Riding a hot streak
5
straight overall top-10s
Currently on a 5-contest overall top-10 run.
- career best 5
HOLY SMOKIN!!!
HOLY SMOKIN!!! is a competition barbecue team with 39 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2019 and 2026. They have won 1 Grand Championship, at the Central AL BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) (2024), and finished Reserve Grand Champion 3 times. They are ranked #1153 of 6,477 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1590
peak 1590 · rated over 36 contests2 invitational or side-series contests not counted
Contests
39
in the data
First seen
Mar 22, 2019
latest Sep 18, 2026 · 7.5 years on the trail
Grand champs
1
3 reserve · wins it all 3% of the time
Category wins
4
12 podiums
Overall top-10s
16
41% of 39 contests
Best top-10 run
5
straight overall top-10s, still running
Avg finish
top 52%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
1 🔥
Current form
344.30 ▲
last 5 Backyard vs avg 336.87 (+7.43)
Walk rate
56%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±9.04
spread of their Backyard overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork
avg 168.87 · weakest Pork Ribs (167.11)
Road miles
3,437
across 39 mapped stops · furthest 171 mi
Schedule strength
50%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1564)
Purse competed for
$223K
listed at 32 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
won from 11 state-championship entries
Backyard avg
336.87 / 360
32 Backyard contests · 1 GC
Backyard (3-meat) avg
495.65 / 540
5 Backyard (3-meat) contests · 0 GCs
These overall scores sit on different scales (Backyard out of 360, Backyard (3-meat) out of 540), 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 ↗ | Backyard | #53 (820 pts) | #65 (740 pts) | #52 (857 pts) | — | — |
| 2025 ↗ | Backyard | #89 (636 pts) | #76 (726 pts) | #106 (585 pts) | — | — |
| 2025 ↗ | Master | — | — | #1293 (60 pts) | — | — |
| 2024 ↗ | Backyard | #34 (1,003 pts) | #43 (928 pts) | #35 (1,003 pts) | — | — |
| 2021 ↗ | Backyard | — | #84 (440 pts) | #78 (435 pts) | — | — |
| 2020 ↗ | Backyard | — | #86 (105 pts) | #87 (105 pts) | — | — |
| 2019 ↗ | Backyard | — | #21 (105 pts) | #22 (105 pts) | — | — |
Overall rank by season
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to HOLY SMOKIN!!!, each with one reason worth a look.
38 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#1,147 of the rated field
- Contests
- 40
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 28%
- Peak
- 1590
1–0 in 3 shared contests (33% to HOLY SMOKIN!!!)
These two have cooked 3 of the same contests — HOLY SMOKIN!!! ahead 1–0 — so there's a record behind this pairing and not just a matching number.
⚔ Head-to-head#1,146 of the rated field
- Contests
- 16
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 50%
- Peak
- 1591
0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to HOLY SMOKIN!!!)
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 14 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Head-to-head#1,148 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 60%
- Peak
- 1590
1–1 in 2 shared contests (50% to HOLY SMOKIN!!!)
Fewer contests behind them than HOLY SMOKIN!!! has cooked, 10 to 39, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.
⚔ Head-to-head#1,157 of the rated field
- Contests
- 35
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 20%
- Peak
- 1612
35 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 20% top-10 finishes rather than wins.
⚔ Compare careers#1,156 of the rated field
- Contests
- 44
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 30%
- Peak
- 1603
They were already cooking in 2013, 6 years before HOLY SMOKIN!!!'s first contest.
