The heartbreaker
Came within 0.0228 points of the Grand Championship at Smoke on the Falls (2019-04-12).
This team cooks the Backyard series — its own boards, records and Team of the Year are here.
Each card leads with the number that made it a story — read straight out of their results, no editorialising.
Came within 0.0228 points of the Grand Championship at Smoke on the Falls (2019-04-12).
Their power rating has climbed 43 points across 7 contests since 2025-09-05 — from 1553 up to 1596.
A call in 36 of 59 contests
A top-10 category call in 61% of their 59 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.
142.4% of a perfect 360
Their best day on record: 512.5144 at Smoke in the Park (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE) — 142.4% of a perfect 360.
Wee Daddy's BBQ has finished one call ahead of Dixie Pigs & Chick's BBQ Team 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
NORALA BBQ TEAM ahead in 82% of their meetings
NORALA BBQ TEAM has come out ahead in 23 of their 28 shared contests.
Ahead in 80% of their meetings
They've finished ahead of JT'S SMOKE SHACK in 8 of their 10 shared contests.
LEE LA Q ahead 61% of the time
Even in their strongest meat, LEE LA Q has out-cooked them in 25 of 41 shared chicken entries.
Field size changes the story: they average a top 39% finish in large fields against top 49% in small ones.
LENOX & SON BBQ COMPANY has landed one call behind them 2 times.
Their overall swings ±17.87% 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.
Something about April: average finish in the top 33% across 10 contests, versus top 50% the rest of the year.
Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 4,380 miles across 59 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 281 miles to Barbecue With A View (BACKYARD ONLY).
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.
37 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
One contest in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team Dixie Pigs & Chick's BBQ Team has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-headTheir last contest in the data was back in 2022, 4 years before Dixie Pigs & Chick's BBQ Team's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Head-to-headFewer contests behind them than Dixie Pigs & Chick's BBQ Team has cooked, 38 to 59, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.
⚔ Head-to-head36 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 22% top-10 finishes rather than wins.
⚔ Head-to-headThis is the highest they've ever been rated, 31 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Head-to-headThey were already cooking in 2014, 5 years before Dixie Pigs & Chick's BBQ Team's first contest.
⚔ Head-to-head| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LEE LA Q | 39 | 14 | 25 | 36% | ⚔ compare |
| RIBLIFE | 28 | 8 | 20 | 29% | ⚔ compare |
| PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q | 28 | 6 | 22 | 21% | ⚔ compare |
| NORALA BBQ TEAM | 28 | 5 | 23 | 18% | ⚔ compare |
| REDBONES BBQ | 27 | 10 | 17 | 37% | ⚔ compare |
| HELL ON SQUEALS | 26 | 10 | 16 | 38% | ⚔ compare |
| The Real Squeal BBQ | 25 | 10 | 15 | 40% | ⚔ compare |
| Hickory Hangover | 25 | 7 | 17 | 28% | ⚔ compare |
| Pork Life | 22 | 11 | 11 | 50% | ⚔ compare |
| 2 Swine Crew | 21 | 8 | 13 | 38% | ⚔ compare |
| Bentley Que | 20 | 5 | 15 | 25% | ⚔ compare |
| BAMA BOYS BBQ | 19 | 8 | 11 | 42% | ⚔ compare |
| Dogpatch Q | 18 | 11 | 7 | 61% | ⚔ compare |
| Deviant Smoke | 18 | 5 | 13 | 28% | ⚔ compare |
| LENOX & SON BBQ COMPANY | 17 | 8 | 9 | 47% | ⚔ compare |
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 51 | 23 | 1 | 10 | 178.8572 | 148.5600 | 170.26 | top 42% |
| Pork Ribs | 54 | 18 | 1 | 5 | 179.4400 | 141.6572 | 164.90 | top 59% |
| Pork | 15 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 175.4056 | 155.3828 | 165.75 | top 51% |
| Brisket | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 151.3944 | 151.3944 | 151.39 | top 95% |
“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.
