FRONT DOOR GANG

FRONT DOOR GANG is a competition barbecue team with 30 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2013 and 2016. They have won 1 Grand Championship, at the Flinthills Beef Fest BBQ (2013), and finished Reserve Grand Champion twice. They are ranked #796 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings and hold 1 all-time KCBS record.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

KCBS records held

1 🥇

highest pork score

Power ranking

#796

of 6,491 rated · rankings

Rating

1628

peak 1641 · rated over 29 contests1 invitational or side-series contest not counted

Contests

in the data

First seen

Apr 12, 2013

latest Aug 5, 2016 · 3.3 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#128

Master 2013 · every season

Grand champs

2 reserve · wins it all 3% of the time

Category wins

15 podiums

Overall top-10s

47% of 30 contests

Best top-10 run

straight overall top-10s

Avg finish

top 33%

overall standings

Best overall

696 / 720

Master · Flinthills Beef Fest BBQ

Perfect 180s

1 🔥

Current form

663.29 ▼

last 5 Master vs avg 665.43 (-2.14)

Walk rate

70%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

180 🔥

Pork · Big Blue BBQ Championship

Consistency

±14.92

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Pork

avg 168.63 · weakest Brisket (164.43)

Road miles

2,583

across 30 mapped stops · furthest 250 mi

Schedule strength

28%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1538)

State championships

0 🏅

won from 1 state-championship entry

Master avg

665.43 / 720

30 Master contests · 1 GC

Storylines (15 found in their record)

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

The heartbreaker

0.5710 points from the title

Came within 0.5710 points of the Grand Championship at Brew, Blues & Bar-B-Q Cook-Off (May 3, 2013).

Perfect scores on the board

1 perfect 180

1 perfect 180 in the data — every judge at the table handing back a nine, all in pork.

Pork ×1

Against the odds

32-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings

The ratings favoured the top seed the other 68 times in 100

Their Grand Championship at Flinthills Beef Fest BBQ (Aug 23, 2013) came as the ratings underdog — roughly a 32-in-100 shot against the field's top-rated team, HOG TIDE BAR-B-QUE.

Happy hunting ground

Top 17% average finish here

Rossville Tall Corn BBQ Contest is their spot: an average finish in the top 17% across 2 visits.

2 visits
best finish 5th
average top 17%

They almost always walk

70% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 21 of 30 contests

A top-10 category call in 70% of their 30 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

696.0000 career-best overall

96.7% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 696.0000 at Flinthills Beef Fest BBQ — 96.7% of a perfect 720.

Master
Aug 23, 2013

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

BLACK EYE BBQ has finished one call ahead of FRONT DOOR GANG 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

Show 8 more storylines

A tough matchup

11–1 behind in the head-to-head

PELLET ENVY ahead in 92% of their meetings

PELLET ENVY has come out ahead in 11 of their 12 shared contests.

The weak link

−4.2 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 4.20 points below their pork, and turns into a call 33% of the time against 53%.

Brisket avg 164.43
Pork avg 168.63
10 calls in 30 entries

The drought

21 contests since the last title

Their last Grand Championship came at Flinthills Beef Fest BBQ on Aug 23, 2013 — 21 contests and 13.2 years ago.

last GC Aug 23, 2013
13.2 years ago

A strong matchup

12–1 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 92% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of INDIGO PIG in 12 of their 13 shared contests.

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

NICKLE BOYS BBQ has landed one call behind them 2 times.

A June team

Top 10% average finish in June

Something about June: average finish in the top 10% across 3 contests, versus top 33% the rest of the year.

3 June contests
top 33% the rest of the year

The metronome

±2.07% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±2.07% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 92.4% of a perfect score
30 contests

A standing appointment

4 years running at one contest

They've cooked Smoke in the Spring every year from 2013 to 2016 — the contest they never miss.

4 visits in all
best finish 20th

Holds 1 KCBS record (on 1 all-time board)

Where this team sits in the all-time KCBS record book. A gold line is a record they hold outright; the rest are boards they are on.

🥇 🍖 Highest pork score 180 one meat, out of 180 · won the category with it · May 31, 2013 · shared with at least 9 others

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
2016 ↗	Master	#1336 (209 pts)	#1236 (264 pts)	#1609 (174 pts)	#1808 (134 pts)	#1209 (264 pts)
2015 ↗	Master	#703 (505 pts)	#865 (415 pts)	#737 (515 pts)	#729 (515 pts)	#630 (595 pts)
2014 ↗	Master	#223 (1,436 pts)	#272 (1,201 pts)	#192 (1,496 pts)	#229 (1,311 pts)	#234 (1,386 pts)
2013 ↗	Master	#128 (1,746 pts)	#156 (1,431 pts)	#111 (1,675 pts)	#39 (2,170 pts)	#252 (1,156 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to FRONT DOOR GANG, each with one reason worth a look.

