Q-FACTOR

At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)

Power ranking

#1233

of 6,413 rated · rankings

Rating

1583

peak 1607 · rated over 35 contests ⓘ

Contests

in the data

First seen

2014-05-23

latest 2019-08-30

Best ToY finish

#357

Master 2016

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

9 podiums

Overall top-10s

of 35 contests

Avg finish

top 46%

overall standings

Best overall

698.2400 / 720

Master · Sevierville Bloomin' BBQ and Bluegrass Festival

Perfect 180s

Current form

651.74 ▼

last 5 Master vs avg 668.41 (-16.67)

Walk rate

74%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

177.7028

Chicken · Sevierville Bloomin' BBQ and Bluegrass Festival

Consistency

±13.64

std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 168.68 · weakest Pork (165.08)

Road miles

3,696

mi across 35 mapped stops · furthest 246 mi

Schedule strength

72%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1590)

Purse competed for

$17K

listed at 2 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

GCs in 1 state-championship entries

Master avg

668.41 / 720

35 Master contests · 1 GC

⚔ Compare with another team

Storylines (14 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

12-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings

The ratings favoured the top seed the other 88 times in 100

Their Grand Championship at Sevierville Bloomin' BBQ and Bluegrass Festival (2015-05-15) came as the ratings underdog — roughly a 12-in-100 shot against the field's top-rated team, WARREN COUNTY PORK CHOPPERS.

Giant slayer

44 teams beaten in one weekend

Took the Grand Championship over a 44-team field at Sevierville Bloomin' BBQ and Bluegrass Festival.

2015-05-15

They almost always walk

74% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 26 of 35 contests

A top-10 category call in 74% of their 35 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

698.2400 career-best overall

97.0% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 698.2400 at Sevierville Bloomin' BBQ and Bluegrass Festival — 97.0% of a perfect 720.

Master
2015-05-15

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

FIREHOUSE SMOKERS TN has finished one call ahead of Q-FACTOR 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

Their season

2015 1 Grand Championship

2015 was the year it came together: 8 contests, 1 Grand Championship and 1 category win, at an average finish in the top 34%.

8 contests
3 overall top-10s
1 category wins
average top 34%

A tough matchup

18–6 behind in the head-to-head

SAUCED! BBQ TEAM ahead in 75% of their meetings

SAUCED! BBQ TEAM has come out ahead in 18 of their 24 shared contests.

The drought

30 contests since the last title

Their last Grand Championship came at Sevierville Bloomin' BBQ and Bluegrass Festival on 2015-05-15 — 30 contests and 11.3 years ago.

last GC 2015-05-15
11.3 years ago

A strong matchup

12–1 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 92% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of HOGGY BOTTOM BOYS in 12 of their 13 shared contests.

Chicken nemesis

18 of 24 shared chicken entries lost

SAUCED! BBQ TEAM ahead 75% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, SAUCED! BBQ TEAM has out-cooked them in 18 of 24 shared chicken entries.

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

PICKIN' PORKERS has landed one call behind them 2 times.

The long haul

3,696 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 3,696 miles across 35 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 246 miles to Almost Heaven BBQ Bash.

35 mapped stops
furthest 246 mi

The metronome

±1.90% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±1.90% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 92.8% of a perfect score
35 contests

A standing appointment

4 years running at one contest

They've cooked *Chillin & Grillin in the Glades (JUDGES FULL) every year from 2015 to 2018 — the contest they never miss.

4 visits in all
best finish 10th

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.

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

Burn Barrel BBQ

#1228 of the rated field

1583 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 35
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 17%
Peak: 1616

No shared contest yet.

They've been 1616 at their best, 33 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.

rated over 34 contests
last seen 2026-04-03

⚔ Head-to-head

HOT GRILL ON GRILL ACTION

#1236 of the rated field

1583 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 47
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 26%
Peak: 1632

No shared contest yet.

Careers of much the same size, 47 contests to 35, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 46 contests
last seen 2026-01-30

⚔ Head-to-head

BALDIN' SMOKIN' BANDITOS

#1231 of the rated field

1583 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 26
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 12%
Peak: 1596

No shared contest yet.

26 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 12% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 26 contests
last seen 2021-10-22

⚔ Head-to-head

BIG CITY BBQ

#1235 of the rated field

1583 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 49
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 14%
Peak: 1585

No shared contest yet.

Level with Q-FACTOR on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 49 contests
last seen 2019-08-30

⚔ Head-to-head

Chick Hooven Swine BBQ

#1240 of the rated field

1583 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 26
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 35%
Peak: 1646

No shared contest yet.