| Where | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| AL | 43 | 0 | top 51% |
| TN | 2 | 0 | top 40% |
| MS | 2 | 0 | top 44% |
| GA | 1 | 0 | top 44% |
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 9 | 0 | top 49% |
| Medium (20–39) | 32 | 0 | top 53% |
| Large (40+) | 7 | 0 | top 39% |
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke in the Park (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE) | 7 | 3 | 0 | top 50% | 2026-06-05 |
| Smoke on the Falls | 6 | 2 | 0 | top 49% | 2026-04-03 |
| Poosa Q | 4 | 6 | 0 | top 42% | 2024-10-04 |
| Scottsboro BBQ Festival (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE) | 3 | 2 | 0 | top 46% | 2024-10-11 |
| Fire at the Foothills (BACKYARD ONLY) | 3 | 5 | 0 | top 34% | 2024-04-05 |
| Smoke on the Water Guntersville (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2 | 13 | 0 | top 61% | 2025-09-12 |
| The High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2 | 8 | 0 | top 40% | 2024-05-17 |
| Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2 | 18 | 0 | top 68% | 2021-06-11 |
| Fire at the Foothills (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2 | 6 | 0 | top 38% | 2021-04-17 |
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +16.9 | Smoke in the Park (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE) | 2021-08-06 |
| +16.5 | Smoke on the Falls | 2019-04-12 |
| +15.8 | Scottsboro BBQ Festival (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE) | 2024-10-11 |
| +15.3 | Smoke on the Falls | 2023-04-07 |
| +14.8 | Poosa-Q | 2019-06-14 |
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -13.8 | Smokin' & Stokin' Trussville (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2019-10-11 |
| -13.2 | Smoke in the Park (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE) | 2023-08-11 |
| -10.8 | Bernard Blues & BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2025-09-05 |
| -9.7 | Smoke on the Falls | 2020-09-18 |
| -9.6 | Smoke On the Diamond(BACKYARD ONLY) | 2019-03-22 |
| Season | Contests | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 27% | 97.5% | 96.3% |
| 2025 | 12 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 58% | top 48% | 97.5% | 95.2% |
| 2024 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 50% | top 48% | 98.7% | 94.2% |
| 2023 | 10 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 70% | top 41% | 139.2% | 104.9% |
| 2022 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 22% | top 51% | 142% | 109.3% |
| 2021 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 80% | top 45% | 142.4% | 111.6% |
| 2020 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 67% | top 97% | 91.4% | 89.6% |
| 2019 | 8 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 100% | top 55% | 137.4% | 107.7% |
| 2018 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-05 | Smoke in the Park (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE) Glencoe, AL | 6 / 26 (350.8344) | 9 (175.4172) | 6 (175.4172) | 18 (168.5256) | — |
| 2026-04-03 | Smoke on the Falls 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 11 / 36 (342.2400) | 20 (163.9428) | 2 (178.2972) | — | — |
| 2025-10-25 | Last Chance Points Dance (BACKYARD) Cleveland, AL | 5 / 16 (350.8344) | 2 (178.8572) | 7 (171.9772) | — | — |
| 2025-10-24 | The Great Alabama BBQ Cook-Off (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) Cleveland, AL | — | 3 (176.5600) | — | — | — |
| 2025-10-24 | The Great Alabama BBQ Cook-Off (ONE MEAT PORK) Cleveland, AL | — | — | — | 6 (175.4056) | — |
| 2025-10-24 | The Great Alabama BBQ Cook-Off (ONE MEAT RIBS) Cleveland, AL | — | — | 14 (171.9656) | — | — |
| 2025-10-18 | Battle for the Bones BBQ Cook Off (ONE MEAT RIBS) Birmingham, AL | — | — | 3 (166.8456) | — | — |
| 2025-09-20 | Smoke in the Park (BACKYARD) Glencoe, AL | 7 / 22 (341.1200) | 16 (166.2400) | 4 (174.8800) | — | — |
