High-water mark
498.2860
career-best overall
92.3% of a perfect 540
Their best day on record: 498.2860 at WV Coalfields Cookoff — 92.3% of a perfect 540.
- Backyard
- Jun 9, 2023
Que N Cue
Que N Cue is a competition barbecue team with 32 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2020 and 2026. Their best overall finish is 3rd of 25 at the Fire in the Foothills (2025). They are ranked #1621 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1557
peak 1557 · rated over 30 contests
Contests
32
in the data
First seen
Oct 29, 2020
latest Mar 20, 2026 · 5.4 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
1 podium
Overall top-10s
10
31% of 32 contests
Best top-10 run
3
straight overall top-10s
Avg finish
top 51%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
328.05 ▲
last 5 Backyard vs avg 326.73 (+1.32)
Walk rate
47%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±9.27
spread of their Backyard overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 166.11 · weakest Pork (156.21)
Road miles
5,357
across 32 mapped stops · furthest 465 mi
Schedule strength
84%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1612)
Purse competed for
$225K
listed at 29 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
won from 30 state-championship entries
Backyard avg
326.73 / 360
23 Backyard contests · 0 GCs
Backyard (3-meat) avg
447.51 / 540
7 Backyard (3-meat) contests · 0 GCs
These overall scores sit on different scales (Backyard out of 360, Backyard (3-meat) out of 540), 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.
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 ↗ | Backyard | #270 (112 pts) | #224 (167 pts) | #285 (112 pts) | — | — |
| 2025 ↗ | Backyard | #93 (624 pts) | #90 (634 pts) | #115 (564 pts) | — | — |
| 2024 ↗ | Backyard | #115 (518 pts) | #96 (643 pts) | #107 (565 pts) | — | — |
| 2023 ↗ | Backyard | — | #91 (676 pts) | #112 (595 pts) | — | — |
| 2023 ↗ | Master | — | #1584 (58 pts) | — | — | — |
| 2022 ↗ | Backyard | — | #131 (322 pts) | #144 (267 pts) | — | — |
| 2021 ↗ | Backyard | — | #51 (691 pts) | #86 (396 pts) | — | — |
Overall rank by season
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to Que N Cue, each with one reason worth a look.
50 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#1,626 of the rated field
- Contests
- 31
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 48%
- Peak
- 1610
2–0 in 2 shared contests (100% to Que N Cue)
2 contests in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team Que N Cue has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#1,616 of the rated field
- Contests
- 17
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 47%
- Peak
- 1563
1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to Que N Cue)
Their last contest in the data was back in 2022, 4 years before Que N Cue's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Head-to-head#1,608 of the rated field
- Contests
- 34
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 41%
- Peak
- 1582
Careers of much the same size, 34 contests to 32, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#1,622 of the rated field
- Contests
- 35
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 23%
- Peak
- 1572
35 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 23% top-10 finishes rather than wins.
⚔ Compare careers#1,623 of the rated field
- Contests
- 40
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 25%
- Peak
- 1557
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 37 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Compare careers#1,624 of the rated field
- Contests
- 22
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 9%
- Peak
- 1559
They were already cooking in 2015, 5 years before Que N Cue's first contest.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| POOR BOYS BBQ | 24 | 4 | 19 | 17% | ⚔ compare |
| Dogpatch Q | 22 | 8 | 14 | 36% | ⚔ compare |
| MUTTLEY CREW BBQ | 21 | 6 | 14 | 29% | ⚔ compare |
| Uncle Dubby's Backyard BBQ | 21 | 2 | 19 | 10% | ⚔ compare |
| Optimus Swine | 20 | 8 | 12 | 40% | ⚔ compare |
| HOLD YOUR HORSES BBQ | 18 | 3 | 15 | 17% | ⚔ compare |
| Off The Rack BBQ | 17 | 5 | 12 | 29% | ⚔ compare |
| Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit | 17 | 3 | 11 | 18% | ⚔ compare |
