Smokey Boys

Smokey Boys is a competition barbecue team with 8 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2020 and 2023. They have won 1 Grand Championship, at the Iowa State BBQ Championship (Steak) (2022). They are ranked #3842 of 6,476 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

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At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#3,842

of 6,476 rated · rankings

Rating

1486

peak 1510 · rated over 8 contests

Contests

in the data

First seen

Jul 17, 2020

latest Aug 25, 2023 · 3.1 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#808

Master 2023 · every season

Grand champs

0 reserve · wins it all 13% of the time

Category wins

3 podiums

Overall top-10s

25% of 8 contests

Avg finish

top 72%

overall standings

Best overall

666.1948 / 720

Master · Iowa State BBQ Championship

Perfect 180s

Current form

645.45 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 644.72 (+0.73)

Walk rate

38%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

177.1428

Chicken · Real Squeal BBQ Smokeoff

Consistency

±17.72

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 167.34 · weakest Brisket (154.51)

Road miles

1,020

across 8 mapped stops · furthest 383 mi

Schedule strength

64%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1581)

Purse competed for

$63K

listed at 7 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

won from 6 state-championship entries

Master avg

644.72 / 720

6 Master contests · 0 GCs

Backyard avg

340.55 / 360

1 Backyard contest · 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.

Storylines (6 found in their record)

Each card leads with the number behind the story, straight from their results.

Against the odds

27-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings

The ratings favoured the top seed the other 73 times in 100

Their Grand Championship at Iowa State BBQ Championship (Steak) (Apr 1, 2022) came as the ratings underdog — roughly a 27-in-100 shot against the field's top-rated team, GOTHIC TOWN GRILLERS.

High-water mark

666.1948 career-best overall

92.5% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 666.1948 at Iowa State BBQ Championship — 92.5% of a perfect 720.

Master
Mar 31, 2023

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

BS BBQ has finished one call ahead of Smokey Boys 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

A tough matchup

5–2 behind in the head-to-head

HOME FARM BBQ ahead in 71% of their meetings

HOME FARM BBQ has come out ahead in 5 of their 7 shared contests.

The weak link

−12.8 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 12.82 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 0% of the time against 29%.

Brisket avg 154.51
Chicken avg 167.34
0 calls in 6 entries

A strong matchup

3–0 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 100% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of PORK COUNTY BARBECUE in 3 of their 3 shared contests.

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	#808 (165 pts)	#768 (210 pts)	#950 (170 pts)	#730 (215 pts)	#870 (165 pts)
2022 ↗	Master	#1309 (60 pts)	#1341 (60 pts)	#1404 (60 pts)	#1348 (60 pts)	#1333 (60 pts)
2021 ↗	Master	#1191 (71 pts)	#656 (251 pts)	#1138 (106 pts)	#1531 (56 pts)	#1207 (71 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to Smokey Boys, each with one reason worth a look.

135 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.

The Woodhouse Grill

#3,846 of the rated field

1486 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 13%
Peak: 1528

They've been 1528 at their best, 42 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.

rated over 8 contests
last seen Mar 13, 2026

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NEONS BBQ

#3,849 of the rated field

1486 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 13%
Peak: 1502

Their last contest in the data was back in 2019, 4 years before Smokey Boys's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 8 contests

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Mountain High Smokers

#3,852 of the rated field

1486 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 13%
Peak: 1486

Careers of much the same size, 8 contests to 8, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 8 contests
last seen Sep 7, 2019

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SUPPERTIME

#3,857 of the rated field

1486 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1486

They were already cooking in 2013, 7 years before Smokey Boys's first contest.

rated over 8 contests
last seen Aug 4, 2017

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Flaming Pig BBQ

#3,848 of the rated field

1486 power rating

Contests: 9
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 22%
Peak: 1511

Level with Smokey Boys on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 8 contests
last seen Aug 1, 2015

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Silver Bullet Smokers

#3,835 of the rated field

1486 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1486

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 8 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 8 contests
last seen Jul 24, 2015

⚔ Compare careers

Familiar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
HOME FARM BBQ	7	2	5	29%	⚔ compare
T-Rex BBQ	7	2	5	29%	⚔ compare
Matty Macks	5	2	3	40%	⚔ compare
Darty-Q	5	2	3	40%	⚔ compare
QUE'S YER DADDY	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
HOT DADDY'S BBQ	5	0	5	0%	⚔ compare
IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ	5	0	5	0%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	7	2	1	2	177.1428	154.8344	167.34	top 54%
Pork Ribs	7	1	0	1	173.1544	153.6340	163.81	top 65%
Pork	6	0	0	0	170.8344	154.8000	160.63	top 75%
Brisket	6	0	0	0	159.3712	144.4572	154.51	top 87%

“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
Medium (20–39)	5	0	top 69%
Large (40+)	2	0	top 81%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
IA	5	1	top 76%
WI	2	0	top 93%
MO	1	0	top 17%

Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
Iowa State BBQ Championship	3	1	1	top 81%	Mar 31, 2023
11th Annual Deaths Door Barbeque (Day 2)	2	25	0	top 93%	Aug 25, 2023

More numbers

Busiest season 2023 3 contests

Contests a season 2 across 4 seasons in the data

Most contests held in IA 5 of 8 contests · 3 states in all

Contests visited 5 2 of them more than once

First title Apr 1, 2022 Iowa State BBQ Championship (Steak)

Opponents faced 164 finished ahead 78 times, behind 202

Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)

20232 milestones

Mar 31 Career-best overall score666.1948 Iowa State BBQ Championship
Aug 25 Most recent contest 11th Annual Deaths Door Barbeque (Day 2)

20223 milestones

Apr 1 First overall podium Iowa State BBQ Championship (Steak)
Apr 1 First Grand Championship Iowa State BBQ Championship (Steak)
Apr 1 Peak power rating (1510) Iowa State BBQ Championship (Steak)

20214 milestones

Mar 12 First category win (Chicken) American Royal Backyard and Steak Contest
Mar 12 First overall top-10 American Royal Backyard and Steak Contest
Mar 12 First overall past 90% of a perfect score171.4056 American Royal Backyard and Steak Contest
Jul 16 Career-best single call (Chicken)177.1428 Real Squeal BBQ Smokeoff

20202 milestones

Jul 17 First tracked contest Real Squeal BBQ Smoke Off
Jul 17 First call Real Squeal BBQ Smoke Off

Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+16.9	Iowa State BBQ Championship (Steak)	Apr 1, 2022
+9.4	American Royal Backyard and Steak Contest	Mar 12, 2021

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-9	Iowa State BBQ Championship	Apr 1, 2022
-8.8	11th Annual Deaths Door Barbeque (Day 1)	Aug 24, 2023
-8.1	Iowa State BBQ Championship	Mar 31, 2023
-6.9	Real Squeal BBQ Smokeoff	Jul 16, 2021
-6.3	11th Annual Deaths Door Barbeque (Day 2)	Aug 25, 2023

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)
2023	3	0	0	0	0%	top 86%	92.5%	89.2%
2022	2	1	1	0	0%	top 90%	99.4%	94.4%
2021	2	0	1	1	100%	top 49%	95.2%	93.3%
2020	1	0	0	0	100%	top 61%	89%	89%

Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Aug 25, 2023	11th Annual Deaths Door Barbeque (Day 2) 🏅 Washington Island, WI	25 / 28 (649.4968)	22 (167.3944)	24 (163.3596)	25 (162.2400)	26 (156.5028)
Aug 24, 2023	11th Annual Deaths Door Barbeque (Day 1) 🏅 Washington Island, WI	26 / 27 (610.0112)	26 (154.8344)	26 (153.6340)	26 (157.0856)	26 (144.4572)
Mar 31, 2023	Iowa State BBQ Championship 🏅 Altoona, IA	34 / 47 (666.1948)	19 (171.4056)	26 (166.8688)	15 (170.8344)	46 (157.0860)
Apr 1, 2022	Iowa State BBQ Championship 🏅 Altoona, IA	43 / 48 (643.3828)	37 (165.7028)	42 (158.8116)	39 (159.9884)	40 (158.8800)
Apr 1, 2022	Iowa State BBQ Championship (Steak) Altoona, IA	1 (178.8572)	—	—	—	—
Jul 16, 2021	Real Squeal BBQ Smokeoff 🏅 Cedar Rapids, IA	21 / 26 (658.1712)	2 (177.1428)	14 (166.8572)	24 (154.8000)	21 (159.3712)
Mar 12, 2021	American Royal Backyard and Steak Contest Kansas City, MO	4 / 24 (171.4056)	1 (176.5828)	17 (163.9656)	—	—
Jul 17, 2020	Real Squeal BBQ Smoke Off 🏅 Marion, IA	22 / 36 (641.0628)	27 (158.2856)	2 (173.1544)	22 (158.8456)	25 (150.7772)

Smokey Boys

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

Rating

Contests

First seen

Best ToY finish

Grand champs

Category wins

Overall top-10s

Avg finish

Best overall

Perfect 180s

Current form

Walk rate

Best single call

Consistency

Strongest meat

Road miles

Schedule strength

Purse competed for

State championships

Master avg

Backyard avg

Storylines (6 found in their record)

Against the odds

High-water mark

The one to beat

A tough matchup

The weak link

A strong matchup

Team of the Year (rank per category by season — the year links to the full board on kcbs.us)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

Familiar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)

By meat

By field size and state

By contest size

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)

More numbers

Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)

Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)

📈 Biggest rating jumps

📉 Toughest weekends

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

Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)

Career map (orange GC · green top-10 · grey the rest — tap a pin)