Perfect scores on the board
3
perfect 180s
3 perfect 180s in the data — every judge at the table handing back a nine, across 2 different meats.
- Pork Ribs ×2
- Chicken ×1
Mind if I Smoke?
At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)
Rating
1617
peak 1619 · rated over 20 contests ⓘ
Best runs
5
straight top-10s
Contests
20
in the data
First seen
2013-10-03
latest 2026-06-26
Best ToY finish
#53
Backyard 2025
Grand champs
2
0 reserve
Category wins
2
7 podiums
Overall top-10s
9
of 20 contests
Avg finish
top 34%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
3 🔥
Current form
348.99
last 5 Backyard vs avg 348.54 (+0.45)
Walk rate
60%
contests with a top-10 call
Top-10 streak
5
best run (overall)
Consistency
±5.55
std dev of Backyard overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork Ribs
avg 171.70 · weakest Brisket (152.27)
Road miles
3,878
mi across 20 mapped stops · furthest 564 mi
Schedule strength
44%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1557)
Purse competed for
$115K
listed at 16 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
GCs in 6 state-championship entries
Master avg
594.69 / 720
9 Master contests · 0 GCs
Backyard avg
348.54 / 360
11 Backyard contests · 2 GCs
Master and Backyard overall scores sit on different scales (Master is 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.
Storylines (17 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.
Against the odds
16-in-100
shot on pre-contest ratings
The ratings favoured the top seed the other 84 times in 100
Their Grand Championship at Singing River Smoke-O-Rama (BACKYARD ONLY) (2026-03-27) came as the ratings underdog — roughly a 16-in-100 shot against the field's top-rated team, WEEZ'S GROOVIN' BBQ.
On the rise
+55
rating points in a year
Their power rating has climbed 55 points across 10 contests since 2025-06-27 — from 1562 up to 1617.
- 10 contests since 2025-06-27
- now 1617
Giant slayer
43
teams beaten in one weekend
Took the Grand Championship over a 43-team field at Singing River Smoke-O-Rama (BACKYARD ONLY).
- 2026-03-27
Happy hunting ground
1×
Grand Championships here
Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY) is their spot: 1 Grand Championship in 2 visits.
- 2 visits
- best finish 1st
- average top 11%
They almost always walk
60%
of contests with a top-10 call
A call in 12 of 20 contests
A top-10 category call in 60% of their 20 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.
High-water mark
683.9084
career-best overall
95.0% of a perfect 720
Their best day on record: 683.9084 at The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship — 95.0% of a perfect 720.
- Master
- 2023-06-23
The one to beat
2×
one call ahead of them
LEE LA Q has finished one call ahead of Mind if I Smoke? 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
Their season
2026
1 Grand Championship
2026 was the year it came together: 5 contests, 1 Grand Championship and 1 category win, at an average finish in the top 20%.
- 5 contests
- 4 overall top-10s
- 1 category wins
- average top 20%
A tough matchup
9–0
behind in the head-to-head
LOVE 2 Q ahead in 100% of their meetings
LOVE 2 Q has come out ahead in 9 of their 9 shared contests.
The weak link
−19.4
points behind their best meat
Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 19.43 points below their pork ribs, and turns into a call 0% of the time against 50%.
- Brisket avg 152.27
- Pork Ribs avg 171.70
- 0 calls in 9 entries
A strong matchup
8–2
ahead in the head-to-head
Ahead in 80% of their meetings
They've finished ahead of Southern Swine in 8 of their 10 shared contests.
The comeback
6.7 yrs
off the trail, then back
Off the trail for 6.7 years, then back at The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship (2023-06-23).
- last seen 2016-10-29
- back 2023-06-23
Pork Ribs nemesis
6 of 7
shared pork ribs entries lost
GETTIN' BASTED ahead 86% of the time
Even in their strongest meat, GETTIN' BASTED has out-cooked them in 6 of 7 shared pork ribs entries.
Boom or bust
±15.81%
swing around their own average
Their overall swings ±15.81% of a perfect score around its own average — when it lands they're dangerous, and when it doesn't the weekend is gone by lunch.
- averages 90.0% of a perfect score
- best 99.7%
The long haul
3,878
road miles between contests
Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 3,878 miles across 20 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 564 miles to 37th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue(OPEN).
- 20 mapped stops
- furthest 564 mi
A standing appointment
4
years running at one contest
They've cooked The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship every year from 2023 to 2026 — the contest they never miss.
- 4 visits in all
- best finish 19th
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.
26 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#891 of the rated field
- Contests
- 32
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 44%
- Peak
- 1622
0–2 in 2 shared contests (0% to Mind if I Smoke?)
2 contests in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team Mind if I Smoke? has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#889 of the rated field
- Contests
- 110
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 42%
- Peak
- 1673
1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to Mind if I Smoke?)
They've been 1673 at their best, 57 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.
⚔ Head-to-head#888 of the rated field
- Contests
- 24
- GCs
- 5
- Top-10s
- 58%
- Peak
- 1617
No shared contest yet.
