Cow Creek BBQ KS
Rating
1690
peak 1703
Contests
72
in the data
First seen
2020-03-13
latest 2026-06-19
Best ToY finish
#87
Master 2023
Grand champs
1
2 reserve
Category wins
13
31 podiums
Overall top-10s
25
of 72 contests
Avg finish
top 34%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
9 🔥
Current form
691.56 ▲
last 5 vs career avg 686.53 (+5.03)
Walk rate
69%
contests with a top-10 call
Top-10 streak
5
best run (overall)
Consistency
±9.23
std dev of overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork
avg 173.39 · weakest Brisket (169.99)
Road miles
4172
mi across 72 mapped stops · furthest 169 mi
Storylines
🎯 The one to beat
Smoke 'n Magic has finished one call ahead of Cow Creek BBQ 3 times — their closest competition in the data.
👀 Looking over their shoulder
Barking Dog BBQ has landed one call behind them 4 times.
⚔️ A tough matchup
MAN MEAT BBQ has come out ahead in 39 of their 55 shared contests.
⚔️ A strong matchup
They've finished ahead of Pine Tar BBQ in 25 of their 27 shared contests.
🏕️ Happy hunting ground
Smoke on the Water is their spot: 1 Grand Championship in 4 visits.
💔 The heartbreaker
Came within 3.5088 points of the Grand Championship at Smoke in the Spring (2025-04-11).
📅 A May team
Something about May: average finish in the top 24% across 3 contests, versus top 34% the rest of the year.
🃏 Against the odds
Their Grand Championship at Smoke on the Water (2022-10-14) came as the ratings underdog — roughly a 31-in-100 shot against the field's top-rated team, MAN MEAT BBQ.
Teams like this (closest power rating, KS first)
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 68 | 19 | 1 | 4 | 180.0000 🔥 | 159.3944 | 171.70 | top 42% |
| Pork Ribs | 69 | 24 | 2 | 8 | 180.0000 🔥 | 158.3088 | 171.42 | top 38% |
| Pork | 68 | 31 | 10 | 15 | 180.0000 🔥 | 161.1200 | 173.39 | top 30% |
| Brisket | 68 | 18 | 0 | 4 | 177.7028 | 154.7540 | 169.99 | top 41% |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| KS | 52 | 1 | top 31% |
| MO | 15 | 0 | top 44% |
| NE | 1 | 0 | top 12% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 1 | 0 | top 25% |
| Medium (20–39) | 28 | 1 | top 30% |
| Large (40+) | 39 | 0 | top 36% |
The story so far
- Busiest season: 2023 (15 contests)
- Cooks mostly in KS (55 of 72 contests)
- Most-entered category: Pork Ribs (69 entries)
- First Grand Championship in the data: Smoke on the Water (2022-10-14)
- Wins it all in 1% of contests
- All-time average overall score: 686.53
- 9 perfect 180s on the books 🔥
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 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 698.1940 | 692.47 |
| 2025 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 705.0972 | 688.79 |
| 2024 | 13 | 0 | 3 | 700.5144 | 688.84 |
| 2023 | 15 | 0 | 3 | 702.2284 | 686.11 |
| 2022 | 13 | 1 | 4 | 701.6688 | 689.06 |