| 2025-09-19 | The Great Alabama BBQ Cook-off Qualifier "Don't Burn the Brisket" (ONE MEAT BRISKET) Glencoe, AL | — | — | — | — | 18 (151.3944) |
| 2025-09-19 | Smoke in the Park (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE) Glencoe, AL | 12 / 30 (343.9544) | 18 (169.6800) | 9 (174.2744) | 7 (175.4056) | — |
| 2025-09-12 | Smoke on the Water Guntersville (BACKYARD ONLY) Guntersville, AL | 13 / 28 (343.3944) | 21 (168.5256) | 8 (174.8688) | — | — |
| 2025-09-12 | The Great Alabama BBQ Cook-off Qualifier "Battle of the Bones" (ONE MEAT RIBS) Guntersville, AL | — | — | 11 (170.8344) | — | — |
| 2025-09-05 | Bernard Blues & BBQ Cookoff (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) Cullman, AL | — | 17 (165.7028) | — | — | — |
| 2025-09-05 | Bernard Blues & BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) Cullman, AL | 26 / 29 (333.6344) | 24 (169.6800) | 21 (163.9544) | — | — |
| 2024-10-11 | Scottsboro BBQ Festival (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE) Scottsboro, AL | 2 / 38 (355.4172) | 3 (178.8572) | 5 (176.5600) | — | — |
| 2024-10-04 | Poosa Q 🏅 Montgomery, AL | 30 / 59 (337.0744) | 32 (168.5372) | 30 (168.5372) | — | — |
| 2024-09-13 | Smoke on the Water Guntersville (BACKYARD ONLY) Guntersville, AL | 25 / 33 (331.3256) | 11 (171.9656) | 30 (159.3600) | — | — |
| 2024-05-17 | The High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Winchester, TN | 22 / 39 (335.3600) | 18 (170.2628) | 26 (165.0972) | — | — |
| 2024-05-04 | O'So Good BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Day 2 Oneonta, AL | 15 / 20 (334.7772) | 11 (169.6800) | 18 (165.0972) | — | — |
| 2024-05-03 | O'So Good BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Day 1 Oneonta, AL | 17 / 27 (335.9544) | 2 (176.5600) | 24 (159.3944) | — | — |
| 2024-04-12 | Smoke on the Falls 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 8 / 31 (341.6572) | 8 (173.1200) | 10 (168.5372) | — | — |
| 2024-04-05 | Fire at the Foothills (BACKYARD ONLY) Chelsea, AL | 5 / 16 (341.6572) | 5 (171.9772) | 7 (169.6800) | 13 (159.3600) | — |
| 2023-10-21 | Battle for the Bones (ONE MEAT RIBS) Birmingham, AL | — | — | 1 (179.4400) | — | — |
| 2023-10-05 | Poosa Q 🏅 Montgomery, AL | 48 / 73 (323.9200) | 43 (165.0972) | 51 (158.8228) | — | — |
| 2023-09-22 | O'So Good BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) #1 Oneonta, AL | 9 / 18 (337.0512) | 7 (171.9656) | 12 (165.0856) | — | — |
| 2023-09-22 | O'So Good BBQ Festival (One Meat Ribs) Oneonta, AL | — | — | 8 (163.9544) | — | — |
| 2023-08-26 | Smoke on the Water BBQ Fest (BACKYARD ONLY) Lincoln, AL | 3 / 17 (343.9772) | 3 (176.5600) | 7 (167.4172) | — | — |
| 2023-08-11 | Smoke in the Park (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE) Glencoe, AL | 33 / 35 (483.2800) | 15 (169.6800) | 33 (158.2172) | 35 (155.3828) | — |
| 2023-08-04 | Smoke in the Outfield (BACKYARD) (TEAM REGISTRATION FULL) Madison, AL | 17 / 58 (342.2400) | 13 (171.9772) | 29 (170.2628) | — | — |
| 2023-05-19 | The High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Winchester, TN | 8 / 34 (343.3944) | 17 (170.8228) | 7 (172.5716) | — | — |
| 2023-04-14 | Fire at the Foothills (BACKYARD ONLY) 🏅 Chelsea, AL | 7 / 17 (501.0284) | 11 (162.8000) | 3 (170.2628) | 7 (167.9656) | — |
| 2023-04-07 | Smoke on the Falls 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 4 / 39 (346.8228) | 3 (177.7028) | 19 (169.1200) | — | — |
| 2022-11-12 | 4th Annual KCBS World Invitational - BACKYARD SERIES INVITATIONAL unrated Gadsden, AL | 32 / 49 (333.0744) | 17 (173.1200) | 41 (159.9544) | — | — |
| 2022-11-11 | 4th Annual KCBS World Invitational - OPEN unrated Gadsden, AL | 10 / 91 (170.2628) | — | — | — | — |
| 2022-10-21 | Barbecue With A View (BACKYARD ONLY) Vicksburg, MS | 16 / 28 (335.3828) | 16 (168.5256) | 13 (166.8572) | — | — |
| 2022-10-07 | Scottsboro BBQ Festival (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE ONLY) Scottsboro, AL | 21 / 38 (328.5028) | 12 (171.4056) | 30 (157.0972) | — | — |
