Natural Born Grillers MN
Rating
1519
peak 1530
Contests
19
in the data
First seen
2019-06-21
latest 2026-06-26
Best ToY finish
#89
Backyard 2026
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
2
5 podiums
Overall top-10s
6
of 19 contests
Avg finish
top 51%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
393.64 ▼
last 5 vs career avg 454.13 (-60.49)
Walk rate
37%
contests with a top-10 call
Top-10 streak
2
best run (overall)
Consistency
±151.06
std dev of overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 165.09 · weakest Pork Ribs (162.20)
Road miles
21155
mi across 19 mapped stops · furthest 9314 mi
Storylines
🎯 The one to beat
SHIGGIN & GRINNIN has finished one call ahead of Natural Born Grillers 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
👀 Looking over their shoulder
WAG'S BACKWOODS BBQ has landed one call behind them 2 times.
⚔️ A tough matchup
DAWGS BBQ has come out ahead in 9 of their 10 shared contests.
⚔️ A strong matchup
They've finished ahead of No Clue BBQ in 6 of their 6 shared contests.
📅 A May team
Something about May: average finish in the top 42% across 6 contests, versus top 51% the rest of the year.
Teams like this (closest power rating, MN first)
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 18 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 174.2856 | 149.0856 | 165.09 | top 48% |
| Pork Ribs | 19 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 172.0000 | 147.3488 | 162.20 | top 56% |
| Pork | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 178.8572 | 154.2628 | 162.60 | top 57% |
| Brisket | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 172.0000 | 158.8000 | 163.57 | top 47% |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| MN | 8 | 0 | top 42% |
| KS | 6 | 0 | top 67% |
| WI | 2 | 0 | top 50% |
| MO | 1 | 0 | top 39% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 3 | 0 | top 39% |
| Medium (20–39) | 6 | 0 | top 43% |
| Large (40+) | 9 | 0 | top 60% |
The story so far
- Busiest season: 2026 (5 contests)
- Cooks mostly in MN (9 of 19 contests)
- Most-entered category: Pork Ribs (19 entries)
- All-time average overall score: 454.13
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
Category scores over time
Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)
Where they finish (overall)
Best vs average (by meat)
Team of the Year rank by season
Season by season
| Season | Contests | GCs | Category wins | Best overall | Avg overall |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 634.7312 | 393.64 |
| 2025 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 341.1428 | 335.81 |
| 2024 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 643.3944 | 410.40 |
| 2023 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 646.2396 | 646.24 |
| 2022 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 637.6572 | 637.66 |
| 2021 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 639.3024 | 639.30 |
| 2020 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 684.5832 | 684.58 |
| 2019 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 613.5428 | 613.54 |
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 | 121 / 157 (634.7312) | 125 (157.6456) | 120 (157.7144) | 128 (156.5484) | 77 (162.8228) |
| 2026-05-29 | Spring into Summer Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY) Owatonna, MN | 15 / 25 (337.6572) | 10 (171.4172) | 14 (166.2400) | — | — |
| 2026-05-08 | Minnesota in May St. Peter, MN | 26 / 77 (322.7772) | 14 (166.8228) | 29 (155.9544) | — | — |
| 2026-04-24 | Smoke & Fire (BACKYARD ONLY) Stanley, WI | 17 / 24 (331.3712) | 15 (166.8340) | 17 (164.5372) | — | — |
| 2026-03-20 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue Backyard Contest Kansas City, MO | 13 / 33 (341.6568) | 19 (170.2512) | 11 (171.4056) | — | — |
| 2025-08-16 | Boomer Backyard BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) Canton, MN | 10 / 17 (333.0628) | 10 (167.9656) | 11 (165.0972) | — | — |
| 2025-05-30 | Smokin' in Steele Owatonna, MN | 10 / 28 (338.2972) | 1 (173.7372) | 16 (164.5600) | — | — |
| 2025-05-09 | Minnesota in May St. Peter, MN | 29 / 58 (330.7540) | 20 (170.8112) | 31 (159.9428) | — | — |
| 2025-04-25 | Smoke & Fire (BACKYARD ONLY) Stanley, WI | 7 / 24 (341.1428) | 3 (174.2856) | 11 (166.8572) | — | — |
| 2024-08-17 | Boomer Backyard BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) Canton, MN | 5 / 18 (340.0000) | 5 (172.0000) | 5 (168.0000) | — | — |
| 2024-06-21 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship Lenexa, KS | 101 / 172 (643.3944) | 132 (155.9884) | 100 (161.1432) | 146 (154.2628) | 13 (172.0000) |
| 2024-05-31 | Smokin in Steele Owatonna, MN | 7 / 32 (331.3828) | 10 (159.3828) | 5 (172.0000) | — | — |
| 2024-05-10 | Minnesota in May St. Peter, MN | 29 / 58 (326.8112) | 25 (166.8684) | 34 (159.9428) | — | — |
| 2024-05-10 | Minnesota in May (ONE MEAT RIBS) St. Peter, MN | — | — | 39 (162.2284) | — | — |
| 2023-06-23 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship Lenexa, KS | 93 / 167 (646.2396) | 111 (160.0000) | 137 (154.2856) | 121 (159.9884) | 24 (171.9656) |
| 2022-06-24 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship Lenexa, KS | 114 / 164 (637.6572) | 131 (156.0000) | 140 (152.5716) | 42 (170.2628) | 108 (158.8228) |
| 2021-06-25 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle-Kansas State Championship Lenexa, KS | 84 / 145 (639.3024) | 93 (159.9884) | 87 (160.4912) | 88 (160.0000) | 80 (158.8228) |
| 2020-01-24 | Northeast Beerbq Festival Bundalong, Vic, 3730 | 3 / 10 (684.5832) | 2 (172.5716) | 2 (171.4284) | 1 (178.8572) | 8 (161.7260) |
| 2019-06-21 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle-Kansas State Championship Lenexa, KS | 153 / 183 (613.5428) | 167 (149.0856) | 160 (147.3488) | 122 (158.3084) | 102 (158.8000) |
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 | #89 (367 pts) | #84 (427 pts) | #102 (382 pts) | — | — |
| 2025 ↗ | Backyard | #125 (453 pts) | #80 (698 pts) | #154 (383 pts) | — | — |
| 2015 ↗ | Master | #1050 (285 pts) | #916 (380 pts) | #1214 (255 pts) | #1118 (295 pts) | #1219 (240 pts) |
| 2014 ↗ | Master | #426 (902 pts) | #426 (877 pts) | #517 (762 pts) | #584 (672 pts) | #447 (857 pts) |
| 2013 ↗ | Master | #360 (849 pts) | #360 (849 pts) | #372 (829 pts) | #506 (644 pts) | #319 (959 pts) |