| 2021 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 690.7540 | 681.24 |
| 2020 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 685.0400 | 679.27 |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-19 | 12th Annual K of C BBQ Smoke Off 4-Life Kansas City, KS | 8 / 33 (698.1940) | 14 (173.1084) | 18 (173.1200) | 1 (180.0000) | 13 (171.9656) |
| 2026-04-17 | Tom Brigham Memorial BBQ Iola, KS | 7 / 27 (690.7656) | 1 (178.8572) | 16 (167.9772) | 3 (175.4056) | 19 (168.5256) |
| 2026-04-10 | Smoke in the Spring (OPEN FORMAT) Osage City, KS | 40 / 101 (690.1596) | 12 (177.7028) | 61 (170.8228) | 20 (175.4056) | 76 (166.2284) |
| 2026-03-20 | 8th Annual Qlathe BBQ Championship Olathe, KS | 14 / 68 (690.7656) | 24 (171.9656) | 32 (168.5372) | 22 (173.7028) | 6 (176.5600) |
| 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 | 111 / 401 (687.9200) | 222 (169.6684) | 37 (176.0116) | 191 (170.2744) | 111 (171.9656) |
| 2025-08-15 | BBQ & Fly-In on the River Excelsior Springs, MO | 47 / 62 (667.8168) | 22 (174.2628) | 56 (160.4912) | 52 (163.3828) | 34 (169.6800) |
| 2025-07-19 | Smokin on the Osage BBQ Contest and Car Show (Day 2) Osceola, MO | 12 / 28 (693.0628) | 12 (175.4056) | 16 (171.9772) | 16 (171.9772) | 13 (173.7028) |
| 2025-07-18 | Smokin on the Osage BBQ Contest and Car Show (Day 1) Osceola, MO | 7 / 32 (698.2172) | 10 (176.5600) | 19 (170.8228) | 7 (177.7144) | 12 (173.1200) |
| 2025-06-06 | Big Blue BBQ Championship Marysville, KS | 18 / 29 (679.3144) | 21 (168.5372) | 4 (175.4172) | 17 (169.6800) | 19 (165.6800) |
| 2025-05-16 | Tom Brigham Memorial BBQ Iola, KS | 7 / 27 (699.3716) | 15 (170.8344) | 2 (178.8572) | 4 (175.4172) | 12 (174.2628) |
| 2025-04-25 | Smokin' in the Creek BBQ Contest Sugar Creek, MO | 22 / 40 (683.3028) | 17 (173.1200) | 36 (165.0972) | 12 (174.2744) | 15 (170.8112) |
| 2025-04-11 | Smoke in the Spring Osage City, KS | 2 / 92 (705.0972) | 13 (176.5600) | 4 (178.8572) | 3 (178.8572) | 35 (170.8228) |
| 2025-03-21 | 7th Annual Qlathe BBQ Championship Olathe, KS | 29 / 70 (685.0400) | 37 (170.8228) | 22 (171.9772) | 36 (171.4172) | 28 (170.8228) |
| 2024-10-30 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Invitational Contest Kansas City, KS | 92 / 169 (684.4340) | 8 (178.8572) | 61 (173.1200) | 157 (161.6340) | 89 (170.8228) |
| 2024-10-30 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest Kansas City, KS | 132 / 444 (684.5600) | 14 (178.3200) | 52 (175.4400) | 264 (166.8344) | 289 (163.9656) |
| 2024-10-11 | Smoke on the Water Topeka, KS | 6 / 31 (693.6344) | 22 (168.5372) | 12 (171.9772) | 1 (180.0000) | 9 (173.1200) |
| 2024-09-27 | Shawnee Great Grillers Shawnee, KS | 13 / 73 (691.3600) | 21 (171.4172) | 2 (177.7144) | 24 (171.4056) | 17 (170.8228) |
