The heartbreaker
0.5716
points from the title
Came within 0.5716 points of the Grand Championship at Dirty Boots BBQ and Meat Contest - Day 1 (Aug 27, 2021).
SWEET & SAVORY BBQ
SWEET & SAVORY BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 41 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2017 and 2023. They have won 7 Grand Championships, most recently at the 3rd Annual KCBS World Invitational - Backyard (2021), and finished Reserve Grand Champion 4 times. They are ranked #578 of 6,476 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1662
peak 1694 · rated over 37 contests3 invitational or side-series contests not counted
Contests
41
in the data
First seen
Apr 28, 2017
latest Oct 27, 2023 · 6.5 years on the trail
Grand champs
7
4 reserve · wins it all 17% of the time
Category wins
9
27 podiums
Overall top-10s
29
71% of 41 contests
Best top-10 run
23
straight overall top-10s · 2 straight GCs
Avg finish
top 30%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
2 🔥
Current form
339.63 ▲
last 5 Backyard vs avg 337.52 (+2.11)
Walk rate
80%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±8.56
spread of their Backyard overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork
avg 169.04 · weakest Brisket (165.96)
Road miles
8,843
across 41 mapped stops · furthest 1,082 mi
Schedule strength
70%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1588)
Purse competed for
$193K
listed at 28 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
5 🏅
won from 29 state-championship entries
Master avg
666.47 / 720
13 Master contests · 0 GCs
Backyard avg
337.52 / 360
20 Backyard contests · 5 GCs
Backyard (3-meat) avg
511.52 / 540
7 Backyard (3-meat) contests · 2 GCs
These overall scores sit on different scales (Master out of 720, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 ↗ | Master | #368 (551 pts) | #489 (436 pts) | #549 (401 pts) | #351 (601 pts) | #349 (616 pts) |
| 2022 ↗ | Backyard | — | #147 (258 pts) | #206 (173 pts) | — | — |
| 2022 ↗ | Master | #416 (528 pts) | #460 (488 pts) | #317 (818 pts) | #462 (483 pts) | #400 (583 pts) |
| 2021 ↗ | Backyard | — | #8 (1,229 pts) | #5 (1,273 pts) | — | — |
| 2020 ↗ | Backyard | — | #17 (642 pts) | #13 (682 pts) | — | — |
| 2019 ↗ | Master | #1955 (60 pts) | #2049 (60 pts) | #2026 (60 pts) | #2029 (60 pts) | #2010 (60 pts) |
| 2017 ↗ | Master | #2212 (60 pts) | #2286 (60 pts) | #2271 (65 pts) | #2260 (60 pts) | #2266 (60 pts) |
Overall rank by season
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to SWEET & SAVORY BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.
#575 of the rated field
- Contests
- 40
- GCs
- 6
- Top-10s
- 73%
- Peak
- 1670
0–2 in 2 shared contests (0% to SWEET & SAVORY BBQ)
2 contests in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team SWEET & SAVORY BBQ has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#577 of the rated field
- Contests
- 209
- GCs
- 11
- Top-10s
- 61%
- Peak
- 1806
10–7 in 19 shared contests (53% to SWEET & SAVORY BBQ)
They've been 1806 at their best, 144 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.
⚔ Head-to-head#573 of the rated field
- Contests
- 38
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 26%
- Peak
- 1663
Careers of much the same size, 38 contests to 41, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#580 of the rated field
- Contests
- 39
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 49%
- Peak
- 1685
Their last contest in the data was back in 2018, 5 years before SWEET & SAVORY BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careers#574 of the rated field
- Contests
- 36
- GCs
- 6
- Top-10s
- 58%
- Peak
- 1663
Their rating is built on 6 Grand Championships in 36 contests, alongside a 58% overall top-10 rate.
