The one to beat
2×
one call ahead of them
DAD'S GRILLIN CREW has finished one call ahead of Holy Smoke 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
Holy Smoke
At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)
Rating
1469
peak 1507 · rated over 11 contests ⓘ
Contests
24
in the data
First seen
2013-05-03
latest 2026-07-12
Best ToY finish
#1031
Master 2025
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
1 podiums
Overall top-10s
6
of 24 contests
Avg finish
top 59%
overall standings
Best overall
682.8116
Competitor Series · The Robertson County Fair Assoc. Barbeque Throwdown (COMPETITORS SERIES)
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
625.57 ▼
last 5 Master vs avg 627.05 (-1.48)
Walk rate
46%
contests with a top-10 call
Top-10 streak
2
best run (overall)
Consistency
±49.97
std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork
avg 164.38 · weakest Brisket (157.01)
Road miles
29,418
mi across 24 mapped stops · furthest 4883 mi
Schedule strength
25%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1534)
Purse competed for
$49K
listed at 9 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
GCs in 2 state-championship entries
Master avg
627.05 / 720
11 Master contests · 0 GCs
Storylines (9 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 27%.
- 3 contests
- 1 overall top-10s
- 0 category wins
- average top 27%
The weak link
−7.4
points behind their best meat
Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 7.38 points below their pork, and turns into a call 18% of the time against 29%.
- Brisket avg 157.01
- Pork avg 164.38
- 2 calls in 11 entries
A strong matchup
5–1
ahead in the head-to-head
Ahead in 83% of their meetings
They've finished ahead of RTQue in 5 of their 6 shared contests.
The comeback
1.7 yrs
off the trail, then back
Off the trail for 1.7 years, then back at The Robertson County Fair Assoc. Barbeque Throwdown (COMPETITORS SERIES) (2021-06-11).
- last seen 2019-09-13
- back 2021-06-11
Pork nemesis
5 of 6
shared pork entries lost
DAD'S GRILLIN CREW ahead 83% of the time
Even in their strongest meat, DAD'S GRILLIN CREW has out-cooked them in 5 of 6 shared pork entries.
An April team
Top 41%
average finish in April
Something about April: average finish in the top 41% across 3 contests, versus top 59% the rest of the year.
- 3 April contests
- top 59% the rest of the year
The long haul
29,418
road miles between contests
Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 29,418 miles across 24 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 4,883 miles to Open Polish BBQ Championship.
- 24 mapped stops
- furthest 4,883 mi
A standing appointment
4
years running at one contest
They've cooked Robertson County Fair Assoc. Barbeque Throwdown (COMPETITOR SERIES) every year from 2023 to 2026 — the contest they never miss.
- 4 visits in all
- best finish 17th
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.
154 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#4676 of the rated field
- Contests
- 11
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 9%
- Peak
- 1512
No shared contest yet.
They've been 1512 at their best, 43 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.
⚔ Head-to-head#4649 of the rated field
- Contests
- 11
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 18%
- Peak
- 1503
No shared contest yet.
Their last contest in the data was back in 2019, 7 years before Holy Smoke's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Head-to-head#4639 of the rated field
- Contests
- 12
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1469
No shared contest yet.
Fewer contests behind them than Holy Smoke has cooked, 12 to 24, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.
⚔ Head-to-head#4678 of the rated field
- Contests
- 12
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 17%
- Peak
- 1469
No shared contest yet.
12 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 17% top-10 finishes rather than wins.
⚔ Head-to-head#4660 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 10%
- Peak
- 1505
No shared contest yet.
Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2013.
⚔ Head-to-head#4637 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1469
No shared contest yet.
