BIG BAD WOLVES

At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)

KCBS records held

1 🥇

most visits to one contest

Power ranking

#6382

of 6,413 rated · rankings

Rating

1366

peak 1366 · rated over 24 contests ⓘ

Contests

in the data

First seen

2013-07-12

latest 2026-07-11

Best ToY finish

#1148

Master 2025

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

0 podiums

Overall top-10s

of 30 contests

Avg finish

top 80%

overall standings

Best overall

664.4572 / 720

Master · American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest

Perfect 180s

Current form

567.95 ▼

last 5 Master vs avg 587.16 (-19.21)

Walk rate

10%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

170.8456

Pork Ribs · Vine St BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY)

Consistency

±53.10

std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Pork Ribs

avg 151.66 · weakest Brisket (144.50)

Road miles

17,309

mi across 28 mapped stops · furthest 1075 mi

Schedule strength

30%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1540)

Purse competed for

$371K

listed at 20 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

GCs in 13 state-championship entries

Master avg

587.16 / 720

21 Master contests · 0 GCs

Backyard avg

315.14 / 360

5 Backyard contests · 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.

This team cooks the Backyard series — its own boards, records and Team of the Year are here.

⚔ Compare with another team

Storylines (10 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.

High-water mark

664.4572 career-best overall

92.3% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 664.4572 at American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest — 92.3% of a perfect 720.

Master
2025-11-05

A tough matchup

14–0 behind in the head-to-head

Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit ahead in 100% of their meetings

Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit has come out ahead in 14 of their 14 shared contests.

The weak link

−7.2 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 7.16 points below their pork ribs, and turns into a call 0% of the time against 4%.

Brisket avg 144.50
Pork Ribs avg 151.66
0 calls in 21 entries

A strong matchup

6–1 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 86% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of Wine & Swine in 6 of their 7 shared contests.

The comeback

1.8 yrs off the trail, then back

Off the trail for 1.8 years, then back at New Jersey State BBQ Championship (2021-07-09).

last seen 2019-09-12
back 2021-07-09

Pork Ribs nemesis

13 of 14 shared pork ribs entries lost

Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit ahead 93% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit has out-cooked them in 13 of 14 shared pork ribs entries.

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

BONES & BIBS SWINE TEAM has landed one call behind them 2 times.

Boom or bust

±7.14% swing around their own average

Their overall swings ±7.14% of a perfect score around its own average — when it lands they're dangerous, and when it doesn't the weekend is gone by lunch.

averages 82.7% of a perfect score
best 92.3%

The long haul

17,309 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 17,309 miles across 28 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 1,075 miles to Smoke Out Hunger BBQ Challenge.

28 mapped stops
furthest 1,075 mi

A standing appointment

7 years running at one contest

They've cooked New Jersey State Barbecue Championship every year from 2013 to 2019 — the contest they never miss.

12 visits in all
best finish 57th

Record book — 1 held (1 in the KCBS record book)

Where this team stands in the all-time KCBS record book. A gold line is a record they hold outright; the rest are boards they are on. Rebuilt nightly, so beating one shows up here the next morning.

🥇 🧲 Most visits to one contest 12 editions of the same contest cooked · 2013 → 2026 · 11 Jul 2026 · shared with at least 9 others

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.

MIKE'S MOUNTAIN BBQ

#6379 of the rated field

1367 ▲ 1 power rating

Contests: 21
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1367

No shared contest yet.

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 21 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 21 contests
last seen 2023-03-03

⚔ Head-to-head

SMOKIN ON THE FLAT

#6381 of the rated field

1367 ▲ 1 power rating

Contests: 19
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1367

No shared contest yet.

Their last contest in the data was back in 2021, 5 years before BIG BAD WOLVES's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 19 contests

⚔ Head-to-head

JOLLEY'S BAD TO THE BONE BARBEQUE

#6384 of the rated field

1365 ▼ 1 power rating

Contests: 34
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1365

No shared contest yet.