⚔ Compare careers#1,154 of the rated field
- Contests
- 28
- GCs
- 2
- Top-10s
- 82%
- Peak
- 1612
Level with HOLY SMOKIN!!! on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LEE LA Q | 30 | 4 | 26 | 13% | ⚔ compare |
| The Real Squeal BBQ | 19 | 6 | 13 | 32% | ⚔ compare |
| PUCKDADDY'S KILLER Q | 19 | 3 | 16 | 16% | ⚔ compare |
| Smokey Bees BBQ - MS | 17 | 4 | 13 | 24% | ⚔ compare |
| NORALA BBQ TEAM | 16 | 5 | 11 | 31% | ⚔ compare |
| Bentley Que | 16 | 4 | 12 | 25% | ⚔ compare |
| HELL ON SQUEALS | 16 | 4 | 12 | 25% | ⚔ compare |
| Rollin Smoke BBQ | 16 | 2 | 14 | 13% | ⚔ compare |
| REDBONES BBQ | 16 | 2 | 14 | 13% | ⚔ compare |
| RIBLIFE | 16 | 1 | 15 | 6% | ⚔ compare |
| Pork Life | 15 | 8 | 7 | 53% | ⚔ compare |
| Dixie Pigs & Chick's BBQ Team | 15 | 6 | 9 | 40% | ⚔ compare |
| Deviant Smoke | 14 | 6 | 8 | 43% | ⚔ compare |
| Modest Meats | 13 | 7 | 6 | 54% | ⚔ compare |
| Hickory Hangover | 13 | 1 | 12 | 8% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 37 | 13 | 1 | 6 | 180 🔥 | 153.0856 | 168.32 | top 53% |
| Pork Ribs | 38 | 17 | 2 | 3 | 177.7372 | 156.5372 | 167.11 | top 53% |
| Pork | 12 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 177.7028 | 163.9544 | 168.87 | top 38% |
“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) | 13 | 1 | top 44% |
| Medium (20–39) | 18 | 0 | top 60% |
| Large (40+) | 6 | 0 | top 41% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roast N Boast | 4 | 2 | 0 | top 43% | Oct 18, 2024 |
| Central AL BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2 | 1 | 1 | top 19% | Sep 26, 2025 |
| High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2 | 10 | 0 | top 50% | May 15, 2026 |
| Smoke on the Falls | 2 | 7 | 0 | top 45% | Apr 3, 2026 |
| Smoke on the Water Guntersville (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2 | 11 | 0 | top 65% | Sep 12, 2025 |
| O'So Good BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Day 1 | 2 | 18 | 0 | top 77% | May 2, 2025 |
| Poosa Q | 2 | 26 | 0 | top 45% | Oct 4, 2024 |
| Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2 | 14 | 0 | top 71% | Jun 10, 2022 |
| Fire at the Foothills (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2 | 10 | 0 | top 54% | Apr 17, 2021 |
More numbers
Busiest season
2025
8 contests
Contests a season
4.9
across 8 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
AL
28 of 39 contests · 3 states in all
Contests visited
26
9 of them more than once
Most-entered meat
Pork Ribs
38 entries · 2 wins · 17 calls
First title
Sep 27, 2024
Central AL BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY)
Opponents faced
655
finished ahead 720 times, behind 669
Longest layoff
1.5 yrs
Oct 28, 2022 → Apr 26, 2024
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20262 milestones
- Peak power rating (1590) Mike Gannon BBQ Cookoff
- Most recent contest Mike Gannon BBQ Cookoff
20251 milestone
- First perfect 180 (Chicken) Roast N Boast
20244 milestones
- First overall podium Central AL BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY)
- First Grand Championship Central AL BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY)
- First Reserve Championship Roast N Boast
- 25th tracked contest Roast N Boast
20213 milestones
- 10th tracked contest Twin States Barbecue Showdown (BACKYARD ONLY)
- First category win (Pork) Roast-N-Boast
- Career-best overall score514.2056 Roast-N-Boast
20193 milestones
- First call Smoke On the Diamond (BACKYARD ONLY)
- First overall top-10 Smoke On the Diamond (BACKYARD ONLY)
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score332.5144 Smoke On the Diamond (BACKYARD ONLY)
20181 milestone
