The one to beat
2×
one call ahead of them
3 EYZ BBQ has finished one call ahead of Ol' Blue BBQ 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
Ol' Blue BBQ
Ol' Blue BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 9 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2013 and 2026. Their best overall finish is 11th of 20 at the Revolutionary BBQ Brawl (2026). They are ranked #4739 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings. Also listed in KCBS results as “Ol'Blue BBQ” and “Ol Blue BBQ”.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1468
peak 1468 · rated over 9 contests
Contests
9
in the data
First seen
Jun 21, 2013
latest Sep 25, 2026 · 13.3 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
0
0% of 9 contests
Avg finish
top 72%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
623.74 ▲
last 5 Master vs avg 618.17 (+5.58)
Walk rate
22%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±17.43
spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork Ribs
avg 160.24 · weakest Brisket (149.94)
Road miles
2,661
across 9 mapped stops · furthest 2,313 mi
Schedule strength
61%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1578)
Purse competed for
$24K
listed at 4 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
won from 4 state-championship entries
Master avg
618.17 / 720
6 Master contests · 0 GCs
Backyard avg
326.44 / 360
3 Backyard contests · 0 GCs
These overall scores sit on different scales (Master 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.
Team of the Year (rank per category by season — the year links to the full board on kcbs.us)
| Year | Series | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 ↗ | Backyard | #192 (205 pts) | #180 (235 pts) | #199 (210 pts) | — | — |
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to Ol' Blue BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.
152 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#4,730 of the rated field
- Contests
- 12
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1469
2–0 in 2 shared contests (100% to Ol' Blue BBQ)
2 contests in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team Ol' Blue BBQ has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#4,722 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1469
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 9 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Compare careers#4,757 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1502
Their last contest in the data was back in 2023, 3 years before Ol' Blue BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careers#4,755 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1468
Careers of much the same size, 9 contests to 9, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#4,747 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1468
Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2013.
⚔ Compare careers#4,754 of the rated field
- Contests
- 11
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1512
Level with Ol' Blue 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| COOL GRILLING | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| Burnin and Lootin | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| LADY OF Q | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| THE PIT CREW BBQ OF AZ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| SMOKIN MO'S BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| Smokin it Up BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| TWISTED BRISKET BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 166.8344 | 137.1426 | 157.26 | top 71% |
| Pork Ribs | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 170.8228 | 153.6800 | 160.24 | top 60% |
| Pork | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 162.2744 | 145.0628 | 155.20 | top 83% |
| Brisket | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 154.7772 | 145.0516 | 149.94 | top 85% |
“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) | 6 | 0 | top 65% |
| Large (40+) | 3 | 0 | top 85% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First State BBQ Bash | 2 | 12 | 0 | top 43% | Sep 25, 2026 |
| Indio California State BBQ Championship & Festival | 2 | 33 | 0 | top 88% | Nov 1, 2019 |
More numbers
Busiest season
2026
2 contests
Contests a season
1.3
across 7 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
CA
6 of 9 contests · 3 states in all
Contests visited
7
2 of them more than once
Opponents faced
262
finished ahead 105 times, behind 311
Longest layoff
5.9 yrs
Nov 1, 2019 → Sep 26, 2025
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20261 milestone
- Most recent contest First State BBQ Bash
20252 milestones
- First call First State BBQ Bash
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score326.2856 First State BBQ Bash
20152 milestones
- Career-best overall score642.6856 Indio California State BBQ Championship- JUDGES FULL
- Career-best single call (Pork Ribs)170.8228 Indio California State BBQ Championship- JUDGES FULL
20132 milestones
- First tracked contest 2nd Annual Pechanga BBQ Championship
- Peak power rating (1489) 2nd Annual Pechanga BBQ Championship
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +4 | First State BBQ Bash | Sep 25, 2026 |
| +3.9 | Revolutionary BBQ Brawl | Apr 24, 2026 |
| +3.2 | First State BBQ Bash | Sep 26, 2025 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -10.7 | 2nd Annual Pechanga BBQ Championship | Jun 21, 2013 |
| -8.4 | 6th Annual Vista Q Classic | Jul 25, 2014 |
| -8.1 | 7th Annual Vista BBQ Classic | Jul 24, 2015 |
| -6.7 | Indio California State BBQ Championship & Festival | Nov 1, 2019 |
| -6.4 | Indio California State BBQ Championship & Festival ( Judges Full) | Nov 11, 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 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50% | top 47% | 92.5% | 90.7% |
| 2025 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 48% | 90.6% | 90.6% |
| 2019 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 89% | 84.3% | 84.3% |
| 2016 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 87% | 86.8% | 86.8% |
| 2015 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 79% | 89.3% | 87.1% |
| 2014 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 83% | 87.9% | 87.9% |
| 2013 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 86% | 82% | 82% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 25, 2026 | First State BBQ Bash 🏅 Milford, DE | 15 / 39 (319.9084) | 12 (163.9656) | 15 (155.9428) | — | — |
| Apr 24, 2026 | Revolutionary BBQ Brawl 🏅 Williamsburg, VA | 11 / 20 (333.1200) | 9 (166.8344) | 10 (166.2856) | — | — |
| Sep 26, 2025 | First State BBQ Bash 🏅 Milford, DE | 12 / 25 (326.2856) | 13 (160) | 9 (166.2856) | — | — |
| Nov 1, 2019 | Indio California State BBQ Championship & Festival 🏅 Indio, CA | 33 / 37 (606.7200) | 33 (153.1428) | 30 (157.1544) | 36 (145.0628) | 34 (151.3600) |
| Nov 11, 2016 | Indio California State BBQ Championship & Festival ( Judges Full) Indio, CA | 33 / 38 (625.0976) | 34 (154.8116) | 32 (157.1772) | 28 (162.2744) | 33 (150.8344) |
| Nov 13, 2015 | Indio California State BBQ Championship- JUDGES FULL Indio, CA | 25 / 34 (642.6856) | 23 (165.1316) | 12 (170.8228) | 27 (159.3712) | 30 (147.3600) |
| Jul 24, 2015 | 7th Annual Vista BBQ Classic Vista, CA | 46 / 54 (611.2804) | 52 (150.8572) | 44 (153.6800) | 40 (161.6916) | 49 (145.0516) |
| Jul 25, 2014 | 6th Annual Vista Q Classic Vista, CA | 50 / 60 (632.9372) | 42 (163.4172) | 43 (158.8000) | 52 (155.9428) | 50 (154.7772) |
| Jun 21, 2013 | 2nd Annual Pechanga BBQ Championship Temecula, CA | 60 / 70 (590.2852) | 69 (137.1426) | 43 (155.9998) | 61 (146.8570) | 49 (150.2858) |