Careers of much the same size, 24 contests to 20, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Head-to-head#884 of the rated field
- Contests
- 27
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 56%
- Peak
- 1635
No shared contest yet.
Their last contest in the data was back in 2019, 7 years before Mind if I Smoke?'s most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Head-to-head#887 of the rated field
- Contests
- 36
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 42%
- Peak
- 1617
No shared contest yet.
Their rating is built on 1 Grand Championship in 36 contests, alongside a 42% overall top-10 rate.
⚔ Head-to-head#892 of the rated field
- Contests
- 39
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 23%
- Peak
- 1623
No shared contest yet.
Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2013.
⚔ Head-to-headFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southern Swine | 10 | 8 | 2 | 80% | ⚔ compare |
| Rollin Smoke BBQ | 10 | 3 | 7 | 30% | ⚔ compare |
| Wee Daddy's BBQ | 9 | 7 | 2 | 78% | ⚔ compare |
| Deviant Smoke | 9 | 6 | 3 | 67% | ⚔ compare |
| Say My Name BBQ | 9 | 5 | 4 | 56% | ⚔ compare |
| LEE LA Q | 9 | 4 | 5 | 44% | ⚔ compare |
| PUDDLEDUCK BBQ | 9 | 4 | 5 | 44% | ⚔ compare |
| BREW 'N' BAR-B-QUE | 9 | 1 | 8 | 11% | ⚔ compare |
| LOVE 2 Q | 9 | 0 | 9 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| RIB I'S | 8 | 5 | 3 | 63% | ⚔ compare |
| Hawg Wild | 8 | 3 | 5 | 38% | ⚔ compare |
| Smoke Me Tender BBQ | 8 | 3 | 5 | 38% | ⚔ compare |
| HUNKA HUNKA BURNIN' RUB | 8 | 2 | 6 | 25% | ⚔ compare |
| B & C SMOKERS | 8 | 1 | 7 | 13% | ⚔ compare |
| BURNT FINGER BBQ | 8 | 1 | 7 | 13% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 20 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 180.0000 🔥 | 142.2516 | 168.63 | top 43% |
| Pork Ribs | 20 | 10 | 2 | 5 | 180.0000 🔥 | 145.0856 | 171.70 | top 24% |
| Pork | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 176.0228 | 132.4912 | 161.30 | top 56% |
| Brisket | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 168.5256 | 128.5028 | 152.27 | top 71% |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| AL | 9 | 2 | top 23% |
| KS | 6 | 0 | top 42% |
| MO | 3 | 0 | top 65% |
| TN | 2 | 0 | top 10% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 9 | 1 | top 22% |
| Large (40+) | 11 | 1 | top 43% |
Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship | 4 | 19 | 0 | top 35% | 2026-06-26 |
| Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2 | 1 | 1 | top 11% | 2026-06-12 |
| Singing River Smoke-O-Rama (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2 | 1 | 1 | top 15% | 2026-03-27 |
| High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2 | 3 | 0 | top 10% | 2026-05-15 |
| Scottsboro BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2 | 7 | 0 | top 26% | 2025-10-10 |
The story so far (22 numbers that describe this team)
On the trail
12.7 yrs
2013-10-03 → 2026-06-26
Busiest season
2025
8 contests · 1 GC
Contests a season
2.5
across 8 seasons in the data
Cooks most in
AL
9 of 20 contests · 4 states/provinces in all
Contests visited
13
5 of them cooked more than once
Most-entered meat
Chicken
20 entries · 0 wins · 6 calls
Strongest meat
Pork Ribs
averages 171.70 · weakest Brisket (152.27)
Walk rate
60%
a top-10 call in 12 of 20 contests
Overall top-10 rate
45%
9 of 20 contests
Wins it all
10%
2 Grand Championships · 0 reserve
First title
2025-06-13
Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY)
Best top-10 run
5
straight contests
Master average
594.69
out of 720 · 9 contests · 0 GCs
Backyard average
348.54
out of 360 · 11 contests · 2 GCs
Perfect 180s
3
every judge at the table handing back a nine
Opponents faced
1,701
1,524–1,832 across every shared overall standing
Road miles
3,878
20 mapped stops · furthest 564 mi
Schedule strength
1557
average field rating faced — tougher than 44% of rated contests
Purse competed for
$114,720
listed at 16 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0
from 6 state-championship entries
Longest layoff
6.7 yrs
2016-10-29 → 2023-06-23
Power rating
1617
peak 1619 · #885 of 6,413 rated
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
- 2013
- First tracked contest 34th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue Open
- 2016
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score651.3828 37th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue(OPEN)
- 2023
- First call The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship
- Career-best overall score683.9084 The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship
- 2024
- First overall top-10 Scottsboro BBQ Festival (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE)
- 2025
- First overall podium High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY)
- First category win (Pork Ribs) Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY)
- First Grand Championship Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY)
- First perfect 180 (Pork Ribs) Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY)
- 10th tracked contest Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY)
- 2026