They've been 1646 at their best, 63 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.

rated over 25 contests
last seen 2021-04-09

⚔ Head-to-head

Live Q or Die

#1234 of the rated field

1583 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 21
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 43%
Peak: 1583

No shared contest yet.

They turned up 8 years after Q-FACTOR did, first appearing in 2022.

rated over 21 contests
last seen 2024-07-27

⚔ Head-to-head

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
SAUCED! BBQ TEAM	24	6	18	25%	⚔ compare
SMOKE ON THIS	23	7	16	30%	⚔ compare
SMOKING BUTT HEADS	20	5	15	25%	⚔ compare
ROCKY TOP BARBEQUE	18	3	15	17%	⚔ compare
CONTAGIOUS Q	17	4	13	24%	⚔ compare
THE SMOKEHOUSE MAFIA	17	2	15	12%	⚔ compare
MUTTLEY CREW BBQ	16	5	11	31%	⚔ compare
WHO CARES BBQ	15	5	10	33%	⚔ compare
MIDNIGHT BURN	15	3	12	20%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN NC	14	6	8	43%	⚔ compare
REDNECK SCIENTIFIC	14	1	13	7%	⚔ compare
HOGGY BOTTOM BOYS	13	12	1	92%	⚔ compare
DIRTY OL' BUTT SLAPPERS	13	8	5	62%	⚔ compare
SMOKE THIS	13	4	9	31%	⚔ compare
Under the Radar	13	1	12	8%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	35	9	0	2	177.7028	155.9656	168.68	top 46%
Pork Ribs	35	17	0	2	176.5944	142.6856	167.52	top 38%
Pork	35	6	1	1	175.4056	153.6916	165.08	top 54%
Brisket	35	11	2	4	177.1772	151.9200	167.13	top 43%

“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
NC	17	0	top 39%
TN	7	1	top 37%
VA	4	0	top 59%
SC	3	0	top 62%
KY	2	0	top 65%
WV	1	0	top 76%
GA	1	0	top 66%

By contest size

Field	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
Small (<20 teams)	1	0	top 56%
Medium (20–39)	17	0	top 52%
Large (40+)	17	1	top 40%

Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
*Chillin & Grillin in the Glades (JUDGES FULL)	4	10	top 59%	2018-07-20
WNC BBQ Festival(Smokin in the Valley)	4	8	top 32%	2017-07-21
Jiggy With the Piggy	3	22	top 44%	2018-05-04
Bloomin' BBQ & Bluegrass	2	14	top 42%	2018-05-18
Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	2	3	top 33%	2017-08-18
Butts and Beans BBQ Challenge	2	13	top 51%	2016-09-23

The story so far (18 numbers that describe this team)

On the trail 5.3 yrs 2014-05-23 → 2019-08-30

Busiest season 2016 10 contests

Contests a season 5.8 across 6 seasons in the data

Cooks most in NC 17 of 35 contests · 7 states/provinces in all

Contests visited 24 6 of them cooked more than once

Most-entered meat Chicken 35 entries · 0 wins · 9 calls

Strongest meat Chicken averages 168.68 · weakest Pork (165.08)

Walk rate 74% a top-10 call in 26 of 35 contests

Overall top-10 rate 17% 6 of 35 contests

Wins it all 3% 1 Grand Championship · 0 reserve

First title 2015-05-15 Sevierville Bloomin' BBQ and Bluegrass Festival

Master average 668.41 out of 720 · 35 contests · 1 GC

Opponents faced 544 792–611 across every shared overall standing

Road miles 3,696 35 mapped stops · furthest 246 mi

Schedule strength 1590 average field rating faced — tougher than 72% of rated contests

Purse competed for $16,650 listed at 2 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships 0 from 1 state-championship entries

Power rating 1583 peak 1607 · #1233 of 6,413 rated

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

2014
May 23 First tracked contest Papa Joe's Banjo-B-Que & Bluegrass Festival (GBC & SBBQA Qualifier)
Jun 13 First call Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival
Jun 13 First overall past 90% of a perfect score668.4228 Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival
2015
May 15 First category win (Pork) Sevierville Bloomin' BBQ and Bluegrass Festival
May 15 First overall top-10 Sevierville Bloomin' BBQ and Bluegrass Festival
May 15 First overall podium Sevierville Bloomin' BBQ and Bluegrass Festival
May 15 First Grand Championship Sevierville Bloomin' BBQ and Bluegrass Festival
May 15 Biggest field won (44 teams) Sevierville Bloomin' BBQ and Bluegrass Festival
May 15 Career-best overall score698.2400 Sevierville Bloomin' BBQ and Bluegrass Festival
May 15 Career-best single call (Chicken)177.7028 Sevierville Bloomin' BBQ and Bluegrass Festival
Sep 25 10th tracked contest Butts and Beans BBQ Challenge
2016
Jul 22 Peak power rating (1607) WNC BBQ Festival-
2017
Jun 2 25th tracked contest *Piggin In The Park(PALMETTO BBQ SERIES)
2019
Aug 30 Most recent contest Blue Ridge BBQ & Brew Festival

