Perfect scores on the board
2
perfect 180s
2 perfect 180s in the data — every judge at the table handing back a nine, across 2 different meats.
- Pork ×1
- Brisket ×1
Barely Sober BBQ
Barely Sober BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 12 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2016 and 2026. They have won 1 Grand Championship, at the Lakeland Pig Festival (2022). They are ranked #1311 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1579
peak 1579 · rated over 10 contests
Contests
12
in the data
First seen
Nov 18, 2016
latest Jan 22, 2026 · 9.2 years on the trail
Grand champs
1
0 reserve · wins it all 8% of the time
Category wins
4
6 podiums
Overall top-10s
4
33% of 12 contests
Best top-10 run
4
straight overall top-10s
Avg finish
top 29%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
2 🔥
Walk rate
83%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±6.17
spread of their Backyard (4-meat) overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 168.60 · weakest Pork (166.09)
Road miles
17
across 12 mapped stops
Schedule strength
38%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1551)
Purse competed for
$150K
listed at 6 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
1 🏅
won from 7 state-championship entries
Master avg
653.74 / 720
3 Master contests · 0 GCs
Backyard avg
336.31 / 360
3 Backyard contests · 0 GCs
Backyard (4-meat) avg
676.67 / 720
4 Backyard (4-meat) contests · 1 GC
These overall scores sit on different scales (Master out of 720, Backyard out of 360, Backyard (4-meat) out of 720), 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.
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to Barely Sober BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.
44 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#1,313 of the rated field
- Contests
- 27
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 22%
- Peak
- 1591
5–1 in 6 shared contests (83% to Barely Sober BBQ)
These two have cooked 6 of the same contests — Barely Sober BBQ ahead 5–1 — so there's a record behind this pairing and not just a matching number.
⚔ Head-to-head#1,315 of the rated field
- Contests
- 26
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 42%
- Peak
- 1590
1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to Barely Sober BBQ)
A longer road to the same neighbourhood — 26 contests to 12.
⚔ Head-to-head#1,310 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 56%
- Peak
- 1579
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 9 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Compare careers#1,312 of the rated field
- Contests
- 8
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 38%
- Peak
- 1579
Their last contest in the data was back in 2022, 4 years before Barely Sober BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careers#1,309 of the rated field
- Contests
- 26
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 31%
- Peak
- 1608
26 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 31% top-10 finishes rather than wins.
⚔ Compare careers#1,314 of the rated field
- Contests
- 41
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 20%
- Peak
- 1608
Level with Barely Sober BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accutech BBQ | 10 | 6 | 4 | 60% | ⚔ compare |
| SMOKIN ACES BBQ - FL | 9 | 9 | 0 | 100% | ⚔ compare |
| Sons of Hamarchy | 8 | 7 | 1 | 88% | ⚔ compare |
| The Rusty Pig | 8 | 7 | 1 | 88% | ⚔ compare |
| Burning Bush BBQ | 7 | 7 | 0 | 100% | ⚔ compare |
| Porkganic BBQ | 7 | 7 | 0 | 100% | ⚔ compare |
| Double Barrel Smokers | 7 | 6 | 1 | 86% | ⚔ compare |
| Team Smoke Showin' | 7 | 6 | 1 | 86% | ⚔ compare |
| Gourmet Rednecks | 7 | 6 | 1 | 86% | ⚔ compare |
| SMOKIN HOGGZ BBQ - MA | 7 | 5 | 2 | 71% | ⚔ compare |
| 92 BB Crew | 7 | 5 | 2 | 71% | ⚔ compare |
| HOT WACHULA'S | 7 | 5 | 2 | 71% | ⚔ compare |
| SWAMP BOYS | 7 | 5 | 2 | 71% | ⚔ compare |
| Smokin' Ain't EZ | 7 | 4 | 3 | 57% | ⚔ compare |
| K & E's Little Smokers | 6 | 6 | 0 | 100% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 10 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 175.4172 | 162.8000 | 168.60 | top 29% |
| Pork Ribs | 10 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 176.5716 | 155.9200 | 167.75 | top 31% |
| Pork | 10 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 180 🔥 | 153.6456 | 166.09 | top 41% |
| Brisket | 10 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 180 🔥 | 156.5028 | 166.09 | top 32% |