| 2022-08-12 | Smoke in the Park (BACKYARD ONLY) Glencoe, AL | 27 / 35 (492.9940) | 28 (163.3828) | 17 (168.5256) | 29 (161.0856) | — |
| 2022-06-03 | Honeybee BBQ Competition 🏅 Lafayette, GA | 11 / 25 (483.8512) | 5 (167.3828) | 15 (153.0856) | 7 (163.3828) | — |
| 2022-05-05 | Poosa Q 🏅 Montgomery, AL | 28 / 72 (331.3716) | 14 (170.8228) | 39 (160.5488) | — | — |
| 2022-04-08 | Smoke on the Falls 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 28 / 34 (331.3484) | 29 (165.0856) | 27 (166.2628) | — | — |
| 2022-04-02 | Fire at the Foothills (BACKYARD ONLY) Chelsea, AL | 6 / 20 (511.3716) | 2 (177.7028) | 20 (158.8116) | 1 (174.8572) | — |
| 2021-10-08 | Scottsboro BBQ Festival (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE ONLY) Scottsboro, AL | 24 / 31 (322.7312) | 18 (166.8228) | 28 (155.9084) | — | — |
| 2021-08-06 | Smoke in the Park (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE) Glencoe, AL | 3 / 31 (512.5144) | 1 (176.5600) | 14 (163.9888) | 6 (169.6800) | — |
| 2021-06-11 | Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY) Huntsville, AL | 20 / 31 (332.5260) | 7 (171.9772) | 26 (160.5488) | — | — |
| 2021-05-21 | Twin States Barbecue Showdown (BACKYARD ONLY) Meridian, MS | 7 / 22 (342.2628) | 3 (177.1428) | 15 (165.1200) | — | — |
| 2021-04-17 | Fire at the Foothills (BACKYARD ONLY) Chelsea, AL | 9 / 21 (498.6968) | 16 (162.7884) | 11 (166.2400) | 6 (169.6684) | — |
| 2020-09-25 | Southern Sounds BBQ & Bluefest Backyard Contest 🏅 Semmes, AL | 19 / 23 (319.9200) | 6 (170.2856) | 21 (149.6344) | — | — |
| 2020-09-18 | Smoke on the Falls 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 39 / 28 (318.7428) | 19 (167.3828) | 47 (151.3600) | — | — |
| 2020-02-21 | Capital City Cook Off 🏅 Montgomery, AL | 17 / 25 (329.0512) | 10 (170.8112) | 18 (158.2400) | — | — |
| 2019-10-11 | Smokin' & Stokin' Trussville (BACKYARD ONLY) Trussville, AL | 16 / 17 (447.9200) | 13 (148.5600) | 17 (141.6572) | 10 (157.7028) | — |
| 2019-08-23 | Smoking for a Reason(BACKYARD ONLY) Fort Payne, AL | 7 / 11 (485.5772) | 3 (172.5600) | 10 (153.0628) | 9 (159.9544) | — |
| 2019-08-09 | Smoke in the Park (BACKYARD ONLY) Glencoe, AL | 19 / 26 (494.7656) | 9 (171.9772) | 17 (162.2628) | 21 (160.5256) | — |
| 2019-06-14 | Poosa-Q 🏅 Montgomery, AL | 6 / 48 (344.5372) | 4 (176.5600) | 12 (167.9772) | — | — |
| 2019-06-07 | Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY) Huntsville, AL | 18 / 25 (320.5600) | 9 (167.9884) | 22 (152.5716) | — | — |
| 2019-04-12 | Smoke on the Falls 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 2 / 30 (346.8228) | 11 (171.4056) | 2 (175.4172) | — | — |
| 2019-04-05 | Fire at the Foothills(BACKYARD ONLY) Chelsea, AL | 6 / 18 (345.6800) | 5 (175.4056) | 8 (170.2744) | — | — |
| 2019-03-22 | Smoke On the Diamond(BACKYARD ONLY) Brookwood, AL | 14 / 17 (316.4112) | 12 (161.6456) | 15 (154.7656) | 6 (167.3828) | — |
| 2018-05-18 | Smoke on the Diamond (BACKYARD ONLY) Brookwood, AL | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2018-02-23 | *D'Iberville BBQ Throw down Kids Q & Festival (JUDGES FULL) D'Iberville, MS | — | — | — | — | — |
| Year | Series | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 ↗ | Backyard | #137 (292 pts) | #175 (217 pts) | #119 (422 pts) | — | — |
| 2025 ↗ | Backyard | #95 (605 pts) | #75 (734 pts) | #65 (848 pts) | — | — |
| 2025 ↗ | Master | — | #598 (311 pts) | #515 (435 pts) | #819 (164 pts) | #1114 (79 pts) |
| 2024 ↗ | Backyard | #72 (755 pts) | #44 (923 pts) | #100 (593 pts) | — | — |
| 2023 ↗ | Backyard | — | #68 (832 pts) | #65 (921 pts) | — | — |
| 2023 ↗ | Master | — | — | #563 (393 pts) | — | — |
| 2022 ↗ | Backyard | — | #61 (752 pts) | #104 (437 pts) | — | — |
| 2021 ↗ | Backyard | — | #38 (846 pts) | #79 (416 pts) | — | — |
| 2020 ↗ | Backyard | — | #30 (372 pts) | #56 (207 pts) | — | — |