Giant slayer
34
teams beaten in one weekend
Took the Grand Championship over a 34-team field at Mozingo Lake BBQ.
- Sep 5, 2020
SMOKIN' TOAD'S
SMOKIN' TOAD'S is a competition barbecue team with 18 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2019 and 2025. They have won 1 Grand Championship, at the Mozingo Lake BBQ (2020), and finished Reserve Grand Champion once. They are ranked #2403 of 6,476 teams in the KCBS power rankings. Also listed in KCBS results as “Smokin Toads”.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1523
peak 1558 · rated over 15 contests2 invitational or side-series contests not counted
Contests
18
in the data
First seen
Oct 11, 2019
latest Jun 6, 2025 · 5.7 years on the trail
Grand champs
1
1 reserve · wins it all 6% of the time
Category wins
2
8 podiums
Overall top-10s
5
28% of 18 contests
Best top-10 run
3
straight overall top-10s
Avg finish
top 51%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
661.56 ▼
last 5 Master vs avg 664.93 (-3.37)
Walk rate
61%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±14.36
spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 167.86 · weakest Brisket (161.58)
Road miles
2,013
across 18 mapped stops · furthest 324 mi
Schedule strength
70%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1588)
Purse competed for
$134K
listed at 15 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
1 🏅
won from 15 state-championship entries
Master avg
664.93 / 720
12 Master contests · 0 GCs
Backyard avg
328.76 / 360
3 Backyard contests · 1 GC
Backyard (4-meat) avg
663.37 / 720
1 Backyard (4-meat) contest · 0 GCs
These overall scores sit on different scales (Master out of 720, Backyard out of 360, Backyard (4-meat) out of 720), so they're kept separate — averaging them together would be misleading.
This team cooks the Backyard series — its own boards, records and Team of the Year are here.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 ↗ | Master | #1461 (54 pts) | #1187 (69 pts) | #1501 (59 pts) | #1140 (74 pts) | #1177 (64 pts) |
| 2024 ↗ | Master | #873 (121 pts) | #598 (316 pts) | #993 (126 pts) | #800 (181 pts) | #985 (116 pts) |
| 2023 ↗ | Master | #571 (303 pts) | #594 (318 pts) | #649 (323 pts) | #648 (263 pts) | #540 (348 pts) |
| 2022 ↗ | Backyard | — | #197 (173 pts) | #287 (103 pts) | — | — |
| 2021 ↗ | Master | #308 (627 pts) | #235 (847 pts) | #344 (592 pts) | #332 (627 pts) | #354 (577 pts) |
| 2020 ↗ | Backyard | — | #39 (263 pts) | #48 (238 pts) | — | — |
Overall rank by season
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to SMOKIN' TOAD'S, each with one reason worth a look.
96 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#2,419 of the rated field
- Contests
- 51
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 8%
- Peak
- 1532
0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to SMOKIN' TOAD'S)
One contest in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team SMOKIN' TOAD'S has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#2,393 of the rated field
- Contests
- 15
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 20%
- Peak
- 1533
Their last contest in the data was back in 2017, 8 years before SMOKIN' TOAD'S's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careers#2,410 of the rated field
- Contests
- 17
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 47%
- Peak
- 1536
Careers of much the same size, 17 contests to 18, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#2,415 of the rated field
- Contests
- 13
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 15%
- Peak
- 1523
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 13 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Compare careers#2,401 of the rated field
- Contests
- 12
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1535
12 contests and no Grand Championship yet.
