DAT'S BBQ

DAT'S BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 36 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2021 and 2026. Their best overall finish is 2nd of 16 at the September Fest (2026), and they have finished Reserve Grand Champion once. They are ranked #2997 of 6,477 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#2,997

of 6,477 rated · rankings

Rating

1506

peak 1506 · rated over 22 contests

Contests

in the data

First seen

Jul 16, 2021

latest Sep 11, 2026 · 5.2 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#329

Master 2026 · every season

Grand champs

1 reserve

Category wins

6 podiums

Overall top-10s

8% of 36 contests

Avg finish

top 64%

overall standings

Best overall

694.2516 / 720

Master · September Fest

Perfect 180s

1 🔥

Current form

680.73 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 664.43 (+16.30)

Walk rate

50%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

180 🔥

Chicken · September Fest

Consistency

±20.44

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 169.64 · weakest Brisket (164.38)

Road miles

2,310

across 36 mapped stops · furthest 257 mi

Schedule strength

73%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1592)

Purse competed for

$138K

listed at 33 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

won from 24 state-championship entries

Master avg

664.43 / 720

22 Master contests · 0 GCs

Storylines (12 found in their record)

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

The heartbreaker

0.0116 points from the title

Came within 0.0116 points of the Grand Championship at September Fest (Sep 11, 2026).

Perfect scores on the board

1 perfect 180

1 perfect 180 in the data — every judge at the table handing back a nine, all in chicken.

Chicken ×1

On the rise

+30 rating points in a year

Their power rating has climbed 30 points across 6 contests since Sep 19, 2025 — from 1476 up to 1506.

6 contests since Sep 19, 2025
now 1506

High-water mark

694.2516 career-best overall

96.4% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 694.2516 at September Fest — 96.4% of a perfect 720.

Master
Sep 11, 2026

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

Backdraft BBQ has finished one call ahead of DAT'S BBQ 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

Their season

2026 their best year

2026 was the year it came together: 9 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 1 category win, at an average finish in the top 45%.

9 contests
2 overall top-10s
1 category win
average top 45%

A tough matchup

18–1 behind in the head-to-head

iBQ'n ahead in 95% of their meetings

iBQ'n has come out ahead in 18 of their 19 shared contests.

Show 5 more storylines

The weak link

−5.3 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 5.27 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 32% of the time against 30%.

Brisket avg 164.38
Chicken avg 169.64
7 calls in 22 entries

A strong matchup

9–3 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 75% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of Thin Blue BBQ in 9 of their 12 shared contests.

Chicken nemesis

15 of 17 shared chicken entries lost

THE REAL SMOKIN ACES ahead 88% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, THE REAL SMOKIN ACES has out-cooked them in 15 of 17 shared chicken entries.

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

C&M BBQ has landed one call behind them 2 times.

A September team

Top 31% average finish in September

Something about September: average finish in the top 31% across 3 contests, versus top 64% the rest of the year.

3 September contests
top 64% the rest of the year

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 ↗	Master	#329 (585 pts)	#360 (595 pts)	#238 (901 pts)	#352 (570 pts)	#345 (595 pts)
2025 ↗	Master	#466 (411 pts)	#225 (991 pts)	#252 (1,005 pts)	#392 (571 pts)	#472 (436 pts)
2024 ↗	Master	#430 (471 pts)	#495 (416 pts)	#331 (769 pts)	#386 (561 pts)	#244 (896 pts)
2023 ↗	Master	#671 (233 pts)	#507 (409 pts)	#527 (427 pts)	#662 (253 pts)	#683 (248 pts)
2022 ↗	Master	#986 (120 pts)	#994 (135 pts)	#898 (183 pts)	#1029 (125 pts)	#1103 (115 pts)
2021 ↗	Master	#1511 (57 pts)	#1274 (62 pts)	#1286 (67 pts)	#1518 (57 pts)	#1557 (52 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to DAT'S BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.

