Philly Smoke

Philly Smoke is a competition barbecue team with 14 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2014 and 2026. Their best overall finish is 10th of 64 at the New Jersey State Barbecue Championship (2019). They are ranked #2289 of 6,476 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

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At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#2,289

of 6,476 rated · rankings

Rating

1527

peak 1529 · rated over 14 contests

Contests

in the data

First seen

May 9, 2014

latest Jul 11, 2026 · 12.2 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#1719

Master 2016 · every season

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

4 podiums

Overall top-10s

7% of 14 contests

Avg finish

top 48%

overall standings

Best overall

665.6348 / 720

Master · New Jersey State Barbecue Championship

Perfect 180s

Current form

658.86 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 636.44 (+22.43)

Walk rate

57%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

175.4172

Brisket · New Jersey State Barbecue Championship

Consistency

±26.13

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Pork Ribs

avg 162.31 · weakest Brisket (153.60)

Road miles

510

across 14 mapped stops · furthest 143 mi

Schedule strength

17%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1524)

Purse competed for

$55K

listed at 6 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

won from 6 state-championship entries

Master avg

636.44 / 720

14 Master contests · 0 GCs

Storylines (9 found in their record)

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

High-water mark

665.6348 career-best overall

92.4% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 665.6348 at New Jersey State Barbecue Championship — 92.4% of a perfect 720.

Master
Jul 13, 2024

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

PHILLY BLIND PIG BBQ has finished one call ahead of Philly Smoke 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

A tough matchup

11–1 behind in the head-to-head

Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit ahead in 92% of their meetings

Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit has come out ahead in 11 of their 12 shared contests.

The weak link

−8.7 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 8.71 points below their pork ribs, and turns into a call 7% of the time against 50%.

Brisket avg 153.60
Pork Ribs avg 162.31
1 call in 14 entries

A strong matchup

11–0 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 100% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of BIG BAD WOLVES in 11 of their 11 shared contests.

The comeback

3 yrs off the trail, then back

Off the trail for 3 years, then back at New Jersey State Barbecue Championship (Jul 9, 2022).

last seen Jul 12, 2019
back Jul 9, 2022

Pork Ribs nemesis

8 of 12 shared pork ribs entries lost

Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit ahead 67% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit has out-cooked them in 8 of 12 shared pork ribs entries.

Show 2 more storylines

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

PHILLY BLIND PIG BBQ has landed one call behind them 2 times.

A standing appointment

6 years running at one contest

They've cooked New Jersey State Barbecue Championship every year from 2014 to 2019 — the contest they never miss.

11 visits in all
best finish 10th

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
2018 ↗	Master	#1954 (60 pts)	#2012 (60 pts)	#1205 (235 pts)	#2030 (60 pts)	#1990 (60 pts)
2016 ↗	Master	#1719 (130 pts)	#1883 (120 pts)	#1208 (270 pts)	#1322 (240 pts)	#1799 (125 pts)
2014 ↗	Master	#2084 (75 pts)	#2167 (75 pts)	#2048 (95 pts)	#2172 (75 pts)	#2148 (75 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to Philly Smoke, each with one reason worth a look.

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

MEAT MITCH

#2,277 of the rated field

1528 power rating

Contests: 15
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 13%
Peak: 1540

Their last contest in the data was back in 2018, 8 years before Philly Smoke's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 14 contests

⚔ Compare careers

OMG-BBQ-TX

#2,281 of the rated field

1528 power rating

Contests: 15
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 20%
Peak: 1528

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 15 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 15 contests
last seen Jun 23, 2017

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STREET MEAT

#2,287 of the rated field

1528 power rating

Contests: 13
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1541

Careers of much the same size, 13 contests to 14, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 13 contests
last seen Jan 24, 2025

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BANKIN BABY BBQ

#2,285 of the rated field

1528 power rating

Contests: 16
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 13%
Peak: 1530

16 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 13% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 16 contests
last seen Mar 22, 2019

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SMOKIN EGGHEADS

#2,283 of the rated field

1528 power rating

Contests: 13
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 15%
Peak: 1532

Level with Philly Smoke on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 12 contests
last seen Apr 6, 2020

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Great White Smoke

#2,284 of the rated field

1528 power rating

Contests: 20
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 20%
Peak: 1528

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 17 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 17 contests
last seen Sep 25, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
PHILLY BLIND PIG BBQ	13	3	10	23%	⚔ compare
SWINE AND CHEESE	12	9	3	75%	⚔ compare
Palm tree smokehouse	12	5	7	42%	⚔ compare
Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit	12	1	11	8%	⚔ compare
BIG BAD WOLVES	11	11	0	100%	⚔ compare
Bar B Q Dat	11	10	1	91%	⚔ compare
B'S QUE	11	5	6	45%	⚔ compare
Nice Racks	11	3	8	27%	⚔ compare
LOCAL SMOKE BBQ	11	3	8	27%	⚔ compare
CARVER'S Q	10	5	5	50%	⚔ compare
SIR-PORK'S-ALOT BBQ	10	4	6	40%	⚔ compare
Mates Nice Rack BBQ	9	8	1	89%	⚔ compare
PHAT BASTERDZ BBQ	9	7	2	78%	⚔ compare
Tom Tom Bob A Que	9	6	3	67%	⚔ compare
PACKANACK LAKE BBQ CLUB	9	5	4	56%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	14	2	1	175.4056	141.1428	160.02	top 54%
Pork Ribs	14	7	2	174.8456	132.5372	162.31	top 34%
Pork	14	3	0	170.8344	144.5600	160.51	top 45%
Brisket	14	1	1	175.4172	137.6688	153.60	top 58%