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+17.5	Sevierville Bloomin' BBQ and Bluegrass Festival	2015-05-15
+14.5	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	2016-06-03
+13.2	Smoking In The Foothills Barbecue Competition and Festival	2015-10-16
+12.7	20th Annual Fire House BBQ Cook-Off	2016-04-15
+11.1	WNC BBQ Festival-	2016-07-22

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-9.2	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional)	2016-08-26
-7.4	Almost Heaven BBQ Bash	2018-06-15
-4.4	Blue Ridge BBQ & Brew Festival	2019-08-30
-3.5	Jiggy With the Piggy	2018-05-04
-3.3	Barbourville BBQ Cookoff & Festival	2016-06-17

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)
2019	2	0	0	1	100%	top 64%	90.8%	90.1%
2018	4	0	0	0	25%	top 59%	93.2%	90.8%
2017	7	0	0	0	86%	top 51%	93.2%	92.2%
2016	10	0	3	1	80%	top 42%	95.2%	93.7%
2015	8	1	3	1	88%	top 34%	97%	94.4%
2014	4	0	0	0	50%	top 50%	93%	92%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2019-08-30	Blue Ridge BBQ & Brew Festival 🏅 West Jefferson, NC	17 / 24 (653.5660)	8 (168.5372)	23 (148.4916)	20 (159.3600)	1 (177.1772)
2019-05-17	Stills and Grills Fest North Wilkesboro, NC	12 / 21 (644.3424)	5 (172.5484)	20 (142.6856)	7 (165.6684)	10 (163.4400)
2018-07-20	*Chillin & Grillin in the Glades (JUDGES FULL) Wise, VA	20 / 29 (656.4456)	16 (167.9772)	12 (168.5600)	14 (166.2628)	24 (153.6456)
2018-06-15	Almost Heaven BBQ Bash Weston, WV	45 / 59 (633.6116)	50 (155.9656)	39 (155.9888)	49 (155.3944)	23 (166.2628)
2018-05-18	Bloomin' BBQ & Bluegrass Sevierville, TN	14 / 43 (670.7428)	16 (167.9656)	25 (164.5372)	5 (173.1200)	21 (165.1200)
2018-05-04	Jiggy With the Piggy Kannapolis, NC	42 / 70 (655.3488)	40 (167.9772)	36 (163.4516)	37 (163.3944)	58 (160.5256)
2017-10-06	Squealin in the Square(PALMETTO BBQ SERIES) Laurens, SC	13 / 26 (662.2168)	18 (163.9884)	4 (174.2628)	13 (162.8456)	20 (161.1200)
2017-08-18	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Asheville, NC	16 / 29 (663.3028)	9 (171.4400)	17 (164.5372)	17 (164.5256)	21 (162.8000)
2017-07-21	WNC BBQ Festival(Smokin in the Valley) Maggie Valley, NC	27 / 47 (671.3256)	26 (169.1084)	7 (175.4288)	32 (163.3828)	31 (163.4056)
2017-07-14	*Chillin & Grillin In The Glades Wise, VA	17 / 26 (649.0744)	13 (166.2628)	10 (165.1200)	22 (153.6916)	13 (164.0000)
2017-06-02	*Piggin In The Park(PALMETTO BBQ SERIES) Woodruff, SC	22 / 44 (664.9828)	26 (167.3828)	18 (167.4172)	12 (170.8228)	33 (159.3600)
2017-05-19	Bloomin' BBQ & Bluegrass Sevierville, TN	25 / 49 (665.5884)	40 (159.9656)	7 (173.1200)	40 (159.9428)	15 (172.5600)
2017-05-05	Jiggy With the Piggy Kannapolis, NC	22 / 75 (668.4572)	50 (161.6572)	36 (165.7144)	21 (167.3828)	6 (173.7028)
2016-10-14	Smoking in the Foothills Lenoir, NC	21 / 41 (672.4800)	20 (170.2856)	10 (169.6916)	12 (170.2628)	27 (162.2400)
2016-09-23	Butts and Beans BBQ Challenge Newton, NC	17 / 31 (675.3368)	12 (170.8228)	9 (170.2628)	22 (167.4056)	17 (166.8456)
