 pts) | #434 (557 pts) | #727 (222 pts) | #443 (492 pts) |
| 2023 ↗ | Master | #232 (912 pts) | #229 (932 pts) | #207 (1,082 pts) | #263 (837 pts) | #251 (867 pts) |
| 2022 ↗ | Master | #509 (404 pts) | #589 (354 pts) | #545 (444 pts) | #813 (199 pts) | #462 (499 pts) |
| 2021 ↗ | Master | #1236 (60 pts) | #1286 (60 pts) | #1309 (60 pts) | #1262 (60 pts) | #1059 (110 pts) |
| 2020 ↗ | Master | #605 (145 pts) | #798 (100 pts) | #774 (110 pts) | #442 (260 pts) | #628 (145 pts) |
| 2019 ↗ | Master | #1372 (145 pts) | #1796 (100 pts) | #1740 (110 pts) | #1056 (260 pts) | #1423 (145 pts) |
Overall rank by season
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to Cooters N Smoke, each with one reason worth a look.
42 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#1,315 of the rated field
- Contests
- 26
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 42%
- Peak
- 1590
0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to Cooters N Smoke)
One contest in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team Cooters N Smoke has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#1,311 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 40%
- Peak
- 1579
1–5 in 6 shared contests (17% to Cooters N Smoke)
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 10 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Head-to-head#1,316 of the rated field
- Contests
- 26
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 27%
- Peak
- 1578
Careers of much the same size, 26 contests to 29, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#1,309 of the rated field
- Contests
- 26
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 31%
- Peak
- 1608
Their last contest in the data was back in 2018, 8 years before Cooters N Smoke's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careers#1,317 of the rated field
- Contests
- 31
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 19%
- Peak
- 1582
31 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 19% top-10 finishes rather than wins.
⚔ Compare careers#1,318 of the rated field
- Contests
- 41
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 27%
- Peak
- 1621
They were already cooking in 2013, 5 years before Cooters N Smoke's first contest.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| K & E's Little Smokers | 17 | 14 | 3 | 82% | ⚔ compare |
| HOT WACHULA'S | 17 | 5 | 12 | 29% | ⚔ compare |
| Going Yard BBQ | 15 | 7 | 8 | 47% | ⚔ compare |
| Smokin' Ain't EZ | 15 | 6 | 9 | 40% | ⚔ compare |
| Accutech BBQ | 14 | 9 | 5 | 64% | ⚔ compare |
| Smoke Central BBQ | 14 | 3 | 11 | 21% | ⚔ compare |
| Mad Dog BBQ | 13 | 9 | 4 | 69% | ⚔ compare |
| Slapulator BBQ | 13 | 8 | 5 | 62% | ⚔ compare |
| Double Barrel Smokers | 12 | 9 | 3 | 75% | ⚔ compare |
| HOLD YOUR HORSES BBQ | 12 | 4 | 8 | 33% | ⚔ compare |
| Bearded Monkeys Twisted Q | 11 | 5 | 6 | 45% | ⚔ compare |
| SWEET SMOKE Q FLORIDA | 11 | 3 | 8 | 27% | ⚔ compare |
| Kings BBQ Team | 11 | 2 | 9 | 18% | ⚔ compare |
| HOGGY BOTTOM BOYS | 10 | 7 | 3 | 70% | ⚔ compare |
| KEEPIN IT SMOKIN BBQ | 10 | 6 | 4 | 60% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 27 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 177.7028 | 154.8000 | 170.00 | top 48% |
| Pork Ribs | 28 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 180 🔥 | 159.3600 | 171.10 | top 36% |
| Pork | 27 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 180 🔥 | 161.6800 | 168.86 | top 50% |
| Brisket | 27 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 178.2972 | 158.7884 | 169.75 | top 39% |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 8 | 0 | top 34% |
