ALWAYS SMOK'D

ALWAYS SMOK'D is a competition barbecue team with 18 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2014 and 2018. Their best overall finish is 10th of 30 at the 3rd Annual Valley Veterans Barbecue Competition (2014). They are ranked #5000 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

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At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#5,000

of 6,491 rated · rankings

Rating

1463

peak 1507 · rated over 18 contests

Contests

in the data

First seen

May 30, 2014

latest Aug 10, 2018 · 4.2 years on the trail

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

1 podium

Overall top-10s

6% of 18 contests

Avg finish

top 68%

overall standings

Best overall

662.2172 / 720

Master · Riverfest Community Festival

Perfect 180s

Current form

633.56 ▼

last 5 Master vs avg 637.26 (-3.69)

Walk rate

39%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

173.1656

Brisket · 3rd Annual Valley Veterans Barbecue Competition

Consistency

±13.05

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 161.07 · weakest Pork Ribs (158.58)

Road miles

352

across 18 mapped stops · furthest 69 mi

Schedule strength

55%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1570)

Master avg

637.26 / 720

18 Master contests · 0 GCs

Storylines (7 found in their record)

Each card leads with the number behind the story, straight from their results.

The one to beat

3× one call ahead of them

COUNTRY ROADS NE has finished one call ahead of ALWAYS SMOK'D 3 times — their closest competition in the data.

A tough matchup

15–0 behind in the head-to-head

WHEN PIGS DIE ahead in 100% of their meetings

WHEN PIGS DIE has come out ahead in 15 of their 15 shared contests.

A strong matchup

6–2 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 75% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of GRILLERS IN THE MIST in 6 of their 8 shared contests.

Chicken nemesis

13 of 14 shared chicken entries lost

PORKY BUTTS BBQ ahead 93% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, PORKY BUTTS BBQ has out-cooked them in 13 of 14 shared chicken entries.

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

TEAM BREW & QUE has landed one call behind them 2 times.

A July team

Top 51% average finish in July

Something about July: average finish in the top 51% across 4 contests, versus top 68% the rest of the year.

4 July contests
top 68% the rest of the year

The metronome

±1.81% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±1.81% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 88.5% of a perfect score
18 contests

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to ALWAYS SMOK'D, each with one reason worth a look.

131 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.

Pancho, Cisco, The Kid, and Company

#5,003 of the rated field

1463 power rating

Contests: 16
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1510

They've been 1510 at their best, 47 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.

rated over 16 contests
last seen Sep 30, 2026

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BADASS BBQ TEAM

#4,995 of the rated field

1463 power rating

Contests: 14
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1463

Careers of much the same size, 14 contests to 18, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 14 contests
last seen Jun 3, 2016

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SMOKEY THE BOAR

#4,994 of the rated field

1463 power rating

Contests: 24
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 25%
Peak: 1463

24 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 25% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 24 contests
last seen May 14, 2022

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Blackjack bbq

#5,013 of the rated field

1463 power rating

Contests: 15
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 20%
Peak: 1463

Level with ALWAYS SMOK'D on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 12 contests
last seen Sep 18, 2026

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Ain't it the Life

#4,991 of the rated field

1463 power rating

Contests: 13
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 15%
Peak: 1463

They turned up 5 years after ALWAYS SMOK'D did, first appearing in 2019.

rated over 12 contests
last seen Sep 21, 2023

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PETE'S PIG PIT POSSE

#5,009 of the rated field

1463 power rating

Contests: 12
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1463

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 12 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 12 contests
last seen Aug 16, 2019