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

Smokin' Bones Barbecue

#3,001 of the rated field

1506 power rating

Contests: 17
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 18%
Peak: 1506

0–4 in 4 shared contests (0% to DAT'S BBQ)

These two have cooked 4 of the same contests — Smokin' Bones Barbecue ahead 4–0 — so there's a record behind this pairing and not just a matching number.

rated over 17 contests
last seen Aug 25, 2023

⚔ Head-to-head

VanHoozen BBQ

#2,988 of the rated field

1506 power rating

Contests: 12
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 25%
Peak: 1509

8–1 in 9 shared contests (89% to DAT'S BBQ)

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 Oct 2, 2026

⚔ Head-to-head

A&R Barbeque

#2,987 of the rated field

1506 power rating

Contests: 11
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 9%
Peak: 1506

2–2 in 4 shared contests (50% to DAT'S BBQ)

Fewer contests behind them than DAT'S BBQ has cooked, 11 to 36, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.

rated over 11 contests
last seen Sep 25, 2026

⚔ Head-to-head

DOCTOR CUE NC

#3,010 of the rated field

1505 power rating

Contests: 22
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 9%
Peak: 1520

Their last contest in the data was back in 2023, 3 years before DAT'S BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 22 contests

⚔ Compare careers

Nice Rack BBQ

#3,007 of the rated field

1506 power rating

Contests: 24
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 8%
Peak: 1522

24 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 8% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 24 contests
last seen Nov 17, 2023

⚔ Compare careers

Pit Bull Smokers

#3,009 of the rated field

1505 power rating

Contests: 22
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 77%
Peak: 1527

4 straight overall top-10s says this rating is a moving target.

rated over 20 contests
last seen Sep 26, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
BooyaQ	19	2	17	11%	⚔ compare
iBQ'n	19	1	18	5%	⚔ compare
Shiggin aint easy	18	0	18	0%	⚔ compare
B&R SMOKE	17	7	10	41%	⚔ compare
THE REAL SMOKIN ACES	17	3	14	18%	⚔ compare
Q-JITSU	16	3	13	19%	⚔ compare
Bleacher Bums BBQ	16	2	14	13%	⚔ compare
Mac Attack BBQ	14	3	11	21%	⚔ compare
KEVLAR BBQ	14	3	11	21%	⚔ compare
Sailor Nicks BBQ	14	1	13	7%	⚔ compare
JAYBIRD'S BBQ	13	6	7	46%	⚔ compare
BO B Q BBQ	13	5	8	38%	⚔ compare
THE BBQ BUS	13	3	10	23%	⚔ compare
TIRE SMOKE BBQ	13	3	10	23%	⚔ compare
Thin Blue BBQ	12	9	3	75%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	23	7	1	3	180 🔥	157.6456	169.64	top 54%
Pork Ribs	35	7	0	1	176.5716	147.3828	164.75	top 65%
Pork	22	5	0	0	177.1772	151.3600	166.41	top 57%
Brisket	22	7	1	2	178.8572	139.3140	164.38	top 57%

“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)	2	top 23%
Medium (20–39)	13	top 69%
Large (40+)	7	top 66%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
MI	16	0	top 63%
IN	6	0	top 67%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
All American BBQ Throwdown	4	24	top 74%	Jul 31, 2026
September Fest	3	2	top 31%	Sep 11, 2026
Smoke in the Mitten	2	16	top 65%	May 1, 2026
GLBBQA Spring Fling	2	25	top 55%	Apr 18, 2025
Smoke in the Mitten BBQ Competition	2	15	top 79%	May 3, 2024
Bordertown BBQ Brawl	2	24	top 84%	Jul 15, 2022

More numbers

Busiest season 2026 9 contests

Contests a season 6 across 6 seasons in the data

Most contests held in MI 24 of 36 contests · 2 states in all

Contests visited 13 6 of them more than once

Most-entered meat Pork Ribs 35 entries · 0 wins · 7 calls

Opponents faced 225 finished ahead 280 times, behind 495

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

20266 milestones

Sep 11 First overall podium September Fest
Sep 11 First Reserve Championship September Fest
Sep 11 First perfect 180 (Chicken) September Fest
Sep 11 Career-best overall score694.2516 September Fest
Sep 11 Peak power rating (1506) September Fest
Sep 11 Most recent contest September Fest

20251 milestone

Jun 6 25th tracked contest Hoosier BBQ Classic

20242 milestones

Sep 13 First category win (Brisket) September Fest
Sep 13 First overall top-10 September Fest

20232 milestones

May 19 First call Rocking BBQ Warsaw
Aug 25 10th tracked contest Rockin' BBQ Take 2 (ONE MEAT CHICKEN)