⚔ Compare careers#576 of the rated field
- Contests
- 66
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 38%
- Peak
- 1692
Level with SWEET & SAVORY BBQ 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gold-N-Blue Barbecue | 27 | 19 | 8 | 70% | ⚔ compare |
| GOOD GOOGLY GOO BBQ | 27 | 18 | 9 | 67% | ⚔ compare |
| LEM'S MEAT VARNISH | 26 | 13 | 13 | 50% | ⚔ compare |
| CHUNKY BBQ | 25 | 15 | 9 | 60% | ⚔ compare |
| WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ | 25 | 10 | 13 | 40% | ⚔ compare |
| Optimus Swine | 24 | 14 | 10 | 58% | ⚔ compare |
| D’Qued Barbeque | 23 | 12 | 11 | 52% | ⚔ compare |
| Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit | 23 | 10 | 13 | 43% | ⚔ compare |
| Ham Squad | 21 | 12 | 9 | 57% | ⚔ compare |
| BAD AZZ MULE BBQ | 20 | 12 | 7 | 60% | ⚔ compare |
| Off The Rack BBQ | 20 | 9 | 11 | 45% | ⚔ compare |
| OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE | 20 | 9 | 11 | 45% | ⚔ compare |
| Kane's BBQ | 19 | 14 | 5 | 74% | ⚔ compare |
| Zoni-Q | 19 | 13 | 6 | 68% | ⚔ compare |
| Rogue Hog BBQ | 19 | 10 | 7 | 53% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 39 | 22 | 3 | 8 | 178.8572 | 147.9312 | 168.59 | top 39% |
| Pork Ribs | 39 | 24 | 3 | 11 | 177.7144 | 151.9432 | 168.36 | top 30% |
| Pork | 22 | 11 | 3 | 7 | 180 🔥 | 154.2172 | 169.04 | top 40% |
| Brisket | 13 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 179.4400 | 154.2628 | 165.96 | top 52% |
“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) | 12 | 2 | top 36% |
| Medium (20–39) | 8 | 2 | top 20% |
| Large (40+) | 20 | 3 | top 31% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) (Masters and Backyard) | 4 | 1 | 1 | top 10% | Mar 25, 2023 |
| Smoke in the Grove | 3 | 1 | 1 | top 8% | Jul 30, 2021 |
| BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) (Masters and Backyard) | 2 | 28 | 0 | top 55% | Mar 26, 2022 |
| York County BBQ Festival | 2 | 10 | 0 | top 26% | Jun 18, 2021 |
More numbers
Busiest season
2021
21 contests · 5 GCs
Contests a season
5.9
across 7 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
VA
16 of 41 contests · 9 states in all
Contests visited
33
4 of them more than once
First title
Jul 26, 2019
Smoke in the Grove
Opponents faced
729
finished ahead 1,484 times, behind 582
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20232 milestones
- Career-best overall score699.4516 BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) (Masters and Backyard)
- Most recent contest Nightmare before Zom-B-Q (Day 1)
20214 milestones
- 5th Grand Championship Interstate BBQ Festival - Day 2
- First perfect 180 (Pork) Smokin' on the Buffalo BBQ Brawl - Day 2
- 25th tracked contest Dirty Boots BBQ and Meat Contest - Day 1
- Peak power rating (1694) Rufus Teague BBQ Throwdown at Americamps - Day 2 (BACKYARD ONLY)
20202 milestones
- First Reserve Championship The Nightmare Before Zom-B-Q
- 10th tracked contest Second Annual KCBS World Invitational Barbeque Competition
20198 milestones
- First overall top-10 Interstate BBQ Festival
- First call Smoke in the Grove
- First category win (Chicken) Smoke in the Grove
- First overall podium Smoke in the Grove
- First Grand Championship Smoke in the Grove
- First state championship Smoke in the Grove
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score341.1888 Smoke in the Grove
- Biggest field won (53 teams) Smoke in the Grove
20171 milestone
- First tracked contest 4th Annual Pickin N Pullin BBQ competition
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +17.9 | BBQ WYTHE US DAY 2 | Aug 8, 2020 |
| +17.9 | The Nightmare Before Zom-B-Q | Oct 29, 2020 |