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

Smokin Hot J's

#792 of the rated field

1628 power rating

Contests: 55
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 38%
Peak: 1668

1–1 in 2 shared contests (50% to FRONT DOOR GANG)

2 contests in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team FRONT DOOR GANG has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.

rated over 53 contests
last seen Mar 23, 2019

⚔ Head-to-head

SIZZLIN' BONES BBQ

#798 of the rated field

1628 power rating

Contests: 57
GCs: 4
Top-10s: 44%
Peak: 1694

0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to FRONT DOOR GANG)

They've been 1694 at their best, 66 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.

rated over 55 contests
last seen Oct 26, 2018

⚔ Head-to-head

Three Brothers Different Mothers

#797 of the rated field

1628 power rating

Contests: 110
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 29%
Peak: 1721

6–2 in 8 shared contests (75% to FRONT DOOR GANG)

110 contests to 30: their number has had years to settle where FRONT DOOR GANG's is still finding its level.

rated over 110 contests
last seen Sep 30, 2026

⚔ Head-to-head

Hoggy Style BBQ

#794 of the rated field

1628 power rating

Contests: 30
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 17%
Peak: 1631

30 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 17% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 30 contests
last seen Sep 25, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

CHRISTMAS CITY BBQ

#800 of the rated field

1628 power rating

Contests: 30
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 40%
Peak: 1643

Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2013.

rated over 30 contests
last seen Jun 28, 2019

⚔ Compare careers

FAT ANDY'S BBQ

#799 of the rated field

1628 power rating

Contests: 30
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 33%
Peak: 1633

Level with FRONT DOOR GANG on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 30 contests
last seen Sep 8, 2017

⚔ Compare careers

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
LIL' FIDDLER'S	14	10	4	71%	⚔ compare
BLUE BUCKET BBQ	14	9	5	64%	⚔ compare
R BUTTS R SMOKIN	14	5	9	36%	⚔ compare
INDIGO PIG	13	12	1	92%	⚔ compare
THE SMOKING HILLS	13	5	8	38%	⚔ compare
K.C. CAN CREW	12	4	8	33%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN BAD HABIT	12	4	8	33%	⚔ compare
PELLET ENVY	12	1	11	8%	⚔ compare
RIBS N BIBS	11	10	1	91%	⚔ compare
SMOKE ON WHEELS	11	5	6	45%	⚔ compare
Theslabs.com	11	4	7	36%	⚔ compare
SMOKERS WILD	11	1	10	9%	⚔ compare
NAUGHTY NURSES BBQ	10	5	5	50%	⚔ compare
BLACK EYE BBQ	10	5	5	50%	⚔ compare
GETTIN' SAUCED	10	4	6	40%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	30	10	1	3	177.1544	137.7144	165.10	top 45%
Pork Ribs	30	12	1	5	176.5944	153.0972	167.27	top 33%
Pork	30	16	2	5	180 🔥	153.6572	168.63	top 32%
Brisket	30	10	0	2	174.8456	151.4056	164.43	top 39%

“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)	13	1	top 24%
Large (40+)	17	0	top 40%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
KS	25	1	top 30%
MO	4	0	top 39%
OK	1	0	top 67%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
Smoke in the Spring	4	20	top 37%	Apr 8, 2016
Big Blue BBQ Championship	3	2	top 19%	Jun 5, 2015
Sugar Mound BBQ Festival	2	29	top 43%	May 23, 2015
Sertoma 48 BBQ	2	10	top 41%	May 8, 2015
Rossville Tall Corn BBQ Contest	2	5	top 17%	Aug 1, 2014

More numbers

Busiest season 2014 11 contests

Contests a season 7.5 across 4 seasons in the data

Most contests held in KS 25 of 30 contests · 3 states in all

Contests visited 22 5 of them more than once

First title Aug 23, 2013 Flinthills Beef Fest BBQ

Opponents faced 1,010 finished ahead 1,401 times, behind 574

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

20161 milestone

Aug 5 Most recent contest Rossville Tall Corn Festival BBQ Contest

20151 milestone

May 8 25th tracked contest Sertoma 48 BBQ

20141 milestone

Oct 2 Peak power rating (1641) 35th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue Open