- Biggest field won (43 teams) Singing River Smoke-O-Rama (BACKYARD ONLY)
- Peak power rating (1619) Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY)
- Most recent contest The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +17 | Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2025-06-13 |
| +16.1 | High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2025-05-16 |
| +15.6 | Singing River Smoke-O-Rama (BACKYARD ONLY) | 2026-03-27 |
| +13.7 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship | 2023-06-23 |
| +13.5 | Scottsboro BBQ Festival (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE) | 2024-10-11 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -13.3 | 34th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue Open | 2013-10-03 |
| -4.9 | 35th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue Open | 2014-10-02 |
| -3.1 | Shawnee Great Grillers | 2025-09-26 |
| -2.1 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship | 2026-06-26 |
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 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 80% | top 20% | 99% | 96.2% |
| 2025 | 8 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 75% | top 30% | 99.7% | 95.5% |
| 2024 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 50% | top 35% | 96% | 92.9% |
| 2023 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 11% | 95% | 95% |
| 2016 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 55% | 90.5% | 90.5% |
| 2015 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 26% | 22.8% | 22.8% |
| 2014 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 73% | 88.1% | 88.1% |
| 2013 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 95% | 79.7% | 79.7% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-26 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship 🏅 Lenexa, KS | 70 / 157 (659.7940) | 90 (162.8000) | 53 (169.6800) | 72 (167.3712) | 97 (159.9428) |
| 2026-06-12 | Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY) Huntsville, AL | 6 / 31 (347.3828) | 10 (175.4056) | 12 (171.9772) | — | — |
| 2026-05-15 | High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Winchester, TN | 3 / 29 (354.2744) | 3 (180.0000) | 4 (174.2744) | — | — |
| 2026-04-03 | Smoke on the Falls 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 9 / 36 (343.9544) | 8 (174.2628) | 14 (169.6916) | — | — |
| 2026-03-27 | Singing River Smoke-O-Rama (BACKYARD ONLY) Athens, AL | 1 / 43 (356.5716) | 8 (176.5716) | 1 (180.0000) | — | — |
| 2025-10-10 | Scottsboro BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Scottsboro, AL | 10 / 30 (342.7884) | 16 (166.2284) | 2 (176.5600) | — | — |
| 2025-09-26 | Shawnee Great Grillers 🏅 Shawnee, KS | 37 / 67 (659.2796) | 20 (171.9656) | 38 (165.0856) | 32 (167.4400) | 57 (154.7884) |
| 2025-09-19 | Smoke in the Park (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE) Glencoe, AL | 8 / 30 (348.5372) | 15 (171.9772) | 3 (176.5600) | 12 (173.1200) | — |
| 2025-09-05 | Bernard Blues & BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) Cullman, AL | 15 / 29 (341.6572) | 22 (170.8228) | 8 (170.8344) | — | — |
| 2025-06-27 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship 🏅 Lenexa, KS | 51 / 159 (671.3256) | 98 (162.8000) | 35 (173.1428) | 13 (176.0228) | 107 (159.3600) |
| 2025-06-13 | Reelin N Smokin Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY) Huntsville, AL | 1 / 35 (358.8572) | 3 (178.8572) | 1 (180.0000) | — | — |
| 2025-05-16 | High on the Hog Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) Winchester, TN | 3 / 32 (350.2628) | 7 (174.8456) | 3 (175.4172) | — | — |
| 2025-03-21 | Singing River Smoke-O-Rama (BACKYARD ONLY) Athens, AL | 12 / 43 (344.0000) | 24 (169.6800) | 6 (174.3200) | — | — |
| 2024-10-11 | Scottsboro BBQ Festival (BACKYARD & KIDS QUE) Scottsboro, AL | 7 / 38 (345.6800) | 15 (171.4172) | 8 (174.2628) | — | — |
| 2024-06-21 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship 🏅 Lenexa, KS | 90 / 172 (646.7660) | 57 (167.4056) | 13 (172.5600) | 150 (153.6916) | 129 (153.1088) |
| 2023-06-23 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship 🏅 Lenexa, KS | 19 / 167 (683.9084) | 33 (170.2628) | 7 (176.5600) | 63 (168.5600) | 37 (168.5256) |
| 2016-10-29 | 37th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue(OPEN) Kansas City, KS | 304 / 557 (651.3828) | 414 (157.6800) | 147 (169.7028) | 243 (165.7144) | 346 (158.2856) |
| 2015-10-03 | 36th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbeque- Open Kansas City, MO | 160 / 606 (163.9884) | 274 (164.5828) | 15 (176.5600) | 598 (132.4912) | 596 (128.5028) |
| 2014-10-02 | 35th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue Open Kansas City, MO | 403 / 552 (634.1368) | 334 (162.8112) | 324 (161.6800) | 441 (155.4056) | 406 (154.2400) |
| 2013-10-03 | 34th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue Open Kansas City, MO | 506 / 535 (574.1600) | 509 (142.2516) | 464 (145.0856) | 404 (153.1428) | 511 (133.6800) |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 ↗ | Backyard | #67 (685 pts) | #97 (515 pts) | #81 (610 pts) | — | — |
| 2025 ↗ | Backyard | #53 (922 pts) | #85 (671 pts) | #22 (1177 pts) | — | — |