| +17.9 | Smoke in the Grove | Jul 26, 2019 |
| +16.5 | BBQ Gives Back (Day 1) | Mar 26, 2021 |
| +15.1 | BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) | Mar 27, 2021 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -14.5 | Almost Heaven's Spooktacular Backyard BBQ | Oct 29, 2021 |
| -11 | Nightmare before Zom-B-Q (Day 1) | Oct 27, 2023 |
| -8.9 | BBQ Gives Back (Day 1) (Masters and Backyard) | Mar 25, 2022 |
| -8.7 | BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) (Masters and Backyard) | Mar 26, 2022 |
| -8.6 | 4th Annual Pickin N Pullin BBQ competition | Apr 28, 2017 |
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) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 100% | top 38% | 97.1% | 95.3% |
| 2022 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 57% | top 49% | 94.8% | 93.8% |
| 2021 | 21 | 5 | 20 | 7 | 95% | top 22% | 97.5% | 94.4% |
| 2020 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 100% | top 13% | 96.4% | 93.1% |
| 2019 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 33% | top 34% | 94.8% | 90.7% |
| 2018 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 87% | 87% | 87% |
| 2017 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 85% | 85.5% | 85.5% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 27, 2023 | Nightmare before Zom-B-Q (Day 1) 🏅 Galax, VA | 15 / 19 (671.8740) | 18 (165.0856) | 11 (170.2972) | 4 (175.4056) | 19 (161.0856) |
| Mar 25, 2023 | BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) (Masters and Backyard) 🏅 Urbanna, VA | 3 / 46 (699.4516) | 12 (176.5600) | 22 (171.4516) | 1 (180) | 15 (171.4400) |
| Mar 24, 2023 | BBQ Gives Back (Day 1) (Masters and Backyard) 🏅 Urbanna, VA | 15 / 53 (687.9656) | 19 (173.7028) | 15 (174.2972) | 46 (160.5256) | 4 (179.4400) |
| Nov 4, 2022 | Currituck Bulls & BBQ 🏅 Powells Point, NC | 12 / 22 (679.3600) | 8 (174.2628) | 14 (168.5828) | 22 (160.5144) | 3 (176) |
| Oct 7, 2022 | Keystone Classic BBQ State Championship 🏅 Harrisburg, PA | 10 / 26 (662.1712) | 13 (165.7028) | 2 (172.5600) | 14 (166.2400) | 19 (157.6684) |
| Sep 9, 2022 | 18th Annual Recovery Fest and 12th Annual KCBS BBQ Cookoff 🏅 Hanover, VA | 9 / 17 (675.3484) | 14 (168) | 4 (172.5484) | 15 (166.2400) | 7 (168.5600) |
| May 13, 2022 | Jiggy With The Piggy 🏅 Kannapolis, NC | 18 / 46 (676.4804) | 17 (173.1316) | 19 (169.1316) | 30 (165.6800) | 16 (168.5372) |
| Mar 26, 2022 | BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) (Masters and Backyard) 🏅 Urbanna, VA | 28 / 50 (682.7888) | 44 (162.8000) | 7 (176.5716) | 17 (174.8572) | 30 (168.5600) |
| Mar 25, 2022 | BBQ Gives Back (Day 1) (Masters and Backyard) 🏅 Urbanna, VA | 29 / 53 (677.6688) | 45 (163.9544) | 28 (169.1428) | 24 (171.4172) | 11 (173.1544) |
| Mar 25, 2022 | BBQ Gives Back (Day 1) (Masters and Backyard) (One Meat Chicken) Urbanna, VA | — | — | — | — | — |
| Nov 12, 2021 | 3rd Annual KCBS World Invitational - Backyard unrated Shawnee, OK | 1 / 33 (347.4172) | 2 (177.7028) | 6 (169.7144) | — | — |
| Nov 11, 2021 | 3rd Annual KCBS World Invitational - Open unrated Shawnee, OK | 61 / 111 (677.0400) | 75 (166.8228) | 27 (171.9772) | 52 (171.4172) | 72 (166.8228) |
| Oct 29, 2021 | Almost Heaven's Spooktacular Backyard BBQ Buckhannon, WV | 10 / 12 (338.2400) | 12 (161.0972) | 1 (177.1428) | — | — |
| Sep 25, 2021 | Rufus Teague BBQ Throwdown at Americamps - Day 2 (BACKYARD ONLY) Ashland, VA | 2 / 18 (518.2516) | 1 (178.8572) | 6 (172.0116) | 8 (167.3828) | — |
| Sep 24, 2021 | Rufus Teague BBQ Throwdown at Americamps - Day 1 (BACKYARD ONLY) Ashland, VA | 5 / 19 (501.0632) | 10 (167.9772) | 10 (162.2516) | 2 (170.8344) | — |