| 2024-08-16 | BBQ & Fly-In on the River Excelsior Springs, MO | 25 / 65 (685.0628) | 44 (165.0972) | 3 (176.5716) | 20 (174.2628) | 33 (169.1312) |
| 2024-08-09 | Smoke on the Bricks Baldwin City, KS | 8 / 46 (691.3372) | 5 (176.5716) | 12 (173.1200) | 10 (174.2628) | 21 (167.3828) |
| 2024-06-14 | 10th Annual K of C BBQ Smoke Off 4-Life Kansas City, KS | 15 / 34 (685.0864) | 22 (168.5488) | 21 (165.7032) | 3 (176.5716) | 6 (174.2628) |
| 2024-06-07 | Smoke on the Plains BBQ & Music Fest Derby, KS | 17 / 43 (688.4912) | 31 (168.5256) | 3 (177.7144) | 13 (175.4056) | 26 (166.8456) |
| 2024-05-17 | Tom Brigham Memorial BBQ Iola, KS | 3 / 31 (700.5144) | 7 (176.5600) | 11 (171.9888) | 5 (175.4056) | 4 (176.5600) |
| 2024-04-26 | Smokin' in the Creek BBQ Contest Sugar Creek, MO | 16 / 44 (685.6000) | 19 (171.9772) | 28 (167.3944) | 1 (178.8572) | 26 (167.3712) |
| 2024-04-05 | Smoke in the Spring Osage City, KS | 27 / 97 (690.1944) | 26 (174.2744) | 47 (170.8344) | 22 (174.2628) | 45 (170.8228) |
| 2024-03-15 | 6th Annual Qlathe BBQ Championship Olathe, KS | 25 / 58 (681.6000) | 32 (169.6800) | 32 (168.5372) | 14 (174.8572) | 24 (168.5256) |
| 2024-01-26 | SJV Winter Rub Omaha, NE | 3 / 26 (693.0744) | 14 (170.8228) | 10 (171.4288) | 1 (177.7028) | 9 (173.1200) |
| 2023-10-13 | Smoke on the Water Topeka, KS | 10 / 39 (685.6228) | 4 (177.1544) | 16 (171.4172) | 18 (168.5256) | 18 (168.5256) |
| 2023-09-27 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest Kansas City, KS | 102 / 487 (686.2056) | 91 (174.2744) | 249 (168.5256) | 85 (174.2628) | 174 (169.1428) |
| 2023-09-27 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Invitational Contest Kansas City, KS | 186 / 211 (667.8396) | 129 (169.6800) | 63 (173.7028) | 123 (169.7028) | 205 (154.7540) |
| 2023-09-27 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Sides Kansas City, KS | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2023-09-09 | 7th Annual Smoke on the Trails Gardner, KS | 4 / 38 (701.6688) | 10 (174.2744) | 10 (174.2744) | 4 (175.4172) | 3 (177.7028) |
| 2023-08-18 | BBQ & Fly-In on the River Excelsior Springs, MO | 13 / 57 (691.3828) | 5 (176.5828) | 12 (175.4172) | 36 (167.4172) | 15 (171.9656) |
| 2023-08-12 | 5th Annual KCBS World Invitational - MASTER SERIES INVITATIONAL Mayetta, KS | 13 / 62 (699.3484) | 52 (170.8228) | 1 (178.8572) | 33 (171.9656) | 9 (177.7028) |
| 2023-08-11 | 5th Annual KCBS World Invitational - OPEN Mayetta, KS | 72 / 90 (671.8400) | 77 (165.0972) | 80 (161.6572) | 43 (173.1084) | 34 (171.9772) |
| 2023-07-28 | Tom Brigham Memorial BBQ Iola, KS | 3 / 25 (693.0744) | 2 (177.7144) | 10 (171.9772) | 9 (169.6800) | 5 (173.7028) |
| 2023-07-15 | Smokin in the Electric City (Day 2) Butler, MO | 17 / 21 (672.9944) | 19 (165.0856) | 4 (177.7144) | 6 (175.4172) | 19 (154.7772) |
