A tough matchup
4–0
behind in the head-to-head
LUCKY'S Q ahead in 100% of their meetings
LUCKY'S Q has come out ahead in 4 of their 4 shared contests.
HOWARD BROTHERS BBQ
At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)
Rating
1471
peak 1471 · rated over 4 contests ⓘ
Contests
4
in the data
First seen
2017-06-02
latest 2018-09-28
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
0
of 4 contests
Avg finish
top 83%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
624.83
last 4 Master vs avg 624.83 (+0.00)
Walk rate
25%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±7.17
std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork
avg 157.38 · weakest Brisket (155.52)
Road miles
208
mi across 4 mapped stops · furthest 108 mi
Schedule strength
54%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1569)
Master avg
624.83 / 720
4 Master contests · 0 GCs
Storylines (1 found in this team's record)
Each card leads with the number that made it a story — read straight out of their results, no editorialising.
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The nearest teams in the power rankings, with a different reason on each card — six teams on one rating are rarely on it for the same reason. Rating decides who makes the list; where teams tie on it, the ones this team has actually cooked against come first, then teams at a similar point in their own career. KCBS doesn’t publish where a team is from, so nothing here is inferred from geography.
HOWARD BROTHERS BBQ has 4 rated contests — short of the five it takes to earn a power ranking — so this rating has barely moved off the 1500 every team starts on and 129 rated teams sit within a point of it. Read the list as the nearest company at a number nobody here has moved far from, not as a verdict on who this team belongs with.
#4569 of the rated field
- Contests
- 44
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1471
0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to HOWARD BROTHERS BBQ)
One contest in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team HOWARD BROTHERS BBQ has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#4572 of the rated field
- Contests
- 60
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 10%
- Peak
- 1536
0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to HOWARD BROTHERS BBQ)
They've been 1536 at their best, 65 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.
⚔ Head-to-head#4583 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1471
No shared contest yet.
Careers of much the same size, 5 contests to 4, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Head-to-head#4558 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1471
No shared contest yet.
They turned up 8 years after HOWARD BROTHERS BBQ did, first appearing in 2025.
⚔ Head-to-head#4566 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1507
No shared contest yet.
Level with HOWARD BROTHERS BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Head-to-head#4568 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1471
No shared contest yet.
Careers of much the same size, 5 contests to 4, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Head-to-headBy meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 161.1316 | 152.5140 | 156.10 | top 82% |
| Pork Ribs | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 161.6916 | 145.0972 | 155.83 | top 73% |
| Pork | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 169.1428 | 144.4800 | 157.38 | top 73% |
| Brisket | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 165.1200 | 149.6572 | 155.52 | top 69% |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| IA | 2 | 0 | top 83% |
| WI | 1 | 0 | top 86% |
| MN | 1 | 0 | top 80% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 2 | 0 | top 81% |
| Large (40+) | 2 | 0 | top 85% |
Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash | 2 | 22 | 0 | top 83% | 2018-09-28 |
The story so far (15 numbers that describe this team)
On the trail
1.3 yrs
2017-06-02 → 2018-09-28
Busiest season
2017
3 contests
Contests a season
2
across 2 seasons in the data
Cooks most in
IA
2 of 4 contests · 3 states/provinces in all
Contests visited
3
1 of them cooked more than once
Most-entered meat
Chicken
4 entries · 0 wins · 0 calls
Strongest meat
Pork
averages 157.38 · weakest Brisket (155.52)
Walk rate
25%
a top-10 call in 1 of 4 contests
Overall top-10 rate
0%
0 of 4 contests
Master average
624.83
out of 720 · 4 contests · 0 GCs
Opponents faced
111
26–131 across every shared overall standing
Road miles
208
4 mapped stops · furthest 108 mi
Schedule strength
1569
average field rating faced — tougher than 54% of rated contests
Longest layoff
1.2 yrs
2017-07-21 → 2018-09-28
Power rating
1471
peak 1471 · #null of 6,413 rated
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
- 2017
- First tracked contest Smokin In Steele
- Peak power rating (1492) Smokin In Steele
- Career-best overall score632.4804 *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash
- Career-best single call (Pork)169.1428 *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash
- 2018
- First call *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash
- Most recent contest *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -9.1 | *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash | 2017-07-21 |
| -8.7 | *Rotary Rockn Ribs | 2017-06-23 |
| -7.6 | Smokin In Steele | 2017-06-02 |
| -3.5 | *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash | 2018-09-28 |
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)
Season by season
| Season | Contests | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 76% | 86.7% | 86.7% |
| 2017 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 86% | 87.8% | 86.8% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-09-28 | *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash Mason City, IA | 22 / 29 (624.3428) | 24 (153.6228) | 29 (145.0972) | 18 (160.5028) | 9 (165.1200) |
| 2017-07-21 | *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash Mason City, IA | 44 / 49 (632.4804) | 39 (157.1316) | 39 (156.5488) | 20 (169.1428) | 46 (149.6572) |
| 2017-06-23 | *Rotary Rockn Ribs LaCrosse, WI | 32 / 37 (613.4740) | 34 (152.5140) | 21 (159.9772) | 35 (144.4800) | 25 (156.5028) |
| 2017-06-02 | Smokin In Steele Owatonna, MN | 37 / 46 (629.0404) | 34 (161.1316) | 25 (161.6916) | 43 (155.4056) | 38 (150.8116) |