| Large (40+) | 19 | 0 | top 45% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lakeland Pig Festival | 5 | 11 | 0 | top 27% | Jan 26, 2024 |
| SC Festival of Discovery | 3 | 35 | 0 | top 48% | Jul 9, 2021 |
| South Carolina Festival of Discovery | 2 | 29 | 0 | top 35% | Jul 6, 2023 |
| Plant City Pig Jam | 2 | 9 | 0 | top 30% | Nov 18, 2022 |
More numbers
Busiest season
2023
8 contests
Contests a season
3.6
across 8 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
FL
16 of 29 contests · 5 states in all
Contests visited
19
4 of them more than once
Most-entered meat
Pork Ribs
28 entries · 0 wins · 10 calls
Opponents faced
850
finished ahead 1,074 times, behind 838
Longest layoff
2.1 yrs
Feb 16, 2024 → Mar 20, 2026
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20261 milestone
- Most recent contest Torry Island BBQ Showdown
20237 milestones
- First perfect 180 (Pork Ribs) Lakeland Pig Festival
- First category win (Pork) The Downtown BBQ Showdown
- First overall podium The Downtown BBQ Showdown
- First Reserve Championship The Downtown BBQ Showdown
- Career-best overall score701.6456 The Downtown BBQ Showdown
- Peak power rating (1591) South Carolina Festival of Discovery
- 25th tracked contest Poosa Q
20211 milestone
- 10th tracked contest SC Festival of Discovery
20191 milestone
- First overall top-10 Plant City Pig Jam
20183 milestones
- First tracked contest Lakeland Pig Festival
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score669.5540 SC Festival Of Discovery
- First call Suncoast Credit Union Plant City Pig Jam
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +14.3 | The Downtown BBQ Showdown | Apr 14, 2023 |
| +12.6 | Swine At the Shrine | Aug 5, 2022 |
| +10.7 | Lakeland Pig Festival | Jan 25, 2019 |
| +10.2 | Lakeland Pig Festival | Jan 28, 2022 |
| +9 | Lakeland Pig Festival | Jan 27, 2023 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -10.1 | Hawgin On Lanier | Jul 31, 2020 |
| -7.9 | Torry Island BBQ Showdown | Mar 20, 2026 |
| -5.4 | Budweiser Smoke on the Water | Feb 3, 2023 |
| -5.1 | Poosa Q | Oct 5, 2023 |
| -4.8 | Grills Gone Wild | Feb 9, 2024 |
Scores over time (% of a perfect score, averaged over 5 contests — 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) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 53% | 94.3% | 94.3% |
| 2024 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 42% | 96% | 95.7% |
| 2023 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 50% | top 49% | 97.5% | 94.6% |
| 2022 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 83% | top 28% | 96.7% | 95.3% |
| 2021 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 50% | top 37% | 94.5% | 93.4% |
| 2020 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 67% | top 51% | 95.9% | 93.7% |
| 2019 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 67% | top 33% | 94.6% | 93.3% |
| 2018 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33% | top 41% | 93% | 92.9% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 20, 2026 | Torry Island BBQ Showdown 🏅 Belle Glade, FL | 18 / 34 (678.7544) | 21 (166.8228) | 21 (169.6800) | 5 (177.1544) | 19 (165.0972) |
| Feb 16, 2024 | Ribs on the Ridge Brews & BBQ 🏅 Haines City, FL | 9 / 29 (691.3716) | 24 (166.2284) | 8 (173.1316) | 14 (173.7144) | 2 (178.2972) |
| Feb 9, 2024 | Grills Gone Wild 🏅 Davenport, FL | 16 / 28 (685.6116) | 18 (169.6800) | 2 (178.8572) | 25 (163.9428) | 5 (173.1316) |
| Jan 26, 2024 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 23 / 61 (690.7884) | 20 (175.4056) | 8 (177.1544) | 44 (167.9656) | 29 (170.2628) |
| Oct 5, 2023 | Poosa Q 🏅 Montgomery, AL | 44 / 73 (671.8396) | 60 (163.9428) | 18 (173.1200) | 37 (168.5256) | 48 (166.2512) |