Careers of much the same size, 34 contests to 30, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 34 contests
last seen 2024-01-12

⚔ Head-to-head

Right Time BBQ

#6383 of the rated field

1365 ▼ 1 power rating

Contests: 14
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1365

No shared contest yet.

14 contests and no Grand Championship yet.

rated over 14 contests
last seen 2022-09-23

⚔ Head-to-head

CHOO CHOO TRAIN BBQ

#6380 of the rated field

1367 ▲ 1 power rating

Contests: 76
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 5%
Peak: 1367

No shared contest yet.

Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2013.

rated over 76 contests
last seen 2024-04-26

⚔ Head-to-head

Mark's Meats and Treats

#6385 of the rated field

1364 ▼ 2 power rating

Contests: 23
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 4%
Peak: 1364

No shared contest yet.

Rated 2 points below BIG BAD WOLVES.

rated over 23 contests
last seen 2026-05-30

⚔ Head-to-head

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

Opponent	Meetings	Behind	Win rate
Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit	14	14	0%	⚔ compare
B'S QUE	13	13	0%	⚔ compare
Palm tree smokehouse	13	13	0%	⚔ compare
PHILLY BLIND PIG BBQ	13	13	0%	⚔ compare
LOCAL SMOKE BBQ	13	13	0%	⚔ compare
SIR-PORK'S-ALOT BBQ	12	12	0%	⚔ compare
GLAZED AND INFUSED NEW JERSEY BBQ	11	11	0%	⚔ compare
Nice Racks	11	11	0%	⚔ compare
Philly Smoke	11	11	0%	⚔ compare
SWINE AND CHEESE	11	11	0%	⚔ compare
Bar B Q Dat	11	11	0%	⚔ compare
CHUNKY BBQ	10	10	0%	⚔ compare
GOOD GOOGLY GOO BBQ	10	10	0%	⚔ compare
PACKANACK LAKE BBQ CLUB	10	10	0%	⚔ compare
Tom Tom Bob A Que	10	10	0%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	25	2	170.2628	135.3600	151.24	top 77%
Pork Ribs	26	1	170.8456	125.0516	151.66	top 72%
Pork	21	0	170.8456	131.4056	149.88	top 80%
Brisket	21	0	169.7144	121.6340	144.50	top 81%

“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	Avg finish
NJ	13	top 95%
KS	8	top 78%
IL	5	top 47%

By contest size

Field	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
Medium (20–39)	4	0	top 43%
Large (40+)	22	0	top 87%

Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
New Jersey State Barbecue Championship	12	57	top 95%	2026-07-11
Vine St BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY)	5	11	top 47%	2024-08-24
American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest	2	273	top 82%	2025-11-05
American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest	2	314	top 74%	2023-09-27

The story so far (18 numbers that describe this team)

On the trail 13 yrs 2013-07-12 → 2026-07-11

Busiest season 2024 4 contests

Contests a season 2.1 across 14 seasons in the data

Cooks most in NJ 13 of 30 contests · 3 states/provinces in all

Contests visited 9 4 of them cooked more than once

Most-entered meat Pork Ribs 26 entries · 0 wins · 1 calls

Strongest meat Pork Ribs averages 151.66 · weakest Brisket (144.50)

Walk rate 10% a top-10 call in 3 of 30 contests

Overall top-10 rate 0% 0 of 30 contests

Master average 587.16 out of 720 · 21 contests · 0 GCs

Backyard average 315.14 out of 360 · 5 contests · 0 GCs

Opponents faced 1,880 813–3,489 across every shared overall standing

Road miles 17,309 28 mapped stops · furthest 1,075 mi

Schedule strength 1540 average field rating faced — tougher than 30% of rated contests

Purse competed for $370,510 listed at 20 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships 0 from 13 state-championship entries