- First tracked contest Smoke on the Diamond (BACKYARD ONLY)
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +18 | Central AL BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) | Sep 27, 2024 |
| +15.7 | Smoke on the Water BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) | Apr 26, 2024 |
| +15.5 | The High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) | May 17, 2024 |
| +13.4 | Roast N Boast | Oct 17, 2025 |
| +13.4 | Roast N Boast | Oct 18, 2024 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -12.4 | Smoke on the Water Guntersville (BACKYARD ONLY) | Sep 12, 2025 |
| -10 | O'So Good BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Day 1 | May 3, 2024 |
| -9.9 | Twin States Barbecue Showdown (BACKYARD ONLY) | May 21, 2021 |
| -9.2 | Smoke on the Falls | Apr 9, 2021 |
| -6.8 | West Alabama State Fair Barbeque Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) | Nov 1, 2019 |
Scores over time (% of a perfect score, averaged over 5 contests — 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) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 100% | top 33% | 96.8% | 95.6% |
| 2025 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 38% | top 56% | 96.8% | 94.2% |
| 2024 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 71% | top 32% | 98.7% | 95.1% |
| 2022 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 50% | top 69% | 92.2% | 91.5% |
| 2021 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 43% | top 64% | 95.2% | 91.5% |
| 2020 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 39% | 88.7% | 88.7% |
| 2019 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 40% | top 65% | 93.3% | 91.9% |
| 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 18, 2026 | Mike Gannon BBQ Cookoff 🏅 Columbiana, AL | 2 / 16 (341.0972) | 2 (177.1544) | 10 (163.9428) | — | — |
| May 15, 2026 | High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Winchester, TN | 10 / 29 (343.3712) | 18 (169.1084) | 6 (174.2628) | — | — |
| May 2, 2026 | O'So Good BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Day 2 Cleveland, AL | 8 / 15 (348.5372) | 6 (175.4172) | 7 (173.1200) | — | — |
| May 1, 2026 | O'So Good BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Day 1 Cleveland, AL | 7 / 17 (342.8000) | 12 (166.2284) | 3 (176.5716) | — | — |
| Apr 3, 2026 | Smoke on the Falls 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 7 / 36 (345.6912) | 9 (171.9884) | 5 (173.7028) | — | — |
| Mar 27, 2026 | Singing River Smoke-O-Rama (BACKYARD ONLY) Athens, AL | 17 / 43 (343.3944) | 23 (169.6800) | 9 (173.7144) | — | — |
| Oct 17, 2025 | Roast N Boast 🏅 Columbus, MS | 2 / 13 (347.9656) | 1 (180) | 5 (167.9656) | 4 (168.5372) | — |
| Sep 26, 2025 | Central AL BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Clanton, AL | 5 / 15 (348.5372) | 5 (175.4056) | 5 (173.1316) | — | — |
| Sep 12, 2025 | Smoke on the Water Guntersville (BACKYARD ONLY) Guntersville, AL | 27 / 28 (329.6228) | 25 (159.9428) | 15 (169.6800) | — | — |
| Sep 5, 2025 | Bernard Blues & BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) Cullman, AL | 22 / 29 (337.0744) | 10 (175.4056) | 26 (161.6688) | — | — |
| May 25, 2025 | 7th Annual KCBS World Invitational (Sunday, May 25, 2025) unrated Lebanon, TN | 31 / 70 (341.6456) | 33 (170.8112) | 26 (170.8344) | — | — |
| May 23, 2025 | 7th Annual KCBS World Invitational Ribs (Friday, May 23, 2025) unrated Lebanon, TN | — | — | 47 (162.8000) | — | — |
| May 16, 2025 | High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Winchester, TN | 21 / 32 (336.5256) | 18 (170.2628) | 20 (166.2628) | 20 (163.9656) | — |