| 2023-07-14 | Smokin in the Electric City (Day 1) Butler, MO | 12 / 27 (685.6116) | 18 (170.8228) | 21 (165.1088) | 5 (176.5600) | 11 (173.1200) |
| 2023-06-16 | Knights of Columbus BBQ Smoke Off "4 Life" Kansas City, KS | 2 / 29 (702.2284) | 2 (180.0000) | 12 (171.9656) | 1 (180.0000) | 14 (170.2628) |
| 2023-06-02 | McLouth BBQ Blowout 32nd Annual McLouth, KS | 15 / 36 (666.2628) | 9 (170.2856) | 28 (158.3088) | 7 (171.4172) | 14 (166.2512) |
| 2023-04-21 | Smokin in the Creek BBQ Sugar Creek, MO | 9 / 51 (689.6228) | 27 (165.6916) | 2 (177.7144) | 1 (180.0000) | 27 (166.2168) |
| 2023-03-17 | 5th Annual Qlathe BBQ Championship Olathe, KS | 14 / 68 (691.8968) | 7 (177.7028) | 28 (170.8228) | 5 (177.7028) | 44 (165.6684) |
| 2022-10-21 | Border War Barbeque Osawatomie, KS | 3 / 30 (698.2632) | 3 (178.8572) | 15 (170.8460) | 1 (177.7372) | 11 (170.8228) |
| 2022-10-14 | Smoke on the Water Topeka, KS | 1 / 28 (701.6688) | 6 (175.4056) | 12 (170.8460) | 1 (180.0000) | 4 (175.4172) |
| 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 | 68 / 505 (687.9316) | 19 (178.2972) | 243 (167.4060) | 140 (171.4172) | 133 (170.8112) |
| 2022-09-09 | 6th Annual Smoke on the Trails Gardner, KS | 10 / 37 (687.8972) | 6 (174.2628) | 25 (163.9544) | 1 (180.0000) | 14 (169.6800) |
| 2022-08-19 | BBQ & Fly-In on the River Excelsior Springs, MO | 27 / 54 (681.5884) | 32 (168.5256) | 14 (172.5600) | 26 (171.9772) | 30 (168.5256) |
| 2022-07-29 | Tom Brigham Memorial BBQ Iola, KS | 4 / 16 (695.9544) | 9 (170.8344) | 4 (173.7028) | 3 (176.0000) | 3 (175.4172) |
| 2022-07-08 | Sand Creek Summer Daze Saucy & Glazed BBQ Competition Newton, KS | 5 / 21 (693.0628) | 14 (169.1200) | 4 (176.5600) | 7 (173.1200) | 4 (174.2628) |
| 2022-06-03 | Big Blue BBQ Championship Marysville, KS | 7 / 25 (682.1600) | 14 (167.3944) | 3 (174.2628) | 8 (169.6800) | 7 (170.8228) |
| 2022-05-13 | Bernard BBQ Battle (Formerly Brew,Blues & Bar-B-Q) Lansing, KS | 10 / 28 (680.4684) | 21 (166.2400) | 5 (173.1200) | 4 (174.8572) | 12 (166.2512) |
| 2022-04-29 | Red, White, Blue BBQ Competition Topeka, KS | 5 / 77 (701.6456) | 43 (167.3828) | 1 (180.0000) | 5 (176.5600) | 3 (177.7028) |
| 2022-04-08 | Smoke in the Spring Osage City, KS | 21 / 94 (686.1828) | 5 (177.7144) | 20 (173.7028) | 18 (174.2628) | 74 (160.5028) |
| 2022-03-18 | Qlathe BBQ Championship Olathe, KS | 39 / 71 (671.8852) | 47 (165.6568) | 28 (168.5600) | 11 (172.5484) | 36 (165.1200) |
| 2021-10-22 | Border War Barbeque Osawatomie, KS | 8 / 30 (690.2404) | 11 (171.4288) | 7 (173.7260) | 1 (180.0000) | 19 (165.0856) |
| 2021-10-15 | Smoke on the Water Topeka, KS | 7 / 25 (690.7540) | 11 (170.2628) | 8 (171.9772) | 9 (173.1084) | 3 (175.4056) |
| 2021-09-16 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue-OPEN CONTEST Kansas City, KS | 125 / 467 (674.1940) | 89 (172.5484) | 243 (166.2400) | 120 (169.1544) | 196 (166.2512) |
