The comeback
3.3 yrs
off the trail, then back
Off the trail for 3.3 years, then back at Giant National Capital Barbecue Battle (Jun 25, 2022).
- last seen Feb 22, 2019
- back Jun 25, 2022
Southern Smoke
Southern Smoke is a competition barbecue team with 10 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2014 and 2024. Their best overall finish is 12th of 16 at the D'Iberville BBQ Throw Down Festival (2019). They are ranked #4528 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1473
peak 1473 · rated over 5 contests
Contests
10
in the data
First seen
Apr 4, 2014
latest Jan 4, 2024 · 9.8 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
0
0% of 10 contests
Avg finish
top 74%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Walk rate
30%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±58.19
spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork Ribs
avg 157.03 · weakest Pork (126.71)
Road miles
6,938
across 9 mapped stops · furthest 1,036 mi
Schedule strength
35%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1547)
Purse competed for
$25K
listed at 3 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
won from 3 state-championship entries
Master avg
595.94 / 720
3 Master contests · 0 GCs
Backyard avg
299.98 / 360
3 Backyard contests · 0 GCs
These overall scores sit on different scales (Master out of 720, Backyard out of 360), 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 ↗ | Master | #2689 (61 pts) | #1867 (131 pts) | #2708 (61 pts) | #2706 (61 pts) | #2698 (61 pts) |
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to Southern Smoke, each with one reason worth a look.
148 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#4,530 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1504
0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to Southern Smoke)
One contest in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team Southern Smoke has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#4,533 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1472
Fewer contests behind them than Southern Smoke has cooked, 5 to 10, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.
⚔ Compare careers#4,503 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1509
They've been 1509 at their best, 36 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.
⚔ Compare careers#4,548 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 40%
- Peak
- 1472
They turned up 8 years after Southern Smoke did, first appearing in 2022.
⚔ Compare careers#4,549 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1472
Level with Southern Smoke on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Compare careers#4,551 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1472
Fewer contests behind them than Southern Smoke has cooked, 6 to 10, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.
⚔ Compare careersBy meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 169.1428 | 138.8684 | 154.95 | top 67% |
| Pork Ribs | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 171.4400 | 147.4632 | 157.03 | top 59% |
| Pork | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 167.4628 | 20 | 126.71 | top 63% |
| Brisket | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 162.2744 | 143.3716 | 153.39 | 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 field size and state
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 1 | 0 | top 75% |
| Medium (20–39) | 4 | 0 | top 80% |
| Large (40+) | 1 | 0 | top 49% |
More numbers
Busiest season
2014
3 contests
Contests a season
1.4
across 7 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
MS
3 of 10 contests · 6 states in all
Contests visited
6
a different one every time
Opponents faced
207
finished ahead 57 times, behind 153
Longest layoff
3.3 yrs
Feb 22, 2019 → Jun 25, 2022
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20242 milestones
- 10th tracked contest 8th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam & Car Show
- Most recent contest 8th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam & Car Show
20221 milestone
- Career-best single call (Pork Ribs)171.4400 Giant National Capital Barbecue Battle
20152 milestones
- First call Squealin' on the Square
- Career-best overall score639.9772 Squealin' on the Square
20141 milestone
- Peak power rating (1488) 'Que at the View
—1 milestone
- First tracked contest Fire In the Sky BBQ Lite'N Up Broadway (BACKYARD ONLY)
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -12 | 'Que at the View | Apr 4, 2014 |
| -5.6 | Squealin' on the Square | Oct 2, 2015 |
| -4.7 | Giant National Capital Barbecue Battle | Jun 25, 2022 |
| -4.2 | D'Iberville BBQ Throw Down Festival | Feb 22, 2019 |
| -1.1 | 8th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam & Car Show | Jan 4, 2024 |
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) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 74% | 80.5% | 80.5% |
| 2024 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 49% | 86.7% | 86.7% |
| 2022 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 84% | 71.3% | 71.3% |
| 2019 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 75% | 82.9% | 82.9% |
| 2018 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2015 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50% | top 72% | 88.9% | 88.9% |
| 2014 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 92% | 88.1% | 88.1% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 4, 2024 | 8th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam & Car Show 🏅 Elkton, FL | 21 / 43 (311.9544) | 17 (161.7028) | 22 (150.2516) | 16 (161.1428) | 23 (143.3716) |
| Jun 25, 2022 | Giant National Capital Barbecue Battle 🏅 Washington, DC | 27 / 32 (513.7140) | 27 (159.9996) | 10 (171.4400) | 28 (20) | 24 (162.2744) |
| Feb 22, 2019 | D'Iberville BBQ Throw Down Festival 🏅 Diberville, MS | 12 / 16 (298.2628) | 14 (138.8684) | 10 (159.3944) | — | — |
| Feb 23, 2018 | D'Iberville BBQ Throw down Kids Q & Festival (JUDGES FULL) D'Iberville, MS | — | — | — | — | — |
| Oct 9, 2015 | Bliss, Brews & Que Fort Bliss, TX | — | — | — | — | — |
| Oct 2, 2015 | Squealin' on the Square Laurens, SC | 18 / 25 (639.9772) | 16 (157.7144) | 18 (157.6684) | 10 (167.4628) | 17 (157.1316) |
| Oct 10, 2014 | Bliss, Brews & Que Fort Bliss, TX | — | — | — | — | — |
| Apr 4, 2014 | 'Que at the View Gulfport, MS | 33 / 36 (634.1256) | 11 (169.1428) | 31 (155.9544) | 32 (158.2512) | 34 (150.7772) |
| Jan 23, 2014 | The Tiger Town Pig Festival Lakeland, FL | — | — | — | — | — |
| — | Fire In the Sky BBQ Lite'N Up Broadway (BACKYARD ONLY) Broadway Westville, NJ | 17 / 23 (289.7148) | 22 (142.2516) | 12 (147.4632) | — | — |