| Gold-N-Blue Barbecue | 17 | 2 | 14 | 12% | ⚔ compare |
| CHUNKY BBQ | 16 | 4 | 12 | 25% | ⚔ compare |
| WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ | 15 | 3 | 12 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN | 15 | 1 | 14 | 7% | ⚔ compare |
| The Swine Doctor's BBQ | 14 | 7 | 7 | 50% | ⚔ compare |
| SMOKIN SKULLIES | 14 | 6 | 6 | 43% | ⚔ compare |
| Bowmans Butt & BBQ | 14 | 4 | 9 | 29% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 30 | 15 | 0 | 1 | 174.8456 | 155.3484 | 166.11 | top 41% |
| Pork Ribs | 30 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 170.8344 | 135.4060 | 158.53 | top 52% |
| Pork | 16 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 169.1200 | 143.3716 | 156.21 | 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 field size and state
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 8 | 0 | top 72% |
| Medium (20–39) | 11 | 0 | top 47% |
| Large (40+) | 11 | 0 | top 39% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) (Masters and Backyard) | 5 | 17 | 0 | top 44% | Mar 22, 2025 |
| Smoke on the Shores BBQ Championship | 4 | 19 | 0 | top 33% | Mar 20, 2026 |
| Smoke on the Mountain | 3 | 5 | 0 | top 24% | Jul 25, 2025 |
| Fire in the Foothills BBQ Festival | 2 | 10 | 0 | top 44% | Aug 30, 2024 |
| WV Coalfields Cookoff | 2 | 7 | 0 | top 49% | Jun 7, 2024 |
| Revolutionary BBQ Brawl - Battle on the James (Day 2) | 2 | 21 | 0 | top 108% | Apr 29, 2023 |
| Smoke on the Mountain BBQ Championship 2022 | 2 | 8 | 0 | top 42% | Jul 21, 2022 |
| BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) (Masters and Backyard) | 2 | 19 | 0 | top 39% | Mar 26, 2022 |
More numbers
Busiest season
2023
9 contests
Contests a season
4.6
across 7 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
VA
19 of 32 contests · 5 states in all
Contests visited
16
8 of them more than once
Opponents faced
616
finished ahead 863 times, behind 945
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20262 milestones
- Peak power rating (1557) Smoke on the Shores BBQ Championship
- Most recent contest Smoke on the Shores BBQ Championship
20251 milestone
- First overall podium Fire in the Foothills
20241 milestone
- 25th tracked contest Fire in the Foothills BBQ Festival
20232 milestones
- 10th tracked contest Smoke on the Shores BBQ Championship
- Career-best overall score498.2860 WV Coalfields Cookoff
20214 milestones
- First call City of Welch Coalfields Cook-off
- First overall top-10 City of Welch Coalfields Cook-off
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score342.2628 City of Welch Coalfields Cook-off
- Career-best single call (Chicken)174.8456 City of Welch Coalfields Cook-off
20201 milestone
- First tracked contest The Nightmare Before Zom-B-Q
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +14.8 | Smoke on the Mountain | Jul 21, 2023 |
| +14.4 | Fire in the Foothills | Sep 26, 2025 |
| +10.9 | City of Welch Coalfields Cook-off | Jun 11, 2021 |
| +10.2 | Smoke on the Shores BBQ Championship | Mar 17, 2023 |
| +9.2 | Smoke on the Mountain | Jul 25, 2025 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -11.6 | Nightmare Before Zom-B-Q-Rufus Teague | Oct 15, 2021 |
| -10.8 | Revolutionary BBQ Brawl - Battle on the James (Day 2) | Apr 29, 2023 |
| -10.1 | Revolutionary BBQ Brawl - Battle on the James (Day 1) | Apr 28, 2023 |
| -9.3 | Smoke on the Falls BBQ Competition | Apr 11, 2025 |
| -6.4 | Zom-B-Q-Rufus Teague | Oct 16, 2021 |
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 | 0% | top 32% | 91.7% | 91.7% |
| 2025 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 50% | top 44% | 94.6% | 91.8% |
| 2024 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 43% | top 43% | 91.7% | 89.6% |
| 2023 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 56% | top 55% | 93.3% | 89.2% |
| 2022 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 33% | top 38% | 93% | 87.7% |
| 2021 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 75% | top 75% | 95.1% | 92.2% |
| 2020 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 56% | 86.6% | 71.1% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 20, 2026 | Smoke on the Shores BBQ Championship 🏅 Lebanon, TN | 40 / 125 (330.2056) | 39 (166.2628) | 38 (163.9428) | 43 (161.1088) | — |