| 2021-08-20 | Smoke on the Bricks Baldwin City, KS | 13 / 46 (682.2056) | 18 (170.2628) | 26 (165.0856) | 12 (172.5600) | 5 (174.2972) |
| 2021-07-23 | Smokin' Hot Cars & BBQ Iola, KS | 16 / 28 (671.3028) | 25 (159.3944) | 5 (173.1200) | 6 (171.9656) | 18 (166.8228) |
| 2021-07-09 | Keepers of the Fire BBQ Contest Mayetta, KS | 27 / 43 (672.9828) | 30 (167.3828) | 26 (168.5372) | 21 (170.8228) | 20 (166.2400) |
| 2021-06-04 | Mclouth BBQ Blowout 29th Annual Mclouth, KS | 10 / 42 (679.3484) | 9 (172.5828) | 10 (173.1200) | 14 (170.8228) | 26 (162.8228) |
| 2021-04-09 | Smoke in the Spring Osage City, KS | 41 / 105 (681.5884) | 25 (174.2744) | 28 (173.1084) | 75 (163.9428) | 43 (170.2628) |
| 2021-03-19 | 3rd Annual Qlathe BBQ Championship Olathe, KS | 13 / 70 (688.5256) | 14 (173.1772) | 17 (172.5600) | 17 (174.2628) | 28 (168.5256) |
| 2020-09-26 | West Bottoms Cameron BBQ Contest Cameron, MO | 18 / 36 (678.8000) | 29 (165.7028) | 5 (175.4172) | 18 (170.2972) | 20 (167.3828) |
| 2020-08-21 | Smoke on the Bricks Baldwin City, KS | 28 / 43 (673.0744) | 9 (174.2972) | 25 (167.9772) | 36 (161.1200) | 18 (169.6800) |
| 2020-08-14 | BBQ & Fly in on the River Excelsior Springs, MO | 20 / 55 (685.0400) | 36 (169.1200) | 8 (174.2628) | 19 (173.1200) | 25 (168.5372) |
| 2020-07-18 | Cameron Elks BBQ Cook Off (Day 2) Cameron, MO | 13 / 32 (684.5028) | 12 (171.9772) | 14 (171.4172) | 18 (169.1200) | 9 (171.9884) |
| 2020-07-18 | Cameron Elks BBQ Cook Off Single Meat - Rib Contest Cameron, MO | — | — | 9 (169.1428) | — | — |
| 2020-07-17 | Cameron Elks BBQ Cook Off (Day 1) Cameron, MO | 22 / 42 (679.3372) | 31 (166.2516) | 34 (162.8228) | 14 (173.7028) | 4 (176.5600) |
| 2020-07-10 | Keepers of the Fire BBQ Contest Mayetta, KS | 32 / 61 (675.3256) | 51 (159.4056) | 27 (170.8344) | 33 (168.5256) | 8 (176.5600) |
| 2020-03-13 | 2nd Annual Qlathe BBQ Championship Olathe, KS | 22 / 68 (678.8116) | 37 (166.2972) | 48 (163.9544) | 2 (179.4400) | 22 (169.1200) |
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 ↗ | Master | #231 (485 pts) | #207 (580 pts) | #424 (310 pts) | #153 (670 pts) | #268 (435 pts) |
| 2025 ↗ | Master | #211 (1041 pts) | #266 (841 pts) | #218 (1106 pts) | #200 (1096 pts) | #299 (786 pts) |
| 2024 ↗ | Master | #122 (1337 pts) | #182 (1097 pts) | #116 (1427 pts) | #44 (1787 pts) | #185 (1082 pts) |
| 2023 ↗ | Master | #87 (1551 pts) | #81 (1567 pts) | #106 (1482 pts) | #51 (1752 pts) | #141 (1242 pts) |
| 2022 ↗ | Master | #89 (1613 pts) | #136 (1313 pts) | #94 (1558 pts) | #34 (1968 pts) | #99 (1483 pts) |
| 2021 ↗ | Master | #201 (958 pts) | #244 (833 pts) | #214 (958 pts) | #159 (1123 pts) | #216 (908 pts) |
| 2020 ↗ | Master | #212 (567 pts) | #215 (567 pts) | #130 (824 pts) | #150 (772 pts) | #130 (822 pts) |