Longest layoff 1.8 yrs 2019-09-12 → 2021-07-09

Power rating 1366 peak 1366 · #6382 of 6,413 rated

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

First tracked contest Vine St BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY)
First call Vine St BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY)
2013
Jul 12 Peak power rating (1485) New Jersey State Barbecue Championship
2018
Jul 14 10th tracked contest New Jersey State Barbecue Championship
2019
Jun 7 First overall past 90% of a perfect score655.3600 Smoke Out Hunger BBQ Challenge
2023
Sep 16 Career-best single call (Pork Ribs)170.8456 Vine St BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY)
2024
Oct 30 25th tracked contest American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Sides
2025
Nov 5 Career-best overall score664.4572 American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest
2026
Jul 11 Most recent contest New Jersey State Barbecue Championship

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+13	Vine St BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY)	2024-08-24
+3.8	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - OPEN CONTEST	2022-09-29
+2.3	Vine St BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY)	2023-09-16
+2.3	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest	2025-11-05
+2.3	Smoke Out Hunger BBQ Challenge	2019-06-07

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-14.8	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship	2013-07-12
-13.5	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship	2016-07-08
-12.8	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship	2014-07-11
-12	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship	2015-07-10
-10.7	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship	2017-07-07

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	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
—	2	50%	top 40%	88.5%	86.1%
2026	1	0%	top 95%	78.9%	78.9%
2025	3	0%	top 81%	92.3%	86.2%
2024	4	25%	top 76%	91.1%	78.1%
2023	4	25%	top 78%	89.2%	87.1%
2022	4	0%	top 74%	91.6%	85.6%
2021	1	0%	top 95%	77.9%	77.9%
2019	3	0%	top 82%	91%	86.3%
2018	1	0%	top 91%	78.9%	78.9%
2017	2	0%	top 87%	87.4%	82.1%
2016	2	0%	top 88%	87.6%	79.9%
2015	1	0%	top 94%	79.6%	79.6%
2014	1	0%	top 94%	79.8%	79.8%
2013	1	0%	top 97%	75.2%	75.2%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2026-07-11	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship 🏅 North Wildwood, NJ	59 / 62 (568.3200)	61 (135.3600)	62 (143.9428)	59 (139.9772)	52 (149.0400)
2025-11-05	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Sides Kansas City, KS	—	—	—	—	—
2025-11-05	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest 🏅 Kansas City, KS	273 / 401 (664.4572)	289 (165.7028)	292 (165.0972)	314 (163.9428)	148 (169.7144)
2025-07-12	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship 🏅 North Wildwood, NJ	59 / 63 (576.9256)	38 (162.2744)	62 (134.2056)	47 (155.9656)	61 (124.4800)
2024-10-30	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest 🏅 Kansas City, KS	427 / 444 (604.4800)	439 (141.1084)	395 (157.0972)	438 (140.0000)	242 (166.2744)
2024-10-30	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Sides Kansas City, KS	—	—	—	—	—
2024-08-24	Vine St BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY) Park Ridge, IL	11 / 36 (328.0000)	7 (170.2628)	20 (157.7372)	—	—
2024-07-13	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship 🏅 North Wildwood, NJ	62 / 62 (425.5428)	—	47 (155.4056)	61 (138.8000)	61 (131.3372)
2023-09-27	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest 🏅 Kansas City, KS	416 / 487 (635.9088)	357 (163.4056)	445 (153.6688)	388 (159.4400)	371 (159.3944)
2023-09-27	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Sides Kansas City, KS	—	—	—	—	—
