GREAT BALLS OF FIRE AL
Rating
1479
peak 1479 · rated over 4 contests
Contests
4
in the data
First seen
2021-07-16
latest 2026-03-13
Best ToY finish
#221
Backyard 2026
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
0
of 4 contests
Avg finish
top 77%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
651.83
last 3 Master vs avg 651.83 (+0.00)
Walk rate
25%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±5.67
std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork
avg 168.11 · weakest Brisket (154.98)
Road miles
860
mi across 4 mapped stops · furthest 638 mi
Schedule strength
78%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1578)
Purse competed for
$58K
listed at 3 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
GCs in 2 state-championship entries
Master avg
651.83 / 720
3 Master contests · 0 GCs
Backyard avg
333.11 / 360
1 Backyard contest · 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
⚔️ A tough matchup
CHUNKY BBQ has come out ahead in 3 of their 3 shared contests.
🔁 The comeback
Off the trail for 3.3 years, then back at Foley BBQ & Blues Cook-Off (BACKYARD ONLY) (2026-03-13).
Teams like this (closest power rating, AL first)
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 169.1200 | 161.6684 | 166.27 | top 65% |
| Pork Ribs | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 171.4172 | 153.0740 | 163.96 | top 70% |
| Pork | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 170.8228 | 162.2400 | 168.11 | top 55% |
| Brisket | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 155.9200 | 153.6456 | 154.98 | top 93% |
“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 | 2 | 0 | top 63% |
| TN | 1 | 0 | top 98% |
| WV | 1 | 0 | top 83% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 1 | 0 | top 83% |
| Medium (20–39) | 1 | 0 | top 37% |
| Large (40+) | 2 | 0 | top 94% |
The story so far
- Busiest season: 2021 (2 contests)
- Cooks mostly in AL (2 of 4 contests)
- Most-entered category: Chicken (4 entries)
- Average Master overall score: 651.83 / 720
- Average Backyard overall score: 333.11 / 360
Milestones
- 🚩 2021-07-16 — First tracked contest · Country Roads BBQ Clash Day 1
- 📈 2021-07-16 — Peak power rating (1490) · Country Roads BBQ Clash Day 1
- ⭐ 2022-11-11 — Career-best overall score (659.2800) · 4th Annual KCBS World Invitational - OPEN
- 📣 2026-03-13 — First call · Foley BBQ & Blues Cook-Off (BACKYARD ONLY)
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +7 | Foley BBQ & Blues Cook-Off (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2026-03-13 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -11 | Smithfield Classic in Nashville | 2021-09-03 |
| -10.3 | Country Roads BBQ Clash Day 1 | 2021-07-16 |
| -6.6 | 4th Annual KCBS World Invitational - OPEN | 2022-11-11 |
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 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 37% | 92.5% | 92.5% |
| 2022 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 90% | 91.6% | 91.6% |
| 2021 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 91% | 90.4% | 90% |
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 | 11 / 30 (333.1084) | 13 (165.7256) | 11 (167.3828) | 8 (169.6912) | — |
| 2022-11-11 | 4th Annual KCBS World Invitational - OPEN Gadsden, AL | 82 / 91 (659.2800) | 64 (168.5600) | 75 (163.9772) | 39 (170.8228) | 87 (155.9200) |
| 2021-09-03 | Smithfield Classic in Nashville 🏅 Nashville, TN | 49 / 50 (645.5196) | 32 (169.1200) | 50 (153.0740) | 30 (169.6800) | 48 (153.6456) |
| 2021-07-16 | Country Roads BBQ Clash Day 1 🏅 Morgantown, WV | 15 / 18 (650.6972) | 15 (161.6684) | 11 (171.4172) | 16 (162.2400) | 16 (155.3716) |
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 | #221 (125 pts) | #237 (115 pts) | #238 (125 pts) | — | — |
| 2023 ↗ | Master | #1255 (60 pts) | #1319 (60 pts) | #1432 (60 pts) | #1287 (60 pts) | #1296 (60 pts) |
| 2021 ↗ | Master | #830 (153 pts) | #881 (153 pts) | #863 (173 pts) | #874 (148 pts) | #877 (148 pts) |