⚔ Compare careers#2,409 of the rated field
- Contests
- 14
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 21%
- Peak
- 1530
They were already cooking in 2013, 6 years before SMOKIN' TOAD'S's first contest.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MEAT RUSHMORE BBQ | 11 | 3 | 8 | 27% | ⚔ compare |
| PARTS 'R' SMOKIN | 10 | 3 | 7 | 30% | ⚔ compare |
| UNFAMOUS DAVE'S | 9 | 2 | 7 | 22% | ⚔ compare |
| MAD MUTT'S BBQ | 8 | 2 | 6 | 25% | ⚔ compare |
| MAN MEAT BBQ | 7 | 1 | 6 | 14% | ⚔ compare |
| Happy Grillmore | 7 | 1 | 6 | 14% | ⚔ compare |
| Bears Backyard Q | 6 | 3 | 3 | 50% | ⚔ compare |
| Damn Fine Beef & Swine | 6 | 1 | 5 | 17% | ⚔ compare |
| LOVE 2 Q | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| Squealin N Dealin BBQ | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| Barking Dog BBQ | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| AWESOME RACKS COOKIN CREW | 5 | 3 | 2 | 60% | ⚔ compare |
| S&S BBQ | 5 | 3 | 2 | 60% | ⚔ compare |
| ALL FORKED UP FOR Q | 5 | 3 | 2 | 60% | ⚔ compare |
| Cow Creek BBQ | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 18 | 9 | 1 | 5 | 178.2972 | 149.6572 | 167.86 | top 40% |
| Pork Ribs | 18 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 173.1200 | 143.9084 | 164.89 | top 53% |
| Pork | 13 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 178.8572 | 150.8572 | 167.10 | top 59% |
| Brisket | 13 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 173.1200 | 151.9316 | 161.58 | top 65% |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 3 | 0 | top 48% |
| Medium (20–39) | 9 | 1 | top 41% |
| Large (40+) | 5 | 0 | top 71% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anchor City Cook Off | 2 | 3 | 0 | top 43% | Oct 8, 2021 |
More numbers
Busiest season
2021
6 contests
Contests a season
2.6
across 7 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
MO
9 of 18 contests · 4 states in all
Contests visited
16
1 of them more than once
First title
Sep 5, 2020
Mozingo Lake BBQ
Opponents faced
356
finished ahead 274 times, behind 300
Longest layoff
1.4 yrs
Nov 12, 2021 → Apr 21, 2023
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20251 milestone
- Most recent contest Big Blue BBQ Championship
20215 milestones
- First Reserve Championship Jesse James Barbeque Cook Out
- Career-best overall score697.0744 Jesse James Barbeque Cook Out
- Career-best single call (Pork)178.8572 Jesse James Barbeque Cook Out
- Peak power rating (1558) Jesse James Barbeque Cook Out
- 10th tracked contest 3rd Annual KCBS World Invitational - Backyard
20204 milestones
- First category win (Chicken) Mozingo Lake BBQ
- First Grand Championship Mozingo Lake BBQ
- First state championship Mozingo Lake BBQ
- Biggest field won (34 teams) Mozingo Lake BBQ
20194 milestones
- First call Anchor City Cook off
- First overall top-10 Anchor City Cook off
- First overall podium Anchor City Cook off
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score663.3716 Anchor City Cook off
20181 milestone
- First tracked contest Taste of the Ozarks (BACKYARD ONLY)
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +17.6 | Mozingo Lake BBQ | Sep 5, 2020 |
| +14.4 | Anchor City Cook off | Oct 11, 2019 |
| +13 | Jesse James Barbeque Cook Out | Sep 17, 2021 |
| +12.8 | Grillin and Chillin | Jun 26, 2020 |
| +5.2 | Smokin' Hot Cars & BBQ | Jul 23, 2021 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -9.2 | Big Blue BBQ Championship | Jun 6, 2025 |
