BACKDRAFT BBQ SC

At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)

Power ranking

#5690

of 6,413 rated · rankings

Rating

1445

peak 1445 · rated over 13 contests ⓘ

Contests

in the data

First seen

2016-07-07

latest 2026-07-09

Best ToY finish

#927

Master 2026

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

0 podiums

Overall top-10s

of 13 contests

Avg finish

top 76%

overall standings

Best overall

655.8516 / 720

Master · South Carolina Festival of Discovery

Perfect 180s

Current form

638.92 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 636.53 (+2.39)

Walk rate

15%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

174.2628

Chicken · SC Festival of Discovery

Consistency

±12.81

std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Pork Ribs

avg 161.41 · weakest Brisket (155.07)

Road miles

1,344

mi across 13 mapped stops · furthest 122 mi

Schedule strength

65%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1582)

Purse competed for

$92K

listed at 5 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

GCs in 6 state-championship entries

Master avg

636.53 / 720

13 Master contests · 0 GCs

⚔ Compare with another team

Storylines (8 found in this team's record)

Each card leads with the number that made it a story — read straight out of their results, no editorialising.

Their season

2016 their best year

2016 was the year it came together: 3 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 0 category wins, at an average finish in the top 62%.

3 contests
0 overall top-10s
0 category wins
average top 62%

A tough matchup

12–0 behind in the head-to-head

Smoke Central BBQ ahead in 100% of their meetings

Smoke Central BBQ has come out ahead in 12 of their 12 shared contests.

The weak link

−6.3 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 6.34 points below their pork ribs, and turns into a call 0% of the time against 0%.

Brisket avg 155.07
Pork Ribs avg 161.41
0 calls in 13 entries

A strong matchup

6–0 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 100% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of Smell My Smoke BBQ in 6 of their 6 shared contests.

The comeback

3 yrs off the trail, then back

Off the trail for 3 years, then back at South Carolina Festival of Discovery (2025-07-10).

last seen 2022-07-07
back 2025-07-10

Pork Ribs nemesis

12 of 12 shared pork ribs entries lost

Smoke Central BBQ ahead 100% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, Smoke Central BBQ has out-cooked them in 12 of 12 shared pork ribs entries.

The metronome

±1.78% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±1.78% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 88.4% of a perfect score
13 contests

A standing appointment

4 years running at one contest

They've cooked SC Festival of Discovery every year from 2016 to 2019 — the contest they never miss.

4 visits in all
best finish 49th

Teams like this (closest power rating)

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.

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

PIGHEADED IRISHMAN B-B-Q

#5693 of the rated field

1445 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 13
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1445

No shared contest yet.

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 13 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 13 contests
last seen 2017-08-11

⚔ Head-to-head

Pork & Boots

#5698 of the rated field

1445 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 12
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1445

No shared contest yet.

Careers of much the same size, 12 contests to 13, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 12 contests
last seen 2024-10-30

⚔ Head-to-head

Team GottaQ

#5680 of the rated field

1445 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 13
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1445

No shared contest yet.

Their last contest in the data was back in 2021, 5 years before BACKDRAFT BBQ SC's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 12 contests

⚔ Head-to-head

BREWER'S BEST BBQ

#5688 of the rated field

1445 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 11
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1445

No shared contest yet.

Level with BACKDRAFT BBQ SC on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 11 contests
last seen 2016-10-29

⚔ Head-to-head

Every Man A Smoker

#5702 of the rated field

1445 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 16
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1445

No shared contest yet.

16 contests and no Grand Championship yet.

rated over 16 contests
last seen 2026-06-26

⚔ Head-to-head

THE 4 SMOKEMEN BBQ

#5686 of the rated field

1445 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 10%
Peak: 1445

No shared contest yet.

Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2016.

rated over 10 contests
last seen 2021-10-22

⚔ Head-to-head

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
Smoke Central BBQ	12	0	12	0%	⚔ compare
PIG ON FIRE	11	1	10	9%	⚔ compare
ELITE BBQ SMOKERS	11	0	11	0%	⚔ compare
MUTTLEY CREW BBQ	10	0	10	0%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN SKULLIES	9	0	9	0%	⚔ compare
YES, DEAR BBQ	9	0	9	0%	⚔ compare
MCADOO HEIGHTS BBQ	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare
ULTIMATE TAILGATERS BBQ	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare
Cherrywood BBQ Smoke Team	7	3	4	43%	⚔ compare
Backwoods BBQ	7	1	6	14%	⚔ compare
SWIG-N-PIG	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
Smokin Gringos BBQ	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
Smell My Smoke BBQ	6	6	0	100%	⚔ compare
SWEET DADDYS SMOKEHOUSE	6	4	2	67%	⚔ compare
SOUTHERN Q COMPETITION COOK TEAM	6	1	5	17%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	13	2	174.2628	147.9428	159.87	top 68%
Pork Ribs	13	0	173.1200	150.8000	161.41	top 65%
Pork	13	0	167.3944	152.5600	160.18	top 74%
Brisket	13	0	166.2516	142.8228	155.07	top 73%

“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 contest size

Field	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
Medium (20–39)	6	0	top 78%
Large (40+)	7	0	top 75%

Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
SC Festival of Discovery	4	49	top 70%	2019-07-12
South Carolina Festival of Discovery	3	59	top 81%	2026-07-09
Smoke on the Harbor BBQ throwdown	2	16	top 64%	2018-11-16

The story so far (17 numbers that describe this team)

On the trail 10 yrs 2016-07-07 → 2026-07-09

Busiest season 2016 3 contests

Contests a season 1.4 across 9 seasons in the data

Cooks most in SC 13 of 13 contests

Contests visited 7 3 of them cooked more than once

Most-entered meat Chicken 13 entries · 0 wins · 2 calls

Strongest meat Pork Ribs averages 161.41 · weakest Brisket (155.07)

Walk rate 15% a top-10 call in 2 of 13 contests

Overall top-10 rate 0% 0 of 13 contests

Master average 636.53 out of 720 · 13 contests · 0 GCs

Opponents faced 332 184–549 across every shared overall standing

Road miles 1,344 13 mapped stops · furthest 122 mi

Schedule strength 1582 average field rating faced — tougher than 65% of rated contests

Purse competed for $92,470 listed at 5 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships 0 from 6 state-championship entries

Longest layoff 3 yrs 2022-07-07 → 2025-07-10

Power rating 1445 peak 1445 · #5690 of 6,413 rated

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

2016
Jul 7 First tracked contest SC Festival of Discovery
Jul 7 First call SC Festival of Discovery
Jul 7 Career-best single call (Chicken)174.2628 SC Festival of Discovery
Jul 7 Peak power rating (1500) SC Festival of Discovery
2021
Mar 12 First overall past 90% of a perfect score650.1032 Rufus Teague BBQ Throwdown - Pirateland
Mar 12 10th tracked contest Rufus Teague BBQ Throwdown - Pirateland
2026
Jul 9 Career-best overall score655.8516 South Carolina Festival of Discovery
Jul 9 Most recent contest South Carolina Festival of Discovery

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+0.3	Smoke on the Harbor BBQ throwdown	2018-11-16

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-9.9	Speed & Feed BBQ Cook-Off & Car Show	2020-03-13
-8.3	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	2017-08-11
-7.7	Rufus Teague BBQ Throwdown - Pirateland	2021-03-12
-7.3	SC Festival of Discovery(PALMETTO BBQ SERIES)	2017-07-06
-7.1	South Carolina Festival of Discovery	2025-07-10

Category scores over time

Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)

Where they finish (overall)

Best vs average (by meat)

How entries end (by meat)