| May 2, 2025 | O'So Good BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Day 1 Oneonta, AL | 18 / 28 (333.6228) | 20 (167.3828) | 21 (166.2400) | 19 (165.0972) | — |
| Oct 18, 2024 | Roast N Boast 🏅 Columbus, MS | 2 / 15 (336.4912) | 3 (169.1200) | 4 (167.3712) | 2 (176) | — |
| Oct 4, 2024 | Poosa Q 🏅 Montgomery, AL | 32 / 59 (337.0628) | 35 (167.3712) | 28 (169.6916) | — | — |
| Sep 27, 2024 | Central AL BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Clanton, AL | 1 / 18 (355.4056) | 3 (177.7028) | 1 (177.7028) | — | — |
| Sep 13, 2024 | Smoke on the Water Guntersville (BACKYARD ONLY) Guntersville, AL | 11 / 33 (342.2628) | 14 (169.7028) | 9 (172.5600) | — | — |
| May 17, 2024 | The High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Winchester, TN | 5 / 39 (348) | 2 (177.7372) | 13 (170.2628) | 7 (171.9656) | — |
| May 3, 2024 | O'So Good BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Day 1 Oneonta, AL | 24 / 27 (327.3488) | 23 (162.8000) | 21 (164.5488) | — | — |
| Apr 26, 2024 | Smoke on the Water BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Florence, AL | 5 / 40 (349.7144) | 12 (171.9772) | 1 (177.7372) | — | — |
| Oct 28, 2022 | Roast N Boast 🏅 Columbus, MS | 8 / 8 (495.8856) | 6 (166.8456) | 9 (161.6572) | 7 (167.3828) | — |
| Jun 10, 2022 | Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY) Huntsville, AL | 14 / 23 (326.7772) | 17 (159.9428) | 7 (166.8344) | — | — |
| May 5, 2022 | Poosa Q 🏅 Montgomery, AL | 26 / 72 (331.9772) | 18 (168.5600) | 32 (163.4172) | — | — |
| Apr 2, 2022 | Fire at the Foothills (BACKYARD ONLY) Chelsea, AL | 16 / 20 (491.8516) | 13 (168.5256) | 19 (159.3716) | 15 (163.9544) | — |
| Oct 22, 2021 | Railyard BBQ Fest (BACKYARD ONLY) Madison, AL | 8 / 30 (338.2172) | 18 (166.2400) | 6 (171.9772) | — | — |
| Aug 27, 2021 | Roast-N-Boast 🏅 Columbus, MS | 4 / 19 (514.2056) | 8 (166.2400) | 6 (170.2628) | 1 (177.7028) | — |
| Jun 11, 2021 | Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY) Huntsville, AL | 25 / 31 (325.6000) | 25 (163.9312) | 25 (161.6688) | — | — |
| Jun 4, 2021 | Kick It In The Sticks (BACKYARD) Butler, AL | 12 / 14 (323.9316) | 13 (161.6800) | 13 (162.2516) | — | — |
| May 21, 2021 | Twin States Barbecue Showdown (BACKYARD ONLY) Meridian, MS | 20 / 22 (323.8856) | 16 (163.9428) | 21 (159.9428) | — | — |
| Apr 17, 2021 | Fire at the Foothills (BACKYARD ONLY) Chelsea, AL | 10 / 21 (497.5540) | 13 (167.3712) | 16 (160.5028) | 4 (169.6800) | — |
| Apr 9, 2021 | Smoke on the Falls 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 37 / 38 (319.3484) | 36 (159.3940) | 32 (159.9544) | — | — |
| Oct 9, 2020 | Roast-N-Boast 🏅 Columbus, MS | 14 / 36 (478.7656) | 17 (153.0856) | 14 (161.7028) | 10 (163.9772) | — |
| Nov 1, 2019 | West Alabama State Fair Barbeque Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) Northport, AL | 12 / 15 (329.0972) | 12 (164.5600) | 12 (164.5372) | — | — |
| Apr 26, 2019 | Smoke on the Water Festival (BACKYARD ONlY) Florence, AL | 28 / 45 (323.9084) | 21 (167.3712) | 37 (156.5372) | 15 (167.3828) | — |
| Apr 12, 2019 | Smoke on the Falls 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 21 / 30 (332.4800) | 27 (163.9428) | 18 (168.5372) | — | — |
| Apr 5, 2019 | Fire at the Foothills (BACKYARD ONLY) Chelsea, AL | 11 / 18 (335.9544) | 10 (168.5600) | 10 (167.3944) | — | — |
| Mar 22, 2019 | Smoke On the Diamond (BACKYARD ONLY) Brookwood, AL | 9 / 17 (332.5144) | 3 (172.5716) | 12 (159.9428) | 3 (170.8228) | — |
| May 18, 2018 | Smoke on the Diamond (BACKYARD ONLY) Brookwood, AL | — | — | — | — | — |
An unrated contest — an invitational, or a Competitor or Kosher Series board — is in the record but doesn’t move the power rating.