201311 milestones

Apr 12 First tracked contest Smoke In The Spring
Apr 12 First call Smoke In The Spring
Apr 12 First overall past 90% of a perfect score662.2854 Smoke In The Spring
May 3 First overall top-10 Brew, Blues & Bar-B-Q Cook-Off
May 3 First overall podium Brew, Blues & Bar-B-Q Cook-Off
May 3 First Reserve Championship Brew, Blues & Bar-B-Q Cook-Off
May 10 First category win (Pork) Rods, Ribs & Rock N Roll 2013
May 31 First perfect 180 (Pork) Big Blue BBQ Championship
Aug 23 First Grand Championship Flinthills Beef Fest BBQ
Aug 23 Career-best overall score696 Flinthills Beef Fest BBQ
Sep 13 10th tracked contest Leavenworth's Hog Wild West BBQ Contest

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+14.9	Brew, Blues & Bar-B-Q Cook-Off	May 3, 2013
+14.4	Flinthills Beef Fest BBQ	Aug 23, 2013
+13	Rods, Ribs & Rock N Roll 2013	May 10, 2013
+12.1	Big Blue BBQ Championship	Jun 6, 2014
+12	Smoke on the Water	Oct 11, 2013

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-9.7	Leavenworth's Hog Wild West BBQ Contest	Sep 13, 2013
-9	Firelake BBQ Cook Off	Mar 27, 2015
-8.4	Sertoma 48 BBQ	May 8, 2015
-6.4	11th Annual WildBlue BBQ	Jul 17, 2015
-4.5	Smoke in the Spring	Apr 8, 2016