“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)	1	0	top 59%
Large (40+)	13	0	top 47%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	Avg finish
NJ	11	top 43%
PA	2	top 70%
DE	1	top 59%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
New Jersey State Barbecue Championship	11	10	0	top 43%	Jul 11, 2026

More numbers

Busiest season 2014 3 contests

Contests a season 1.3 across 11 seasons in the data

Most contests held in NJ 11 of 14 contests · 3 states in all

Contests visited 4 1 of them more than once

Opponents faced 324 finished ahead 449 times, behind 384

Longest layoff 3 yrs Jul 12, 2019 → Jul 9, 2022

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

20261 milestone

Jul 11 Most recent contest New Jersey State Barbecue Championship

20252 milestones

Jul 12 Career-best single call (Brisket)175.4172 New Jersey State Barbecue Championship
Jul 12 Peak power rating (1529) New Jersey State Barbecue Championship

20241 milestone

Jul 13 Career-best overall score665.6348 New Jersey State Barbecue Championship

20221 milestone

Jul 9 10th tracked contest New Jersey State Barbecue Championship

20191 milestone

Jul 12 First overall top-10 New Jersey State Barbecue Championship

20171 milestone

Jul 7 First overall past 90% of a perfect score650.2056 New Jersey State Barbecue Championship

20161 milestone

Jun 10 First call The Historic New Castle Colonial BBQ Competition at Battery Park

20141 milestone

May 9 First tracked contest Smoke in the Valley BBQ Competition

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+12.8	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship	Jul 7, 2017
+12.5	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship	Jul 12, 2019
+7.5	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship	Jul 13, 2024
+7	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship	Jul 14, 2023
+6.2	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship	Jul 12, 2025

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-10	Smoke in the Valley BBQ Competition	May 9, 2014
-3.2	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship	Jul 10, 2015
-3	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship	Jul 11, 2014
-1.5	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship	Jul 11, 2026
-1.5	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship	Jul 8, 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	Top-10s	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2026	1	0	0%	top 55%	91.8%	91.8%
2025	1	0	100%	top 32%	92.4%	92.4%
2024	1	0	100%	top 29%	92.4%	92.4%
2023	1	0	100%	top 31%	92%	92%
2022	1	0	0%	top 54%	88.9%	88.9%
2019	1	1	100%	top 16%	91.7%	91.7%
2018	1	0	100%	top 52%	87.3%	87.3%
2017	1	0	100%	top 16%	90.3%	90.3%
2016	2	0	100%	top 59%	88.9%	87.1%
2015	1	0	0%	top 65%	85%	85%
2014	3	0	0%	top 68%	87.6%	83.8%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Jul 11, 2026	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship 🏅 North Wildwood, NJ	34 / 62 (661.0060)	46 (160.5260)	24 (168.5372)	23 (169.1428)	36 (162.8000)
Jul 12, 2025	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship 🏅 North Wildwood, NJ	20 / 63 (665.6344)	43 (159.9428)	2 (174.2972)	46 (155.9772)	3 (175.4172)
Jul 13, 2024	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship 🏅 North Wildwood, NJ	18 / 62 (665.6348)	24 (167.4172)	10 (171.4172)	10 (170.2744)	42 (156.5260)
Jul 14, 2023	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship 🏅 North Wildwood, NJ	20 / 64 (662.1712)	6 (175.4056)	6 (174.8456)	38 (161.1200)	49 (150.8000)
Jul 9, 2022	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship 🏅 North Wildwood, NJ	33 / 61 (639.8748)	39 (161.7144)	29 (164.5372)	22 (165.6916)	48 (147.9316)
Jul 12, 2019	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship 🏅 North Wildwood, NJ	10 / 64 (660.5144)	18 (166.8456)	8 (166.2744)	7 (170.8344)	34 (156.5600)
Jul 14, 2018	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship North Wildwood, NJ	33 / 64 (628.4236)	25 (161.0972)	3 (172)	50 (148.5032)	45 (146.8232)
Jul 7, 2017	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship North Wildwood, NJ	11 / 67 (650.2056)	2 (174.2628)	10 (161.6800)	13 (163.9884)	35 (150.2744)
Jul 8, 2016	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship North Wildwood, NJ	39 / 65 (614.2628)	61 (141.1428)	25 (159.4400)	9 (164.5256)	38 (149.1544)
Jun 10, 2016	The Historic New Castle Colonial BBQ Competition at Battery Park New Castle, DE	23 / 39 (639.8976)	32 (152.5488)	4 (170.2744)	18 (163.4172)	24 (153.6572)
Jul 10, 2015	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship North Wildwood, NJ	42 / 65 (611.8516)	34 (159.9884)	40 (154.8116)	26 (159.3828)	52 (137.6688)
Oct 3, 2014	Keystone Classic Barbeque Harrisburg, PA	29 / 53 (630.7772)	36 (155.4172)	21 (162.8456)	33 (157.1200)	33 (155.3944)
Jul 11, 2014	New Jersey State Barbecue Championship North Wildwood, NJ	41 / 65 (601.6572)	49 (149.0972)	57 (138.8344)	36 (152.5484)	12 (161.1772)
May 9, 2014	Smoke in the Valley BBQ Competition Green Lane, PA	46 / 54 (578.2060)	29 (154.8344)	50 (132.5372)	43 (144.5600)	39 (146.2744)

Philly Smoke

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 (9 found in their record)

High-water mark

The one to beat

A tough matchup

The weak link

A strong matchup

The comeback

Pork Ribs nemesis

Looking over their shoulder

A standing appointment

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 — 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)