Level with Holy Smoke on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Head-to-headFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| THE BLAZERS | 7 | 3 | 4 | 43% | ⚔ compare |
| RTQue | 6 | 5 | 1 | 83% | ⚔ compare |
| Bad company cookers | 6 | 3 | 3 | 50% | ⚔ compare |
| BBQR'S DELIGHT | 6 | 2 | 4 | 33% | ⚔ compare |
| DAD'S GRILLIN CREW | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| M-1 Smokin' Guns | 5 | 4 | 1 | 80% | ⚔ compare |
| Daddy-Jacks BBQ | 5 | 4 | 1 | 80% | ⚔ compare |
| BOARder Line BBQ | 5 | 3 | 2 | 60% | ⚔ compare |
| VanBand BBQ | 5 | 3 | 2 | 60% | ⚔ compare |
| DC's Backyard Smokers | 5 | 2 | 3 | 40% | ⚔ compare |
| RAZORRACKS | 5 | 2 | 3 | 40% | ⚔ compare |
| BUCKSHOT MALONE'S PIG SHACK | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| Pig Destroyer | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| FIRE DANCER BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 17 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 176.5600 | 141.6228 | 163.80 | top 57% |
| Pork Ribs | 18 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 176.0000 | 135.9428 | 161.21 | top 58% |
| Pork | 17 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 171.4400 | 157.6456 | 164.38 | top 55% |
| Brisket | 11 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 169.1544 | 142.8000 | 157.01 | top 62% |
“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 state / province
| Where | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| TN | 7 | 0 | top 48% |
| AR | 6 | 0 | top 52% |
| PO | 1 | 0 | top 69% |
| KS | 1 | 0 | top 91% |
| TX | 1 | 0 | top 92% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 3 | 0 | top 78% |
| Medium (20–39) | 12 | 0 | top 54% |
| Large (40+) | 3 | 0 | top 61% |
Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Robertson County Fair Assoc. Barbeque Throwdown (COMPETITOR SERIES) | 4 | 17 | 0 | top 66% | 2026-06-12 |
| The Robertson County Fair Assoc. Barbeque Throwdown (COMPETITORS SERIES) | 2 | 4 | 0 | top 25% | 2022-06-10 |
| *Smokin on the Prairie BBQ Cook-off | 2 | 7 | 0 | top 27% | 2017-04-28 |
The story so far (18 numbers that describe this team)
On the trail
13.2 yrs
2013-05-03 → 2026-07-12
Busiest season
2017
4 contests
Contests a season
1.8
across 13 seasons in the data
Cooks most in
TN
7 of 24 contests · 8 states/provinces in all
Contests visited
13
3 of them cooked more than once
Most-entered meat
Pork Ribs
18 entries · 0 wins · 6 calls
Strongest meat
Pork
averages 164.38 · weakest Brisket (157.01)
Walk rate
46%
a top-10 call in 11 of 24 contests
Overall top-10 rate
25%
6 of 24 contests
Best top-10 run
2
straight contests
Master average
627.05
out of 720 · 11 contests · 0 GCs
Opponents faced
341
212–281 across every shared overall standing
Road miles
29,418
24 mapped stops · furthest 4,883 mi
Schedule strength
1534
average field rating faced — tougher than 25% of rated contests
Purse competed for
$49,050
listed at 9 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0
from 2 state-championship entries
Longest layoff
1.7 yrs
2019-09-13 → 2021-06-11
Power rating
1469
peak 1507 · #4663 of 6,413 rated
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
- 2013
- First tracked contest Smokelawn
- 2015
- First call Bryant's Buzzin' BBQ Bash
- 2016
- First overall top-10 *Smokin on the Prairie BBQ Cook-off
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score669.0056 *Smokin on the Prairie BBQ Cook-off
- 2017
- Career-best single call (Chicken)176.5600 *Smokin on the Prairie BBQ Cook-off
- Peak power rating (1507) *Smokin on the Prairie BBQ Cook-off
- 10th tracked contest *Q'ing to Cure Childhood Cancer BBQ Cookoff
- 2021
- Career-best overall score682.8116 The Robertson County Fair Assoc. Barbeque Throwdown (COMPETITORS SERIES)
- 2026
- Most recent contest BBQ Fest Market Plaza
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +10.9 | *Smokin on the Prairie BBQ Cook-off | 2016-04-29 |
| +9.7 | *Smokin on the Prairie BBQ Cook-off | 2017-04-28 |
| +7.1 | Delta Smoke BBQ Contest | 2019-06-07 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -13.3 | *Q'ing to Cure Childhood Cancer BBQ Cookoff | 2017-08-11 |
| -12.7 | Bryant's Buzzin' BBQ Bash | 2015-09-25 |
| -11.2 | Open Polish BBQ Championship | 2019-09-13 |
| -10.2 | Smoke on the Bricks | 2021-08-20 |
| -4.4 | BBQ Fest Panama | 2025-04-26 |
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 | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 67% | top 54% | 87.7% | 87.7% |
| 2025 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50% | top 75% | 84.4% | 84.4% |