| Sep 26, 2025 | Fire in the Foothills 🏅 King, NC | 3 / 25 (337.1200) | 4 (169.1428) | 5 (167.9772) | 7 (158.2516) | — |
| Jul 25, 2025 | Smoke on the Mountain 🏅 Galax, VA | 9 / 37 (327.9656) | 8 (170.8572) | 13 (157.1084) | — | — |
| Jun 6, 2025 | WV Coalfields Cookoff WV KCBS State Championship 🏅 Welch, WV | 7 / 11 (322.8004) | 6 (165.6916) | 7 (157.1088) | 8 (159.3828) | — |
| Apr 11, 2025 | Smoke on the Falls BBQ Competition 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 28 / 31 (322.1716) | 27 (162.8000) | 27 (159.3716) | — | — |
| Mar 22, 2025 | BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) (Masters and Backyard) 🏅 Urbanna, VA | 17 / 43 (340.5256) | 14 (170.2744) | 14 (170.2512) | — | — |
| Mar 14, 2025 | Smoke on the Shores BBQ Championship 🏅 Lebanon, TN | 37 / 100 (332.5828) | 17 (173.7028) | 43 (158.8800) | — | — |
| Aug 30, 2024 | Fire in the Foothills BBQ Festival 🏅 King, NC | 10 / 28 (320.4916) | 9 (162.2284) | 10 (158.2632) | 4 (169.1200) | — |
| Jul 26, 2024 | Smoke on the Mountain 🏅 Galax, VA | 11 / 32 (318.8344) | 5 (172.5484) | 13 (146.2860) | — | — |
| Jun 7, 2024 | WV Coalfields Cookoff 🏅 Welch, WV | 7 / 13 (324.4912) | 7 (159.3484) | 4 (165.1428) | 8 (159.4172) | — |
| Mar 23, 2024 | BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) (Masters and Backyard) 🏅 Urbanna, VA | 22 / 42 (319.3600) | 11 (168) | 27 (151.3600) | 23 (159.3600) | — |
| Mar 22, 2024 | BBQ Gives Back (Day 1) (Masters and Backyard) 🏅 Urbanna, VA | 18 / 45 (330.2744) | 17 (166.2856) | 16 (163.9888) | 21 (160.5488) | — |
| Mar 15, 2024 | Smoke on the Shores BBQ Championship 🏅 Lebanon, TN | 36 / 93 (321.0284) | 44 (155.3484) | 23 (165.6800) | 43 (153.6800) | — |
| Mar 15, 2024 | Smoke on the Shores BBQ Championship (ONE MEAT RIBS) Lebanon, TN | — | — | — | — | — |
| Sep 1, 2023 | Fire in the Foothills BBQ Festival 🏅 King, NC | 11 / 21 (306.7884) | 5 (165.7028) | 11 (141.0856) | — | — |
| Jul 21, 2023 | Smoke on the Mountain 🏅 Galax, VA | 5 / 38 (334.2172) | 10 (166.2400) | 6 (167.9772) | — | — |
| Jun 9, 2023 | WV Coalfields Cookoff 🏅 Welch, WV | 7 / 16 (498.2860) | 8 (165.1428) | 5 (170.8344) | 8 (162.3088) | — |
| Apr 29, 2023 | Revolutionary BBQ Brawl - Battle on the James (Day 2) 🏅 Williamsburg, VA | 21 / 19 (305.0284) | 19 (158.8228) | 21 (146.2056) | — | — |
| Apr 28, 2023 | Revolutionary BBQ Brawl - Battle on the James (Day 1) 🏅 Williamsburg, VA | 21 / 20 (322.7884) | 15 (165.0856) | 21 (157.7028) | — | — |
| Mar 25, 2023 | BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) (Masters and Backyard) 🏅 Urbanna, VA | 22 / 46 (468.9716) | 15 (164.5372) | 23 (145.0628) | 19 (159.3716) | — |
| Mar 24, 2023 | BBQ Gives Back (Day 1) (Masters and Backyard) 🏅 Urbanna, VA | 21 / 53 (478.1944) | 9 (170.8228) | 14 (164) | 24 (143.3716) | — |
| Mar 24, 2023 | BBQ Gives Back (One Meat Chicken) Urbanna, VA | — | 30 (159.4056) | — | — | — |
| Mar 17, 2023 | Smoke on the Shores BBQ Championship 🏅 Lebanon, TN | 19 / 80 (336.0228) | 10 (172.5944) | 28 (163.4284) | — | — |
| Jul 21, 2022 | Smoke on the Mountain BBQ Championship 2022 🏅 Galax, VA | 9 / 25 (334.8344) | 9 (166.8228) | 11 (168.0116) | — | — |
| Mar 26, 2022 | BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) (Masters and Backyard) 🏅 Urbanna, VA | 19 / 50 (462.7548) | 20 (155.9888) | 16 (163.3944) | 22 (143.3716) | — |
| Mar 25, 2022 | BBQ Gives Back (Day 1) (Masters and Backyard) 🏅 Urbanna, VA | 21 / 53 (455.9432) | 11 (168.5600) | 23 (135.4060) | 20 (151.9772) | — |
| Oct 16, 2021 | Zom-B-Q-Rufus Teague 🏅 Galax, VA | 16 / 15 (330.8344) | 4 (174.2628) | 20 (156.5716) | — | — |
| Oct 15, 2021 | Nightmare Before Zom-B-Q-Rufus Teague 🏅 Galax, VA | 18 / 15 (322.8116) | 14 (165.6800) | 17 (157.1316) | — | — |
| Jul 23, 2021 | Smoke on the Mountain BBQ Championship 🏅 Galax, VA | 8 / 17 (331.3600) | 6 (168.5372) | 12 (162.8228) | — | — |
| Jun 11, 2021 | City of Welch Coalfields Cook-off 🏅 Welch, WV | 4 / 15 (342.2628) | 2 (174.8456) | 8 (167.4172) | 15 (150.8116) | — |
| Oct 30, 2020 | Zom-B-Q 🏅 Wytheville, VA | 17 / 33 (467.8856) | 18 (157.7028) | 16 (157.0856) | 16 (153.0972) | — |
| Oct 29, 2020 | The Nightmare Before Zom-B-Q 🏅 Wytheville, VA | 20 / 33 (300.5260) | — | 19 (146.2744) | 16 (154.2516) | — |