2016-08-26	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional) N. Charleston, SC	26 / 30 (664.4800)	27 (163.9428)	14 (169.1544)	27 (164.5484)	17 (166.8344)
2016-07-22	WNC BBQ Festival- Maggie Valley, NC	8 / 49 (681.6456)	27 (169.1084)	9 (172.5600)	24 (167.4172)	15 (172.5600)
2016-07-08	Chillin & Grillin In The Glades Wise, VA	12 / 26 (664.5368)	3 (173.1428)	13 (163.9772)	22 (154.8340)	1 (172.5828)
2016-06-17	Barbourville BBQ Cookoff & Festival Barbourville, KY	19 / 32 (671.3028)	21 (169.7028)	21 (165.0972)	12 (169.1200)	12 (167.3828)
2016-06-03	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Asheville, NC	3 / 27 (685.7028)	6 (171.9656)	4 (172.6288)	10 (169.1428)	5 (171.9656)
2016-05-20	Bloomin' BBQ & Bluegrass Sevierville, TN	20 / 46 (682.7540)	11 (173.1428)	4 (176.5600)	25 (169.6684)	32 (163.3828)
2016-05-06	Jiggy With the Piggy Kannapolis, NC	33 / 76 (661.6000)	16 (172.5484)	4 (176.5944)	50 (160.5372)	65 (151.9200)
2016-04-15	20th Annual Fire House BBQ Cook-Off Kings Mountain, NC	5 / 41 (685.6800)	6 (175.4056)	7 (171.4288)	18 (165.6800)	5 (173.1656)
2015-11-20	Bar-B-Cure Knoxville, TN	17 / 35 (673.0168)	17 (169.6684)	19 (165.1200)	27 (161.0856)	5 (177.1428)
2015-10-16	Smoking In The Foothills Barbecue Competition and Festival Lenoir, NC	5 / 37 (688.5256)	3 (177.1428)	6 (173.1544)	22 (166.2512)	9 (171.9772)
2015-09-25	Butts and Beans BBQ Challenge Newton, NC	13 / 27 (679.9196)	15 (170.2512)	3 (176.0000)	17 (165.6800)	14 (167.9884)
2015-07-24	WNC BBQ Festival Maggie Valley, NC	13 / 49 (678.1828)	38 (163.9312)	10 (170.8344)	22 (167.3944)	2 (176.0228)
2015-07-10	Chillin & Grillin in the Glades Wise, VA	10 / 18 (657.0168)	13 (158.8112)	3 (169.6800)	13 (159.3828)	3 (169.1428)
2015-06-26	Blount County BBQ Bash Maryville, TN	13 / 38 (678.1940)	10 (173.7028)	22 (162.2628)	21 (165.6684)	4 (176.5600)
2015-05-29	The Rotary Club of Bearden - Que Fest Knoxville, TN	17 / 39 (686.7884)	11 (176.0000)	19 (170.2628)	29 (167.3828)	13 (173.1428)
2015-05-15	Sevierville Bloomin' BBQ and Bluegrass Festival Sevierville, TN	1 / 44 (698.2400)	4 (177.7028)	9 (173.1316)	1 (175.4056)	15 (172.0000)
2014-07-25	WNC BBQ Festival Maggie Valley, NC	13 / 46 (669.6684)	11 (169.7028)	15 (168.0000)	16 (168.5372)	27 (163.4284)
2014-06-20	Barbourville BBQ Festival Barbourville, KY	19 / 27 (665.0972)	15 (168.5828)	9 (171.4172)	9 (169.7028)	24 (155.3944)
2014-06-13	Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival Tryon, NC	26 / 73 (668.4228)	24 (169.6684)	45 (161.1088)	7 (172.5600)	35 (165.0856)
2014-05-23	Papa Joe's Banjo-B-Que & Bluegrass Festival (GBC & SBBQA Qualifier) Evans, GA	43 / 65 (646.6856)	59 (157.6572)	25 (165.1084)	54 (154.2516)	12 (169.6684)

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
2017 ↗	Master	#677 (571 pts)	#699 (576 pts)	#432 (906 pts)	#697 (596 pts)	#592 (666 pts)
2016 ↗	Master	#357 (1050 pts)	#339 (1080 pts)	#231 (1365 pts)	#531 (775 pts)	#314 (1145 pts)