| 2024 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 52% | — | — |
| 2023 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 60% | — | — |
| 2022 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 31% | — | — |
| 2021 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 50% | top 56% | 83.3% | 83.3% |
| 2019 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50% | top 64% | 94.1% | 89.5% |
| 2018 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2017 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 75% | top 63% | 94.8% | 84.5% |
| 2016 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 33% | top 27% | 92.9% | 92.9% |
| 2015 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50% | top 94% | 88.1% | 88.1% |
| 2014 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2013 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 54% | 89% | 89% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-07-12 | BBQ Fest Market Plaza La Chorrera, PO | 9 / 13 (631.2112) | 8 (157.0856) | 10 (153.0628) | 11 (157.6456) | 5 (163.4172) |
| 2026-06-12 | Robertson County Fair Assoc. Barbeque Throwdown (COMPETITOR SERIES) unrated Springfield, TN | 23 / 32 (498.2172) | 21 (165.6800) | 19 (168.5944) | 22 (163.9428) | — |
| 2026-05-01 | Dr. George Smith BBQ Brawl (COMPETITOR SERIES) unrated Murfreesboro, TN | 5 / 23 (519.9428) | 9 (169.1200) | 8 (170.8228) | — | — |
| 2025-06-13 | Robertson County Fair Assoc. Barbeque Throwdown (COMPETITOR SERIES) unrated Springfield, TN | 29 / 36 (491.3144) | 28 (162.2400) | 29 (158.2516) | 15 (170.8228) | — |
| 2025-04-26 | BBQ Fest Panama Panama, Pa | 16 / 23 (607.9312) | 5 (161.6912) | 23 (135.9428) | 10 (158.3544) | 12 (151.9428) |
| 2024-06-07 | Robertson County Fair Assoc. Barbeque Throwdown (COMPETITOR SERIES) unrated Springfield, TN | 17 / 33 (503.3372) | 19 (166.2400) | 12 (169.7144) | 21 (167.3828) | — |
| 2023-06-09 | Robertson County Fair Assoc. Barbeque Throwdown (COMPETITORS SERIES) unrated Springfield, TN | 18 / 30 (658.1600) | 20 (164.5372) | 25 (155.3944) | 18 (165.1084) | — |
| 2022-06-10 | The Robertson County Fair Assoc. Barbeque Throwdown (COMPETITORS SERIES) unrated Springfield, TN | 8 / 26 (665.0168) | 19 (161.6800) | 14 (159.3828) | 5 (168.5484) | — |
| 2021-08-20 | Smoke on the Bricks 🏅 Baldwin City, KS | 42 / 46 (599.8400) | 38 (159.9772) | 45 (138.2400) | 39 (158.8228) | 42 (142.8000) |
| 2021-06-11 | The Robertson County Fair Assoc. Barbeque Throwdown (COMPETITORS SERIES) unrated Springfield, TN | 4 / 20 (682.8116) | 10 (164.5372) | 5 (173.7144) | 13 (164.5600) | — |
| 2019-09-13 | Open Polish BBQ Championship Poland, | 21 / 23 (611.2912) | 23 (141.6228) | 15 (163.4056) | 14 (157.7256) | 19 (148.5372) |
| 2019-06-07 | Delta Smoke BBQ Contest 🏅 Wynne, AR | 19 / 51 (677.6000) | 28 (168.5256) | 5 (175.4172) | 26 (167.3944) | 23 (166.2628) |
| 2018-07-13 | *2018 Clayton BBQ Cook-off Clayton, CA | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2017-09-15 | *Smokin on the White Batesville, AR | 12 / 17 (650.6280) | 8 (168.5484) | 12 (158.2056) | 8 (168.5256) | 15 (155.3484) |
| 2017-08-11 | *Q'ing to Cure Childhood Cancer BBQ Cookoff Conroe, TX | 24 / 26 (493.1088) | — | 17 (160.5488) | 5 (171.4400) | 12 (161.1200) |
| 2017-07-15 | *2017 Clayton BBQ Cook-off a KCBS(Competitor Series) event Sponsored by the CBCA Clayton, CA | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2017-04-28 | *Smokin on the Prairie BBQ Cook-off Stuttgart, AR | 8 / 29 (682.2288) | 5 (176.5600) | 7 (171.9656) | 20 (164.5488) | 9 (169.1544) |
| 2016-08-05 | 2016 Clayton Rib Cook-off (COMPETITOR SERIES ) Clayton, CA | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2016-06-24 | Heritage Days BBQ Showdown Belvidere, IL | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2016-04-29 | *Smokin on the Prairie BBQ Cook-off Stuttgart, AR | 7 / 26 (669.0056) | 12 (168.5256) | 2 (176.0000) | 16 (161.6800) | 11 (162.8000) |
| 2015-09-25 | Bryant's Buzzin' BBQ Bash Bryant, AR | 15 / 16 (634.1832) | 9 (165.6800) | 16 (152.5372) | 7 (167.4172) | 15 (148.5488) |
| 2015-08-28 | 8th Annual Big Island BBQ Albert Lea, MN | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2014-08-22 | Big Island BBQ Albert Lea, MN | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2013-05-03 | Smokelawn Hot Springs, AR | 22 / 41 (640.5716) | 22 (162.2858) | 20 (160.5716) | 22 (160.5714) | 27 (157.1428) |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 ↗ | Master | #1031 (93 pts) | #827 (173 pts) | #1506 (58 pts) | #927 (123 pts) | #993 (113 pts) |
| 2013 ↗ | Master | #1936 (81 pts) | #2026 (81 pts) | #1958 (91 pts) | #2056 (81 pts) | #2519 (66 pts) |