2023-09-16	Vine St BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY) Park Ridge, IL	21 / 35 (321.0856)	30 (150.2400)	10 (170.8456)	—	—
2023-07-14	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship 🏅 North Wildwood, NJ	57 / 64 (602.6744)	60 (142.8000)	54 (151.9316)	40 (160.5944)	54 (147.3484)
2022-10-01	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - SIDES Kansas City, KS	—	—	—	—	—
2022-09-29	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - OPEN CONTEST 🏅 Kansas City, KS	314 / 505 (659.3368)	447 (156.5028)	187 (169.6912)	156 (170.8456)	311 (162.2972)
2022-08-20	Vine St. BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY) Park Ridge, IL	26 / 41 (306.7428)	31 (149.0856)	21 (157.6572)	—	—
2022-07-09	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship 🏅 North Wildwood, NJ	58 / 61 (577.0172)	55 (152.5372)	53 (146.8344)	60 (138.8228)	58 (138.8228)
2021-07-09	New Jersey State BBQ Championship 🏅 North Wildwood, NJ	56 / 59 (560.9940)	53 (145.1200)	54 (137.1428)	57 (133.6456)	47 (145.0856)
2019-09-12	40th American Royal World Series of Barbecue- OPEN CONTEST 🏅 Kansas City, KS	414 / 468 (618.1028)	452 (146.2400)	406 (154.2056)	295 (162.2972)	369 (155.3600)
2019-07-12	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship 🏅 North Wildwood, NJ	61 / 64 (590.1136)	56 (147.9312)	34 (158.2740)	57 (148.4912)	63 (135.4172)
2019-06-07	Smoke Out Hunger BBQ Challenge 🏅 Kansas City, KS	29 / 46 (655.3600)	21 (167.4172)	32 (161.6916)	35 (160.5484)	22 (165.7028)
2018-07-14	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship North Wildwood, NJ	58 / 64 (567.8624)	54 (143.3828)	34 (155.4400)	52 (147.4056)	63 (121.6340)
2017-09-01	38th American Royal World Series of Barbecue (OPEN) Kansas City, KS	327 / 407 (629.5196)	374 (151.9312)	279 (160.5716)	277 (161.6456)	315 (155.3712)
2017-07-07	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship North Wildwood, NJ	63 / 67 (552.9488)	62 (140.5716)	67 (134.8000)	57 (141.6800)	60 (135.8972)
2016-10-29	37th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue(OPEN) Kansas City, KS	428 / 557 (630.7772)	446 (155.9656)	184 (167.9888)	336 (162.2628)	515 (144.5600)
2016-07-08	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship North Wildwood, NJ	65 / 65 (520.3772)	63 (138.8228)	65 (125.0516)	64 (131.4056)	64 (125.0972)
2015-07-10	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship North Wildwood, NJ	61 / 65 (573.0860)	49 (154.3200)	62 (139.9544)	54 (147.9772)	59 (130.8344)
2014-07-11	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship North Wildwood, NJ	61 / 65 (574.8796)	53 (145.1656)	37 (150.8684)	46 (149.1428)	60 (129.7028)
2013-07-12	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship North Wildwood, NJ	63 / 65 (541.5768)	58 (138.2400)	60 (129.7028)	64 (132.5140)	46 (141.1200)
	Vine St BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY) Park Ridge, IL	11 / 38 (318.7656)	14 (159.3828)	12 (159.3828)	—	—
	Vine St BBQ Competition & Fest (BACKYARD ONLY) Park Ridge, IL	20 / 39 (301.1088)	8 (157.1200)	31 (143.9888)	—	—

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
2025 ↗	Master	#1148 (60 pts)	#1221 (60 pts)	#1293 (60 pts)	#1190 (60 pts)	#1190 (60 pts)
2024 ↗	Master	#1182 (60 pts)	#1242 (60 pts)	#1317 (60 pts)	#1231 (60 pts)	#1204 (60 pts)
2023 ↗	Master	#1255 (60 pts)	#1319 (60 pts)	#1432 (60 pts)	#1287 (60 pts)	#1296 (60 pts)
2022 ↗	Master	#1309 (60 pts)	#1341 (60 pts)	#1404 (60 pts)	#1348 (60 pts)	#1333 (60 pts)
2019 ↗	Master	#1471 (120 pts)	#1483 (140 pts)	#1575 (120 pts)	#1578 (120 pts)	#1465 (135 pts)
2017 ↗	Master	#2212 (60 pts)	#2286 (60 pts)	#2304 (60 pts)	#2260 (60 pts)	#2266 (60 pts)
2016 ↗	Master	#2274 (60 pts)	#2353 (60 pts)	#2349 (60 pts)	#2326 (60 pts)	#2345 (60 pts)