“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) | 2 | 0 | top 53% |
| Large (40+) | 8 | 1 | top 23% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lakeland Pig Festival | 7 | 1 | 1 | top 16% | Jan 22, 2026 |
More numbers
Busiest season
2018
2 contests
Contests a season
1.2
across 10 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
FL
12 of 12 contests
Contests visited
4
1 of them more than once
First title
Jan 28, 2022
Lakeland Pig Festival
Opponents faced
432
finished ahead 677 times, behind 168
Longest layoff
2 yrs
Jan 24, 2020 → Jan 28, 2022
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20262 milestones
- Peak power rating (1579) Lakeland Pig Festival
- Most recent contest Lakeland Pig Festival
20251 milestone
- First perfect 180 (Brisket) Lakeland Pig Festival
20241 milestone
- 10th tracked contest Lakeland Pig Festival
20231 milestone
- Career-best overall score686.2288 Lakeland Pig Festival
20225 milestones
- First category win (Chicken) Lakeland Pig Festival
- First Grand Championship Lakeland Pig Festival
- First state championship Lakeland Pig Festival
- First multi-meat day Lakeland Pig Festival
- Biggest field won (60 teams) Lakeland Pig Festival
20192 milestones
- First overall top-10 Lakeland Pig Festival
- First overall podium Lakeland Pig Festival
20163 milestones
- First tracked contest Plant City Pig Jam
- First call Plant City Pig Jam
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score652.4228 Plant City Pig Jam
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +17.1 | Lakeland Pig Festival | Jan 28, 2022 |
| +16.1 | Lakeland Pig Festival | Jan 25, 2019 |
| +14.7 | Lakeland Pig Festival | Jan 27, 2023 |
| +14.2 | Lakeland Pig Festival | Jan 24, 2020 |
| +9.1 | Lakeland Pig Festival | Jan 22, 2026 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -2.3 | Suncoast Credit Union Plant City Pig Jam | Nov 16, 2018 |
| -0.6 | When Pigs Fly South | Dec 2, 2016 |
Scores over time (% of a perfect score — 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 | 1 | 100% | top 19% | 94.4% | 94.4% |
| 2025 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 100% | top 50% | 92.8% | 92.8% |
| 2024 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 25% | 93% | 93% |
| 2023 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 6% | 95.3% | 95.3% |
| 2022 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 100% | top 2% | 94% | 94% |
| 2020 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 8% | 92.9% | 92.9% |
| 2019 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 5% | 93.7% | 93.7% |
| 2018 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50% | top 68% | 90.1% | 90.1% |
| 2017 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2016 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 53% | 91.6% | 91.1% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 22, 2026 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 12 / 63 (339.9428) | 19 (167.3828) | 12 (172.5600) | 1 (180) | 26 (161.0856) |
| Jan 24, 2025 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 20 / 40 (334.2172) | 31 (163.3944) | 11 (170.8228) | 7 (174.2628) | 1 (180) |
| Jan 26, 2024 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 15 / 61 (334.7772) | 29 (162.8000) | 8 (171.9772) | 45 (156.5144) | 30 (156.5028) |
| Jan 27, 2023 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 3 / 51 (686.2288) | 15 (167.3828) | 2 (176.5716) | 2 (176.5944) | 17 (165.6800) |
| Jan 28, 2022 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 1 / 60 (676.5488) | 1 (175.4172) | 10 (167.4516) | 26 (158.2628) | 1 (175.4172) |
| Jan 24, 2020 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 4 / 53 (669.0740) | 12 (167.9772) | 17 (165.6800) | 4 (171.4056) | 13 (164.0112) |
| Jan 25, 2019 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 3 / 58 (674.8344) | 13 (166.8800) | 4 (171.9772) | 4 (172) | 14 (163.9772) |
| Nov 16, 2018 | Suncoast Credit Union Plant City Pig Jam Plant City, FL | 30 / 44 (648.9256) | 5 (175.4056) | 37 (155.9200) | 39 (158.2172) | 29 (159.3828) |
| Jan 26, 2018 | Lakeland Pig Festival Lakeland, FL | — | — | — | — | — |
| Jan 27, 2017 | Lakeland Pig Festival Lakeland, FL | — | — | — | — | — |
| Dec 2, 2016 | When Pigs Fly South Lakeland, FL | 20 / 36 (659.8744) | 8 (170.2512) | 23 (161.1088) | 28 (159.9544) | 14 (168.5600) |
| Nov 18, 2016 | Plant City Pig Jam Plant City, FL | 19 / 38 (652.4228) | 8 (169.1200) | 18 (163.3944) | 32 (153.6456) | 14 (166.2628) |