Team of the Year rank by season

Season by season

Season	Contests	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2026	1	0%	top 85%	91.1%	91.1%
2025	1	0%	top 89%	84.4%	84.4%
2022	1	0%	top 68%	90.1%	90.1%
2021	1	0%	top 87%	90.3%	90.3%
2020	1	0%	top 100%	87.8%	87.8%
2019	1	0%	top 73%	87.8%	87.8%
2018	2	0%	top 63%	89.2%	88.7%
2017	2	0%	top 88%	88.9%	87.1%
2016	3	67%	top 62%	89.2%	88.7%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2026-07-09	South Carolina Festival of Discovery 🏅 Greenwood, SC	64 / 75 (655.8516)	74 (151.9428)	22 (173.1200)	61 (164.5372)	47 (166.2516)
2025-07-10	South Carolina Festival of Discovery 🏅 Greenwood, SC	59 / 66 (607.8060)	61 (147.9428)	56 (159.3828)	59 (157.1088)	62 (143.3716)
2022-07-07	South Carolina Festival of Discovery 🏅 Greenwood, SC	63 / 92 (649.0060)	55 (165.1200)	55 (165.6800)	75 (159.3944)	63 (158.8116)
2021-03-12	Rufus Teague BBQ Throwdown - Pirateland 🏅 Myrtle Beach, SC	34 / 39 (650.1032)	20 (170.8344)	36 (158.8000)	22 (167.3944)	36 (153.0744)
2020-03-13	Speed & Feed BBQ Cook-Off & Car Show 🏅 Darlington, SC	29 / 29 (631.8176)	29 (151.3484)	27 (162.2744)	22 (163.3944)	24 (154.8004)
2019-07-12	SC Festival of Discovery 🏅 Greenwood, SC	61 / 83 (632.3888)	59 (159.9428)	51 (161.1088)	64 (157.6456)	61 (153.6916)
2018-11-16	Smoke on the Harbor BBQ throwdown Mt. Pleasant, SC	16 / 25 (642.1256)	16 (159.3712)	17 (159.3944)	19 (160.5028)	11 (162.8572)
2018-07-12	SC Festival Of Discovery Greenwood, SC	56 / 89 (635.8628)	54 (162.2628)	71 (150.8000)	54 (161.7028)	49 (161.0972)
2017-08-11	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour N. Charleston, SC	25 / 27 (639.8400)	26 (151.3828)	17 (163.9888)	19 (163.9656)	20 (160.5028)
2017-07-06	SC Festival of Discovery(PALMETTO BBQ SERIES) Greenwood, SC	74 / 89 (614.6400)	69 (158.7884)	67 (157.0972)	69 (155.9316)	81 (142.8228)
2016-11-11	Smoke on the Harbor BBQ throwdown Mt. Pleasant, SC	16 / 25 (635.8060)	9 (163.9888)	12 (161.0856)	14 (161.0972)	21 (149.6344)
2016-09-02	*Low Country Hog Fest Charleston, SC	16 / 26 (637.4856)	18 (161.0856)	16 (159.3600)	20 (157.0628)	13 (159.9772)
2016-07-07	SC Festival of Discovery Greenwood, SC	49 / 82 (642.1484)	6 (174.2628)	23 (166.2628)	70 (152.5600)	62 (149.0628)

Career map (orange GC · green top-10 · grey the rest — tap a pin)

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	#927 (60 pts)	#1010 (60 pts)	#1011 (75 pts)	#970 (60 pts)	#950 (60 pts)
2025 ↗	Master	#1148 (60 pts)	#1221 (60 pts)	#1293 (60 pts)	#1190 (60 pts)	#1190 (60 pts)
2022 ↗	Master	#1309 (60 pts)	#1341 (60 pts)	#1404 (60 pts)	#1348 (60 pts)	#1333 (60 pts)
2021 ↗	Master	#1236 (60 pts)	#1183 (85 pts)	#1309 (60 pts)	#1212 (75 pts)	#1245 (60 pts)
2020 ↗	Master	#1114 (54 pts)	#1119 (54 pts)	#1129 (54 pts)	#877 (69 pts)	#1083 (59 pts)
2019 ↗	Master	#1955 (60 pts)	#2049 (60 pts)	#2026 (60 pts)	#2029 (60 pts)	#2010 (60 pts)
2018 ↗	Master	#1382 (155 pts)	#1452 (155 pts)	#1484 (150 pts)	#1509 (140 pts)	#1330 (180 pts)
2017 ↗	Master	#1924 (112 pts)	#1974 (112 pts)	#1659 (152 pts)	#1677 (142 pts)	#1710 (137 pts)
2016 ↗	Master	#1182 (251 pts)	#923 (396 pts)	#1174 (281 pts)	#1319 (241 pts)	#1281 (241 pts)