| Aug 12, 2023 | 5th Annual KCBS World Invitational - MASTER SERIES INVITATIONAL unrated Mayetta, KS | 43 / 62 (689.0516) | 28 (175.4172) | 14 (175.4288) | 62 (163.9428) | 28 (174.2628) |
| Aug 11, 2023 | 5th Annual KCBS World Invitational - OPEN unrated Mayetta, KS | 70 / 90 (672.4456) | 76 (166.2400) | 38 (173.1428) | 82 (162.7884) | 41 (170.2744) |
| Jul 6, 2023 | South Carolina Festival of Discovery 🏅 Greenwood, SC | 30 / 76 (678.1716) | 6 (177.7028) | 21 (171.9888) | 48 (164.5372) | 52 (163.9428) |
| May 12, 2023 | 17th Annual Boss Hog State Championship Cook-Off 🏅 Waynesboro, GA | 19 / 40 (678.7316) | 29 (167.3828) | 8 (174.2744) | 31 (163.9544) | 8 (173.1200) |
| Apr 14, 2023 | The Downtown BBQ Showdown 🏅 Lake City, FL | 2 / 32 (701.6456) | 7 (175.4056) | 6 (173.1316) | 1 (180) | 11 (173.1084) |
| Feb 3, 2023 | Budweiser Smoke on the Water 🏅 Winter Haven, FL | 32 / 47 (666.6740) | 23 (171.9656) | 40 (162.7884) | 29 (166.8228) | 34 (165.0972) |
| Jan 27, 2023 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 11 / 51 (691.9200) | 45 (163.9544) | 2 (180) | 26 (170.8228) | 6 (177.1428) |
| Nov 18, 2022 | Plant City Pig Jam 🏅 Plant City, FL | 9 / 25 (681.6000) | 3 (176.5600) | 18 (165.6800) | 9 (170.8228) | 13 (168.5372) |
| Aug 5, 2022 | Swine At the Shrine 🏅 Savannah, GA | 8 / 49 (696.5144) | 6 (176.5716) | 4 (178.2972) | 27 (169.6800) | 18 (171.9656) |
| Aug 5, 2022 | Swine At the Shrine (One Meat Ribs) Savannah, GA | — | — | 6 (173.1544) | — | — |
| Jul 7, 2022 | South Carolina Festival of Discovery 🏅 Greenwood, SC | 29 / 92 (682.1944) | 15 (174.2628) | 33 (170.8344) | 17 (172.5600) | 52 (164.5372) |
| Jan 28, 2022 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 12 / 60 (688.4800) | 26 (171.9656) | 16 (171.9772) | 31 (167.9772) | 3 (176.5600) |
| Jan 7, 2022 | Southern Sunshine BBQ Fest 🏅 Lake Wales, FL | 11 / 29 (682.7884) | 12 (171.4172) | 10 (173.1084) | 20 (165.1428) | 6 (173.1200) |
| Nov 19, 2021 | Plant City Pig Jam 🏅 Plant City, FL | 9 / 37 (680.4688) | 2 (176.5716) | 19 (166.2400) | 23 (165.6800) | 9 (171.9772) |
| Jul 9, 2021 | SC Festival of Discovery 🏅 Greenwood, SC | 40 / 81 (664.9368) | 57 (162.7884) | 60 (159.3600) | 26 (169.6800) | 15 (173.1084) |
| Sep 5, 2020 | Papa Joe's Banjo-B-Que & Music Festival 🏅 Augusta, GA | 23 / 54 (690.7656) | 51 (165.6800) | 15 (175.4172) | 7 (176.5600) | 22 (173.1084) |
| Jul 31, 2020 | Hawgin On Lanier 🏅 Cumming, GA | 42 / 55 (655.2684) | 35 (167.9772) | 43 (161.1200) | 44 (165.0856) | 46 (161.0856) |
| Jan 24, 2020 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 18 / 53 (677.0400) | 3 (176) | 29 (166.2400) | 40 (161.6800) | 7 (173.1200) |
| Nov 22, 2019 | Plant City Pig Jam 🏅 Plant City, FL | 9 / 39 (681.0512) | 17 (167.9656) | 15 (167.9656) | 2 (175.4400) | 9 (169.6800) |
| Jul 12, 2019 | SC Festival of Discovery 🏅 Greenwood, SC | 45 / 83 (655.3256) | 68 (154.8000) | 48 (162.2972) | 30 (167.3828) | 13 (170.8456) |
| Jan 25, 2019 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 12 / 58 (678.7884) | 23 (166.8456) | 4 (176.5716) | 16 (169.1428) | 29 (166.2284) |
| Nov 16, 2018 | Suncoast Credit Union Plant City Pig Jam Plant City, FL | 19 / 44 (668.4568) | 10 (173.7028) | 19 (167.9656) | 20 (166.2972) | 27 (160.4912) |
| Jul 12, 2018 | SC Festival Of Discovery Greenwood, SC | 35 / 89 (669.5540) | 39 (166.8228) | 17 (171.9772) | 16 (171.9656) | 54 (158.7884) |
| Jan 26, 2018 | Lakeland Pig Festival Lakeland, FL | — | — | — | — | — |
An unrated contest — an invitational, or a Competitor or Kosher Series board — is in the record but doesn’t move the power rating.