| -7.9 | Anchor City Cook Off | Oct 8, 2021 |
| -7.2 | Smoke on the Bricks | Aug 25, 2023 |
| -5.6 | Tom Brigham Memorial BBQ | May 17, 2024 |
| -4.8 | Mclouth BBQ Blowout 29th Annual | Jun 4, 2021 |
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 | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 90% | 91.3% | 91.3% |
| 2024 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50% | top 73% | 92.3% | 91.6% |
| 2023 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20% | top 66% | 94.5% | 92.5% |
| 2021 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 100% | top 46% | 96.8% | 93.1% |
| 2020 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 100% | top 9% | 90.6% | 89.6% |
| 2019 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 12% | 92.1% | 92.1% |
| 2018 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 6, 2025 | Big Blue BBQ Championship 🏅 Marysville, KS | 26 / 29 (657.0060) | 22 (166.8344) | 24 (163.3944) | 21 (165.6800) | 23 (161.0972) |
| Aug 23, 2024 | East Central Kansas State BBQ Championship 🏅 Paola, KS | 29 / 42 (654.6856) | 31 (162.8228) | 29 (164.5372) | 12 (173.7028) | 33 (153.6228) |
| May 17, 2024 | Tom Brigham Memorial BBQ 🏅 Iola, KS | 24 / 31 (664.4344) | 2 (178.2972) | 23 (166.2516) | 29 (160.5256) | 26 (159.3600) |
| Aug 25, 2023 | Smoke on the Bricks 🏅 Baldwin City, KS | 33 / 44 (651.2116) | 18 (169.6800) | 38 (161.6572) | 30 (163.9544) | 34 (155.9200) |
| Jul 21, 2023 | Shenandoah ShenDig 🏅 Shenandoah, IA | 15 / 37 (680.4572) | 19 (169.6800) | 10 (171.9772) | 20 (169.1200) | 12 (169.6800) |
| Jun 30, 2023 | Happy Basset 3rd Annual BBQ Competition 🏅 Topeka, KS | 22 / 33 (672.4688) | 28 (166.8344) | 23 (168.5372) | 25 (167.4056) | 16 (169.6916) |
| Jun 9, 2023 | Made for KC BBQ Championship (COMPETITORS SERIES) unrated Kansas City, MO | 37 / 44 (665.0060) | 23 (169.6916) | 11 (173.1200) | 23 (170.2628) | 40 (151.9316) |
| Apr 21, 2023 | Smokin in the Creek BBQ 🏅 Sugar Creek, MO | 32 / 51 (660.4116) | 22 (168.5488) | 25 (167.3944) | 25 (169.1084) | 43 (155.3600) |
| Nov 12, 2021 | 3rd Annual KCBS World Invitational - Backyard unrated Shawnee, OK | 7 / 33 (341.1544) | 6 (174.2972) | 16 (166.8572) | — | — |
| Oct 8, 2021 | Anchor City Cook Off 🏅 Centralia, MO | 14 / 19 (666.7776) | 9 (171.4516) | 15 (165.1316) | 15 (166.2400) | 14 (163.9544) |
| Sep 17, 2021 | Jesse James Barbeque Cook Out 🏅 Kearney, MO | 2 / 16 (697.0744) | 3 (176.5600) | 7 (168.5372) | 1 (178.8572) | 5 (173.1200) |
| Aug 20, 2021 | Smokin on The Harbor 🏅 Warsaw, MO | 11 / 19 (638.8460) | 6 (163.4400) | 4 (169.1316) | 17 (150.8572) | 11 (155.4172) |
| Jul 23, 2021 | Smokin' Hot Cars & BBQ 🏅 Iola, KS | 13 / 28 (673.6112) | 14 (167.4056) | 16 (165.0972) | 11 (169.6800) | 9 (171.4284) |
| Jun 4, 2021 | Mclouth BBQ Blowout 29th Annual 🏅 Mclouth, KS | 27 / 42 (662.1484) | 3 (175.4056) | 35 (159.9428) | 26 (166.8456) | 33 (159.9544) |
| Sep 5, 2020 | Mozingo Lake BBQ 🏅 Maryville, MO | 1 / 34 (326.2856) | 1 (163.9884) | 2 (162.2972) | — | — |
| Jun 26, 2020 | Grillin and Chillin 🏅 Chillicothe, MO | 5 / 34 (318.8344) | 7 (153.7144) | 3 (165.1200) | — | — |
| Oct 11, 2019 | Anchor City Cook off 🏅 Centralia, MO | 3 / 25 (663.3716) | 2 (173.1428) | 4 (165.1200) | — | — |
| Aug 4, 2018 | Taste of the Ozarks (BACKYARD ONLY) Warsaw, MO | — | 17 (149.6572) | 20 (143.9084) | — | — |
An unrated contest — an invitational, or a Competitor or Kosher Series board — is in the record but doesn’t move the power rating.