20221 milestone

Jul 15 First overall past 90% of a perfect score648.4576 Bordertown BBQ Brawl

20211 milestone

Jul 16 First tracked contest Bordertown BBQ Brawl

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+15.5	September Fest	Sep 11, 2026
+10.9	Rockin' BBQ Warsaw, Indiana	May 15, 2026
+7.9	September Fest	Sep 13, 2024
+6.5	GLBBQA Spring Fling	Apr 18, 2025
+5.1	Smoke in the Mitten BBQ Competition	May 3, 2024

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-10.2	Smoke in the Mitten BBQ Competition	May 5, 2023
-10	Bordertown BBQ Brawl	Jul 16, 2021
-9	Rockin' BBQ Take 2	Aug 25, 2023
-8	All American BBQ Throwdown	Aug 4, 2023
-6.8	All American BBQ Throwdown	Aug 5, 2022

Scores over time (% of a perfect score, averaged over 5 contests — 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	Category wins	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2026	9	2	1	44%	top 45%	96.4%	94.5%
2025	9	0	0	89%	top 59%	94.7%	93.7%
2024	7	1	1	71%	top 55%	94.1%	93.5%
2023	7	0	0	14%	top 92%	91.1%	89.9%
2022	3	0	0	0%	top 82%	90.1%	88.8%
2021	1	0	0	0%	top 89%	84.2%	84.2%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Sep 11, 2026	September Fest 🏅 Coldwater, MI	2 / 16 (694.2516)	1 (180)	11 (166.8344)	4 (173.7144)	6 (173.7028)
Sep 11, 2026	September Fest (ONE MEAT RIBS) Coldwater, MI	—	—	9 (166.8228)	—	—
Jul 31, 2026	All American BBQ Throwdown 🏅 Westland, MI	27 / 45 (676.4800)	37 (167.3828)	20 (171.9772)	31 (165.7144)	17 (171.4056)
Jul 31, 2026	All American BBQ Throwdown (ONE MEAT RIBS) Westland, MI	—	—	23 (166.2400)	—	—
May 15, 2026	Rockin' BBQ Warsaw, Indiana 🏅 Warsaw, IN	8 / 35 (690.7884)	13 (173.1200)	8 (173.1428)	10 (173.7028)	18 (170.8228)
May 15, 2026	Rockin' BBQ Warsaw, Indiana (ONE MEAT RIBS) Warsaw, IN	—	—	17 (171.9656)	—	—
May 1, 2026	Smoke in the Mitten 🏅 Westland, MI	23 / 34 (663.8972)	19 (168.5372)	33 (159.3944)	28 (163.3828)	5 (172.5828)
May 1, 2026	Smoke in the Mitten (ONE MEAT RIBS) Westland, MI	—	—	11 (170.2512)	—	—
Apr 17, 2026	GLBBQA Spring Fling 🏅 Coldwater, MI	29 / 48 (678.2172)	27 (171.9772)	21 (170.8572)	12 (172.5600)	41 (162.8228)
Sep 19, 2025	September Fest 🏅 Coldwater, MI	12 / 26 (677.0056)	3 (177.7144)	20 (164.5372)	20 (162.7884)	9 (171.9656)
Sep 19, 2025	September Fest (ONE MEAT RIBS) Coldwater, MI	—	—	13 (156.5028)	—	—
Jun 6, 2025	Hoosier BBQ Classic 🏅 Franklin, IN	24 / 30 (660.9828)	5 (176)	30 (155.9200)	9 (174.2628)	27 (154.8000)
Jun 6, 2025	Hoosier BBQ Classic (ONE MEAT RIBS) Franklin, IN	—	—	4 (176.5716)	—	—
May 16, 2025	11th Annual Rockin' BBQ 🏅 Warsaw, IN	21 / 34 (676.9824)	6 (177.7028)	13 (173.1200)	11 (171.9656)	30 (154.1940)
May 16, 2025	11th Annual Rockin' BBQ (ONE MEAT RIBS) 🏅 Warsaw, IN	—	—	4 (175.4172)	—	—
May 9, 2025	Smoke in the Mitten 🏅 Westland, MI	16 / 26 (675.2684)	3 (178.8572)	23 (153.6344)	12 (170.8112)	10 (171.9656)
May 9, 2025	Smoke in the Mitten (ONE MEAT RIBS) Westland, MI	—	—	8 (171.4056)	—	—