| Aug 28, 2021 | Dirty Boots BBQ and Meat Contest - Day 2 Boonsboro, MD | 7 / 20 (330.8116) | 5 (166.8228) | 10 (163.9888) | — | — |
| Aug 27, 2021 | Dirty Boots BBQ and Meat Contest - Day 1 Boonsboro, MD | 2 / 24 (350.8572) | 2 (176.5600) | 2 (174.2972) | — | — |
| Aug 20, 2021 | Pig Out in the Park (BACKYARD ONLY) Frostburg, MD | 8 / 18 (330.8004) | 11 (161.6688) | 4 (169.1316) | — | — |
| Jul 30, 2021 | Smoke in the Grove 🏅 Spring Grove, PA | 4 / 54 (340.5488) | 1 (178.8572) | 19 (161.6916) | 3 (168.5600) | — |
| Jul 17, 2021 | Country Roads BBQ Clash Day 2 🏅 Morgantown, WV | 4 / 15 (335.4744) | 8 (162.2744) | 1 (173.2000) | — | — |
| Jul 16, 2021 | Country Roads BBQ Clash Day 1 🏅 Morgantown, WV | 5 / 18 (341.1200) | 4 (172.5600) | 7 (168.5600) | — | — |
| Jun 18, 2021 | York County BBQ Festival 🏅 Delta, PA | 10 / 41 (331.9084) | 5 (170.8228) | 15 (161.0856) | — | — |
| Jun 11, 2021 | City of Welch Coalfields Cook-off 🏅 Welch, WV | 7 / 15 (338.2400) | 12 (166.8344) | 4 (171.4056) | 2 (176.5600) | — |
| May 15, 2021 | Smokin' on the Buffalo BBQ Brawl - Day 2 Mannington, WV | 1 / 15 (519.9660) | 7 (167.9772) | 3 (171.9888) | 1 (180) | — |
| May 14, 2021 | Smokin' on the Buffalo BBQ Brawl - Day 1 🏅 Mannington, WV | 4 / 18 (507.8972) | 6 (168.5256) | 6 (169.6800) | 5 (169.6916) | — |
| Apr 23, 2021 | New Jersey KnoQ-out: Day 1-CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES 🏅 Blairstown, NJ | 7 / 40 (327.3600) | 4 (165.6800) | 9 (161.6800) | — | — |
| Apr 17, 2021 | Interstate BBQ Festival - Day 2 🏅 Hagerstown, MD | 1 / 34 (346.8344) | 3 (175.4172) | 3 (171.4172) | — | — |
| Apr 16, 2021 | Interstate BBQ Festival - Day 1 🏅 Hagerstown, MD | 1 / 47 (346.2516) | 13 (168.5372) | 1 (177.7144) | — | — |
| Apr 9, 2021 | Smoke on the Falls 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 3 / 38 (344.5256) | 4 (173.7028) | 12 (170.8228) | — | — |
| Mar 27, 2021 | BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) 🏅 Urbanna, VA | 2 / 40 (514.1940) | 7 (168.5256) | 9 (167.9656) | 1 (177.7028) | — |
| Mar 26, 2021 | BBQ Gives Back (Day 1) 🏅 Urbanna, VA | 1 / 46 (510.2172) | 4 (170.2628) | 3 (170.8344) | 4 (169.1200) | — |
| Nov 13, 2020 | Second Annual KCBS World Invitational Barbeque Competition 🏅 unrated Mayetta, KS | 9 / 94 (340.5600) | 3 (176.5600) | 20 (164) | — | — |
| Oct 29, 2020 | The Nightmare Before Zom-B-Q 🏅 Wytheville, VA | 2 / 33 (509.0628) | 2 (172.5600) | 9 (167.9656) | 3 (168.5372) | — |
| Aug 8, 2020 | BBQ WYTHE US DAY 2 🏅 Wythe, VA | 1 / 17 (346.8688) | 4 (173.1200) | 2 (173.7488) | — | — |
| Jul 24, 2020 | Smoke in the Grove 🏅 Spring Grove, PA | 9 / 59 (329.0972) | 20 (157.0856) | 3 (172.0116) | — | — |
| Jun 26, 2020 | York County BBQ Festival 🏅 Delta, PA | 15 / 53 (319.4172) | 9 (165.7144) | 17 (153.7028) | — | — |
| Jul 26, 2019 | Smoke in the Grove 🏅 Spring Grove, PA | 1 / 53 (341.1888) | 1 (173.7372) | 2 (167.4516) | — | — |
| Apr 19, 2019 | Interstate BBQ Festival 🏅 Hagerstown, MD | 9 / 54 (322.7888) | — | — | — | — |
| Mar 22, 2019 | BBQ Gives Back-III (Day 1) 🏅 Urbanna, VA | 52 / 63 (631.8744) | 48 (160.5600) | 57 (151.9432) | 33 (163.4056) | 51 (155.9656) |
| Apr 27, 2018 | Pickin N Pullin BBQ competition Lenexa, VA | 39 / 45 (626.2288) | 36 (157.0856) | 41 (152.6172) | 30 (160.5488) | 35 (155.9772) |
| Apr 28, 2017 | 4th Annual Pickin N Pullin BBQ competition Lanexa, VA | 39 / 46 (615.7940) | 42 (147.9312) | 24 (159.3828) | 36 (154.2172) | 30 (154.2628) |
An unrated contest — an invitational, or a Competitor or Kosher Series board — is in the record but doesn’t move the power rating.