Groundhog Smokers AL
Rating
1559
peak 1559
Contests
13
in the data
First seen
2019-02-22
latest 2026-03-13
Best ToY finish
#2910
Master 2016
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
4 podiums
Overall top-10s
7
of 13 contests
Avg finish
top 35%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
504.14 ▲
last 5 vs career avg 450.57 (+53.57)
Walk rate
77%
contests with a top-10 call
Top-10 streak
3
best run (overall)
Consistency
±122.05
std dev of overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork
avg 170.71 · weakest Pork Ribs (164.01)
Road miles
1565
mi across 13 mapped stops · furthest 269 mi
Storylines
🎯 The one to beat
RIBLIFE has finished one call ahead of Groundhog Smokers 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
⚔️ A tough matchup
PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q has come out ahead in 7 of their 7 shared contests.
⚔️ A strong matchup
They've finished ahead of Pigs in a Blanket in 6 of their 6 shared contests.
📅 A March team
Something about March: average finish in the top 24% across 6 contests, versus top 35% the rest of the year.
Teams like this (closest power rating, AL first)
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 13 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 176.0344 | 160.5484 | 169.61 | top 32% |
| Pork Ribs | 13 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 173.7028 | 155.9772 | 164.01 | top 50% |
| Pork | 9 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 176.5600 | 163.3828 | 170.71 | top 25% |
| Brisket | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 167.3828 | 166.2400 | 166.81 | top 68% |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| AL | 12 | 0 | top 35% |
| TN | 1 | 0 | top 36% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 8 | 0 | top 29% |
| Large (40+) | 5 | 0 | top 45% |
The story so far
- Busiest season: 2019 (3 contests)
- Cooks mostly in AL (12 of 13 contests)
- Most-entered category: Chicken (13 entries)
- All-time average overall score: 450.57
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
Category scores over time
Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)
Where they finish (overall)
Best vs average (by meat)
Season by season
| Season | Contests | GCs | Category wins | Best overall | Avg overall |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 333.6804 | 333.68 |
| 2024 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 673.5884 | 504.47 |
| 2023 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 673.6116 | 589.04 |
| 2022 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 504.5260 | 417.37 |
| 2021 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 499.9316 | 499.93 |
| 2020 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 495.2912 | 413.63 |
| 2019 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 501.1084 | 391.60 |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-03-13 | Foley BBQ & Blues Cook-Off (BACKYARD ONLY) Foley, AL | 9 / 30 (333.6804) | 5 (170.2860) | 16 (163.3944) | 2 (176.5600) | — |
| 2024-10-04 | Poosa Q Montgomery, AL | 40 / 59 (673.5884) | 42 (167.4056) | 48 (164.5256) | 8 (175.4172) | 45 (166.2400) |
| 2024-03-09 | Foley BBQ & Blues Cook-Off (BACKYARD ONLY) Foley, AL | 10 / 28 (335.3484) | 6 (171.9656) | 17 (163.3828) | 6 (173.1428) | — |
| 2023-10-05 | Poosa Q Montgomery, AL | 38 / 73 (673.6116) | 36 (168.5600) | 32 (170.2744) | 43 (167.3944) | 43 (167.3828) |
| 2023-03-10 | Foley BBQ & Blues Cook-Off (BACKYARD ONLY) Foley, AL | 4 / 31 (504.4684) | 5 (170.2628) | 5 (170.8228) | 11 (163.3828) | — |
| 2022-05-05 | Poosa Q Montgomery, AL | 33 / 72 (330.2172) | 9 (173.1200) | 43 (157.0972) | — | — |
| 2022-03-12 | Foley BBQ & Blues Cook Off (BACKYARD ONLY) Foley, AL | 6 / 26 (504.5260) | 4 (175.4288) | 23 (155.9772) | 3 (173.1200) | — |
| 2021-03-12 | Foley BBQ & Blues Cook Off (BACKYARD ONLY) Foley, AL | 6 / 28 (499.9316) | 6 (171.9772) | 16 (157.6572) | 3 (170.2972) | — |
| 2020-03-13 | Foley BBQ & Blues Cook Off (BACKYARD ONLY) Foley, AL | 5 / 23 (495.2912) | 8 (163.9312) | 6 (165.1200) | 9 (166.2400) | — |
| 2020-02-21 | Capital City Cook Off Montgomery, AL | 13 / 25 (331.9660) | 15 (167.3944) | 12 (164.5716) | — | — |
| 2019-10-25 | Jack Daniel's World Championship Shade Tree Contest (BACKYARD) (JUDGES FULL) Lynchburg, TN | 15 / 42 (501.1084) | 14 (168.0344) | 24 (162.2628) | 12 (170.8112) | — |
| 2019-06-14 | Poosa-Q Montgomery, AL | 12 / 48 (339.4288) | 5 (176.0344) | 22 (163.3944) | — | — |
| 2019-02-22 | Bama Q Capital City Cook-Off Montgomery, AL | 10 / 27 (334.2512) | 14 (160.5484) | 3 (173.7028) | — | — |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 ↗ | Master | #2910 (55 pts) | #2916 (55 pts) | #2928 (55 pts) | #2271 (70 pts) | #2921 (55 pts) |