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)
2016	2	0	1	0	50%	top 42%	94.5%	92.1%
2015	6	0	1	0	33%	top 48%	93.4%	91.4%
2014	11	0	6	1	73%	top 28%	95.8%	93%
2013	11	1	6	3	91%	top 27%	96.7%	92.4%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Aug 5, 2016	Rossville Tall Corn Festival BBQ Contest Rossville, KS	8 / 29 (680.0688)	4 (176.0344)	13 (168.0344)	21 (165.6800)	4 (170.3200)
Apr 8, 2016	Smoke in the Spring Osage City, KS	61 / 109 (645.6344)	68 (161.0972)	88 (153.0972)	51 (165.7144)	33 (165.7256)
Jul 17, 2015	11th Annual WildBlue BBQ Burlington, KS	30 / 48 (655.3600)	42 (155.9428)	19 (166.8456)	32 (163.4172)	15 (169.1544)
Jun 5, 2015	Big Blue BBQ Championship Marysville, KS	4 / 30 (672.5372)	13 (165.7028)	10 (170.2744)	9 (166.8228)	6 (169.7372)
May 23, 2015	Sugar Mound BBQ Festival Mound City, KS	33 / 62 (662.8572)	51 (161.1200)	35 (164)	14 (171.4172)	26 (166.3200)
May 8, 2015	Sertoma 48 BBQ Lawrence, KS	29 / 45 (642.6392)	34 (160.5256)	24 (161.6800)	21 (164.5140)	30 (155.9196)
Apr 10, 2015	Smoke in the Spring Osage City, KS	29 / 97 (662.7544)	32 (167.4400)	15 (170.8228)	84 (153.6572)	10 (170.8344)
Mar 27, 2015	Firelake BBQ Cook Off Shawnee, OK	35 / 52 (653.1320)	41 (159.4288)	27 (166.8344)	28 (165.7144)	33 (161.1544)
Oct 2, 2014	35th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue Invitational unrated Kansas City, MO	133 / 165 (652.5488)	96 (166.8688)	158 (154.2400)	62 (169.1428)	124 (162.2972)
Oct 2, 2014	35th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue Open Kansas City, MO	24 / 552 (689.6684)	121 (170.8344)	33 (174.8456)	88 (171.9656)	62 (172.0228)
Sep 5, 2014	Bates County Barbecue State Championship & Festival 🏅 Butler, MO	13 / 43 (662.7656)	23 (162.8456)	8 (171.4400)	14 (166.2400)	18 (162.2400)
Aug 22, 2014	Flint Hills Beef Fest BBQ Emporia, KS	5 / 25 (674.2056)	7 (171.4056)	1 (172.0344)	8 (168.5256)	12 (162.2400)
Aug 1, 2014	Rossville Tall Corn BBQ Contest Rossville, KS	5 / 37 (672.5488)	22 (162.2744)	6 (167.9772)	8 (170.2972)	2 (172)
Jul 25, 2014	Smokin' Hot Cars & BBQ at the Allen County Fair Iola, KS	7 / 21 (675.9888)	11 (164.0228)	3 (176.5944)	4 (173.1316)	10 (162.2400)
Jul 11, 2014	Cowley County BBQ Contest Winfield, KS	8 / 20 (678.2512)	8 (169.1200)	9 (168.0228)	11 (166.2628)	5 (174.8456)
Jun 6, 2014	Big Blue BBQ Championship Marysville, KS	2 / 25 (674.2972)	6 (164.0344)	6 (168)	5 (171.9656)	3 (170.2972)
May 24, 2014	Sugar Mound BBQ Festival Mound City, KS	29 / 87 (663.3716)	9 (173.7144)	28 (165.7028)	72 (154.2172)	15 (169.7372)
May 9, 2014	Sertoma 48 BBQ Lawrence, KS	10 / 54 (666.2288)	13 (168.5256)	16 (166.8688)	22 (164.5372)	17 (166.2972)
Apr 11, 2014	Smoke In The Spring Osage City, KS	20 / 73 (658.8228)	20 (167.4400)	21 (167.4056)	9 (171.4172)	51 (152.5600)
Oct 11, 2013	Smoke on the Water Topeka, KS	3 / 43 (674.8232)	13 (164.5716)	2 (175.4516)	2 (176.5600)	19 (158.2400)
Sep 13, 2013	Leavenworth's Hog Wild West BBQ Contest Leavenworth, KS	25 / 34 (617.0856)	34 (137.7144)	13 (162.8228)	10 (165.1428)	26 (151.4056)
Aug 23, 2013	Flinthills Beef Fest BBQ Emporia, KS	1 / 26 (696)	1 (177.1544)	2 (173.7372)	5 (173.1084)	5 (172)
Aug 2, 2013	Rossville Tall Corn BBQ Contest Rossville, KS	5 / 25 (662.8688)	3 (173.7372)	5 (163.9772)	6 (165.1316)	9 (160.0228)
Jul 19, 2013	9th Annual WildBlue BBQ Burlington, KS	22 / 40 (655.9884)	7 (172.0572)	28 (158.8228)	10 (169.1428)	30 (155.9656)
Jul 5, 2013	Crossroads BBQ Cook-off Cameron, MO	17 / 40 (659.4284)	26 (162.8572)	17 (165.7142)	17 (165.7142)	17 (165.1428)
Jun 7, 2013	Keepers of the Fire BBQ Contest Mayetta, KS	7 / 69 (672)	42 (158.2858)	12 (171.4286)	4 (173.1428)	11 (169.1428)
May 31, 2013	Big Blue BBQ Championship Marysville, KS	11 / 30 (661.7144)	24 (156.5714)	15 (164.5714)	1 (180)	11 (160.5716)
May 10, 2013	Rods, Ribs & Rock N Roll 2013 Manhattan, KS	3 / 25 (674.2856)	10 (165.7142)	8 (167.4284)	1 (176.5714)	9 (164.5716)
May 3, 2013	Brew, Blues & Bar-B-Q Cook-Off Lansing, KS	2 / 33 (682.8570)	3 (172.5716)	2 (172)	2 (173.7142)	17 (164.5712)
Apr 12, 2013	Smoke In The Spring Osage City, KS	24 / 71 (662.2854)	32 (163.4286)	18 (167.4286)	3 (176)	55 (155.4282)

An unrated contest — an invitational, or a Competitor or Kosher Series board — is in the record but doesn’t move the power rating.

FRONT DOOR GANG

At a glance (the record in numbers)

KCBS records held

Power ranking

Rating

Contests

First seen

Best ToY finish

Grand champs

Category wins

Overall top-10s

Best top-10 run

Avg finish

Best overall

Perfect 180s

Current form

Walk rate

Best single call

Consistency

Strongest meat

Road miles

Schedule strength

State championships

Master avg

Storylines (15 found in their record)

The heartbreaker

Perfect scores on the board

Against the odds

Happy hunting ground

They almost always walk

High-water mark

The one to beat

A tough matchup

The weak link

The drought

A strong matchup

Looking over their shoulder

A June team

The metronome

A standing appointment

Holds 1 KCBS record (on 1 all-time board)

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, 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

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)