⚔ Compare careers

Familiar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
HELPING U BBQ	16	2	14	13%	⚔ compare
WHEN PIGS DIE	15	0	15	0%	⚔ compare
PORKY BUTTS BBQ	14	0	14	0%	⚔ compare
TATTOO BOB'S BAR-B-Q	14	0	14	0%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN' LEFTY'S BBQ	13	2	11	15%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN DINGER - THE PROFESSOR OF HOGOLOGY	13	1	12	8%	⚔ compare
SPICE YOUR LIFE RUB YOUR MEAT	12	7	5	58%	⚔ compare
OFF IN THE PITS SMOKE TEAM	11	6	5	55%	⚔ compare
PORK PATROL BBQ	11	0	11	0%	⚔ compare
WOODWARD BARBEQUE	11	0	11	0%	⚔ compare
SPITFIRE	11	0	11	0%	⚔ compare
ELWOOD BBQ	10	2	8	20%	⚔ compare
YOU GONNA LIKE IT	10	2	8	20%	⚔ compare
HOT GRILL ON GRILL ACTION	10	0	10	0%	⚔ compare
PARROTHEAD SMOKERS	10	0	10	0%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	18	3	0	172.6056	147.9428	161.07	top 61%
Pork Ribs	18	1	0	166.2628	150.2628	158.58	top 67%
Pork	18	1	0	172	144.5256	158.66	top 67%
Brisket	18	3	1	173.1656	138.7656	158.95	top 60%

“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	Avg finish
Small (<20 teams)	1	top 89%
Medium (20–39)	7	top 68%
Large (40+)	10	top 65%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
NE	16	0	top 67%
IA	2	0	top 78%

Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
RiverFest Red White and Que	3	21	0	top 56%	Jul 15, 2016

More numbers

Busiest season 2015 5 contests

Contests a season 3.6 across 5 seasons in the data

Most contests held in NE 16 of 18 contests · 2 states in all

Contests visited 16 1 of them more than once

Opponents faced 280 finished ahead 238 times, behind 479

Longest layoff 1 yrs Aug 4, 2017 → Aug 10, 2018

Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)

20181 milestone

Aug 10 Most recent contest 26th Annual State BBQ Championship of Nebraska

20171 milestone

Jul 21 Career-best overall score662.2172 Riverfest Community Festival

20151 milestone

Sep 25 10th tracked contest Aksarben Stock Show & Rodeo

20146 milestones

May 30 First tracked contest 3rd Annual Valley Veterans Barbecue Competition
May 30 First call 3rd Annual Valley Veterans Barbecue Competition
May 30 First overall top-10 3rd Annual Valley Veterans Barbecue Competition
May 30 First overall past 90% of a perfect score657.6456 3rd Annual Valley Veterans Barbecue Competition
May 30 Career-best single call (Brisket)173.1656 3rd Annual Valley Veterans Barbecue Competition
May 30 Peak power rating (1507) 3rd Annual Valley Veterans Barbecue Competition

Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+8.3	Riverfest Community Festival	Jul 21, 2017
+7.2	3rd Annual Valley Veterans Barbecue Competition	May 30, 2014
+3.8	RiverFest Red White and Que	Jul 15, 2016
+1.4	5th Annual Valley Veteran's BBQ Competition	May 20, 2016
+0.6	Ak-Sar-Ben's River City Rodeo & Stock Show	Sep 26, 2014

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-9.7	Aksarben Stock Show & Rodeo	Sep 25, 2015
-8.2	Septemberfest BBQ & Rib-eye Steak Cookoff Challenge	Sep 3, 2016
-6.9	22nd Annual State Barbeque Championship of Nebraska	Aug 15, 2014
-5.9	BBQ in the Bluffs	May 8, 2015
-5.2	26th Annual State BBQ Championship of Nebraska	Aug 10, 2018

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	Top-10s	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2018	1	0	0%	top 83%	87.6%	87.6%
2017	3	0	33%	top 68%	92%	88.3%
2016	4	0	50%	top 67%	90.9%	88.9%
2015	5	0	20%	top 73%	89.7%	87.8%
2014	5	1	60%	top 60%	91.3%	89.2%

Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Aug 10, 2018	26th Annual State BBQ Championship of Nebraska Arlington, NE	25 / 30 (630.6628)	19 (162.7884)	23 (161.1200)	21 (159.9772)	26 (146.7772)
Aug 4, 2017	Omaha Steaks Nebraska BBQ Championship Day -1 Omaha, NE	47 / 54 (614.1140)	44 (158.8000)	44 (155.9656)	53 (144.5256)	46 (154.8228)
Jul 21, 2017	Riverfest Community Festival Bellevue, NE	18 / 46 (662.2172)	14 (169.1200)	27 (160.5600)	28 (162.2744)	9 (170.2628)
May 19, 2017	6th Annual Valley Veterans BBQ Competition Valley, NE	37 / 47 (630.6852)	41 (156.4912)	37 (155.4284)	27 (162.8228)	35 (155.9428)
Sep 3, 2016	Septemberfest BBQ & Rib-eye Steak Cookoff Challenge Omaha, NE	42 / 45 (630.1372)	45 (149.0972)	43 (150.2628)	13 (168.5256)	30 (162.2516)
Aug 5, 2016	24th Annual State BBQ Championship of Nebraska Omaha, NE	51 / 70 (631.2800)	61 (153.0856)	49 (158.2860)	54 (154.2400)	27 (165.6684)
Jul 15, 2016	RiverFest Red White and Que Bellevue, NE	22 / 45 (654.7656)	28 (161.1200)	21 (161.6916)	28 (161.6684)	7 (170.2856)
May 20, 2016	5th Annual Valley Veteran's BBQ Competition Valley, NE	23 / 42 (645.0168)	4 (172.6056)	32 (154.8000)	24 (163.9656)	31 (153.6456)
Sep 25, 2015	Aksarben Stock Show & Rodeo Omaha, NE	16 / 18 (635.2572)	16 (158.7884)	7 (166.2628)	14 (160.5488)	18 (149.6572)
Aug 14, 2015	23rd Annual State BBQ Championship of Nebraska Omaha, NE	29 / 42 (646.1600)	32 (157.0856)	23 (161.7028)	24 (165.0972)	25 (162.2744)
Jul 17, 2015	RiverFest Red White and Que Bellevue, NE	26 / 45 (640.3880)	27 (160.5484)	19 (163.9428)	40 (153.0740)	21 (162.8228)
Jun 26, 2015	3rd Annual Ribstock MBA BBQ Festival Omaha, NE	24 / 34 (629.0512)	23 (158.8456)	25 (153.6800)	23 (153.6800)	16 (162.8456)
May 8, 2015	BBQ in the Bluffs Council Bluffs, IA	26 / 33 (609.5544)	31 (147.9428)	23 (157.1088)	27 (150.2400)	23 (154.2628)
Oct 11, 2014	WinnaVegas Rib Master Classic Sloan, IA	26 / 34 (638.7084)	16 (166.8228)	24 (159.9884)	30 (150.2172)	22 (161.6800)
Sep 26, 2014	Ak-Sar-Ben's River City Rodeo & Stock Show Omaha, NE	25 / 47 (639.8628)	4 (171.4056)	29 (158.2400)	39 (153.6800)	33 (156.5372)
Aug 15, 2014	22nd Annual State Barbeque Championship of Nebraska LaPlatte, NE	29 / 38 (634.7200)	31 (157.0856)	27 (158.8344)	30 (159.3828)	23 (159.4172)
Jul 18, 2014	RiverFest Red White and Que Bellevue, NE	21 / 35 (640.4112)	11 (169.1312)	23 (160.5144)	7 (172)	33 (138.7656)
May 30, 2014	3rd Annual Valley Veterans Barbecue Competition Valley, NE	10 / 30 (657.6456)	5 (168.5256)	20 (155.9772)	13 (159.9772)	2 (173.1656)

ALWAYS SMOK'D

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

Rating

Contests

First seen

Grand champs

Category wins

Overall top-10s

Avg finish

Best overall

Perfect 180s

Current form

Walk rate

Best single call

Consistency

Strongest meat

Road miles

Schedule strength

Master avg

Storylines (7 found in their record)

The one to beat

A tough matchup

A strong matchup

Chicken nemesis

Looking over their shoulder

A July team

The metronome

Teams like this (closest power rating)

Familiar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)

By meat

By field size and state

By contest size

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)

More numbers

Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)

Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)

📈 Biggest rating jumps

📉 Toughest weekends

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

Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)

Career map (orange GC · green top-10 · grey the rest — tap a pin)