Budget BBQ AL
Rating
1514
peak 1514
Contests
12
in the data
First seen
2024-04-19
latest 2026-05-15
Best ToY finish
#41
Backyard 2026
Grand champs
1
0 reserve
Category wins
2
4 podiums
Overall top-10s
2
of 12 contests
Avg finish
top 57%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
343.05 ▼
last 5 vs career avg 366.51 (-23.46)
Walk rate
75%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±61.90
std dev of overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork Ribs
avg 173.89 · weakest Pork (157.67)
Road miles
683
mi across 12 mapped stops · furthest 120 mi
Storylines
👀 Looking over their shoulder
Gustoso BBQ has landed one call behind them 3 times.
⚔️ A tough matchup
LEE LA Q has come out ahead in 9 of their 10 shared contests.
⚔️ A strong matchup
They've finished ahead of LWS Smokin Aces in 5 of their 7 shared contests.
🗡️ Giant slayer
Took the Grand Championship over a 36-team field at Smoke on the Falls.
📅 A April team
Something about April: average finish in the top 42% across 3 contests, versus top 57% the rest of the year.
Teams like this (closest power rating, AL first)
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 174.2744 | 158.8000 | 165.58 | top 70% |
| Pork Ribs | 12 | 9 | 2 | 4 | 179.4400 | 166.2400 | 173.89 | top 27% |
| Pork | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 166.2856 | 149.0516 | 157.67 | top 80% |
| Brisket | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — |
“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 | 9 | 1 | top 56% |
| TN | 3 | 0 | top 59% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 2 | 0 | top 55% |
| Medium (20–39) | 8 | 1 | top 60% |
| Large (40+) | 2 | 0 | top 48% |
The story so far
- Busiest season: 2026 (5 contests)
- Cooks mostly in AL (9 of 12 contests)
- Most-entered category: Chicken (12 entries)
- First Grand Championship in the data: Smoke on the Falls (2026-04-03)
- Wins it all in 8% of contests
- All-time average overall score: 366.51
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
Category scores over time
Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)
Where they finish (overall)
Best vs average (by meat)
Team of the Year rank by season
Season by season
| Season | Contests | GCs | Category wins | Best overall | Avg overall |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 353.7144 | 343.05 |
| 2025 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 506.7428 | 378.50 |
| 2024 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 501.6116 | 389.64 |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-05-15 | High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Winchester, TN | 16 / 29 (336.5144) | 25 (160.5144) | 3 (176.0000) | — | — |
| 2026-05-02 | O'So Good BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Day 2 Cleveland, AL | 6 / 15 (349.6916) | 12 (171.9772) | 1 (177.7144) | — | — |
| 2026-05-01 | O'So Good BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Day 1 Cleveland, AL | 12 / 17 (337.6572) | 15 (163.3944) | 6 (174.2628) | — | — |
| 2026-04-03 | Smoke on the Falls Gadsden, AL | 1 / 36 (353.7144) | 7 (174.2744) | 1 (179.4400) | — | — |
| 2026-03-27 | Singing River Smoke-O-Rama (BACKYARD ONLY) Athens, AL | 23 / 43 (337.6572) | 34 (159.9544) | 3 (177.7028) | — | — |
| 2025-05-03 | O'So Good BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Day 2 Oneonta, AL | 19 / 23 (335.3600) | 23 (158.8000) | 7 (176.5600) | 23 (149.0516) | — |
| 2025-05-02 | O'So Good BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Day 1 Oneonta, AL | 22 / 28 (331.9200) | 23 (164.5372) | 20 (167.3828) | 17 (166.2856) | — |
| 2025-04-25 | Dr. George Smith BBQ Brawl (COMPETITOR SERIES) Murfreesboro, TN | 18 / 31 (506.7428) | 17 (168.5256) | 9 (171.9772) | — | — |
| 2025-03-21 | Singing River Smoke-O-Rama (BACKYARD ONLY) Athens, AL | 18 / 43 (339.9656) | 20 (169.7028) | 18 (170.2628) | — | — |
| 2024-09-06 | Bernard Blues and BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) Cullman, AL | 16 / 27 (337.1204) | 24 (161.6916) | 4 (175.4288) | — | — |
| 2024-05-03 | O'So Good BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Day 1 Oneonta, AL | 21 / 27 (330.1828) | 20 (163.9428) | 16 (166.2400) | — | — |
| 2024-04-19 | Dr. George Smith BBQ Brawl (COMPETITORS SERIES) Murfreesboro, TN | 24 / 37 (501.6116) | 13 (169.6916) | 4 (173.7144) | — | — |
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 | #41 (712 pts) | #74 (472 pts) | #5 (1167 pts) | — | — |
| 2025 ↗ | Backyard | #190 (241 pts) | #214 (206 pts) | #171 (326 pts) | — | — |