Apr 18, 2025	GLBBQA Spring Fling 🏅 Charlotte, MI	25 / 56 (682.1832)	5 (176.5600)	47 (163.9544)	15 (173.1432)	33 (168.5256)
Sep 13, 2024	September Fest 🏅 Coldwater, MI	6 / 18 (677.6344)	17 (157.6916)	5 (170.8228)	9 (170.2628)	1 (178.8572)
Aug 2, 2024	All American BBQ Throwdown 🏅 Westland, MI	24 / 40 (667.8972)	23 (168.5372)	25 (165.1200)	19 (169.1200)	23 (165.1200)
Aug 2, 2024	All American BBQ Throwdown (ONE MEAT RIBS) Westland, MI	—	—	3 (174.2628)	—	—
May 17, 2024	Rockin' BBQ Warsaw 🏅 Warsaw, IN	19 / 32 (677.6456)	18 (172.5484)	29 (157.0972)	4 (177.1772)	12 (170.8228)
May 17, 2024	Rockin' BBQ Warsaw (ONE MEAT RIBS) 🏅 Warsaw, IN	—	—	15 (171.9656)	—	—
May 3, 2024	Smoke in the Mitten BBQ Competition 🏅 Westland, MI	15 / 26 (673.0628)	13 (171.9772)	17 (167.3828)	20 (162.2628)	4 (171.4400)
Apr 19, 2024	GLBBQA Spring Fling 🏅 Charlotte, MI	40 / 62 (669.6456)	40 (167.4172)	48 (162.8000)	49 (163.4056)	3 (176.0228)
Aug 25, 2023	Rockin' BBQ Take 2 🏅 Warsaw, IN	22 / 23 (650.7200)	22 (163.9544)	16 (169.1316)	21 (161.6684)	22 (155.9656)
Aug 25, 2023	Rockin' BBQ Take 2 (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) Warsaw, IN	—	16 (169.1200)	—	—	—
Aug 4, 2023	All American BBQ Throwdown 🏅 Westland, MI	40 / 44 (640.4456)	35 (165.1200)	38 (159.4172)	24 (165.7028)	39 (150.2056)
Aug 4, 2023	All American BBQ Throwdown (ONE MEAT RIBS) Westland, MI	—	—	36 (150.8344)	—	—
May 19, 2023	Rocking BBQ Warsaw 🏅 Warsaw, IN	28 / 35 (655.8856)	9 (173.1200)	26 (165.1200)	32 (153.6800)	25 (163.9656)
May 19, 2023	Rocking BBQ Warsaw (ONE MEAT RIBS) Warsaw, IN	—	—	28 (147.3828)	—	—
May 5, 2023	Smoke in the Mitten BBQ Competition 🏅 Westland, MI	25 / 25 (642.6856)	25 (159.9656)	15 (168.0116)	23 (157.0628)	22 (157.6456)
Aug 5, 2022	All American BBQ Throwdown 🏅 Westland, MI	42 / 50 (630.6860)	45 (157.6456)	45 (149.6916)	31 (164.5372)	39 (158.8116)
Jul 15, 2022	Bordertown BBQ Brawl 🏅 Sault Ste Marie, MI	24 / 30 (648.4576)	21 (166.8572)	23 (163.3944)	23 (162.8344)	26 (155.3716)
Jul 15, 2022	Bordertown BBQ Brawl (One Meat Ribs) Sault Ste Marie, MI	—	—	24 (159.4632)	—	—
Jul 16, 2021	Bordertown BBQ Brawl 🏅 Sault Ste Marie, MI	24 / 27 (606.5940)	23 (160)	22 (155.9200)	24 (151.3600)	26 (139.3140)

DAT'S BBQ

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

Rating

Contests

First seen

Best ToY finish

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

Purse competed for

State championships

Master avg

Storylines (12 found in their record)

The heartbreaker

Perfect scores on the board

On the rise

High-water mark

The one to beat

Their season

A tough matchup

The weak link

A strong matchup

Chicken nemesis

Looking over their shoulder

A September team

Team of the Year (rank per category by season — the year links to the full board on kcbs.us)

Overall rank by season

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, averaged over 5 contests — 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)