PJ's Magic Smoke

PJ's Magic Smoke is a competition barbecue team with 10 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record in 2026. Their best overall finish is 13th of 13 at the York County BBQ Festival (Day 2) (2026). They are ranked #5979 of 6,476 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

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At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#5,979

of 6,476 rated · rankings

Rating

1435

peak 1435 · rated over 10 contests

Contests

in the data

First seen

Apr 17, 2026

latest Sep 25, 2026

Best ToY finish

#287

Master 2026 · every season

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

0 podiums

Overall top-10s

0% of 10 contests

Avg finish

top 88%

overall standings

Best overall

670.7656 / 720

Master · First State BBQ Bash

Perfect 180s

Current form

660.42 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 653.95 (+6.47)

Walk rate

30%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

177.1428

Pork Ribs · First State BBQ Bash

Consistency

±11.75

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Pork Ribs

avg 164.93 · weakest Chicken (161.32)

Road miles

415

across 10 mapped stops · furthest 141 mi

Schedule strength

72%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1591)

Purse competed for

$39K

listed at 8 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

won from 10 state-championship entries

Master avg

653.95 / 720

10 Master contests · 0 GCs

Still inside their first twelve months: see what a first season usually looks like.

Storylines (7 found in their record)

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

High-water mark

670.7656 career-best overall

93.2% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 670.7656 at First State BBQ Bash — 93.2% of a perfect 720.

Master
Sep 25, 2026

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

4 BOXERS Q has finished one call ahead of PJ's Magic Smoke 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

A tough matchup

10–0 behind in the head-to-head

FIRE & SHINE BBQ ahead in 100% of their meetings

FIRE & SHINE BBQ has come out ahead in 10 of their 10 shared contests.

A strong matchup

3–0 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 100% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of 30Q in 3 of their 3 shared contests.

Pork Ribs nemesis

8 of 10 shared pork ribs entries lost

SUSQUEHANNA SMOKERS ahead 80% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, SUSQUEHANNA SMOKERS has out-cooked them in 8 of 10 shared pork ribs entries.

Going the wrong way

-52 rating points in a year

The rating has slipped 52 points across 10 contests since Apr 17, 2026 — from 1487 down to 1435.

10 contests since Apr 17, 2026
now 1435

The metronome

±1.63% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±1.63% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 90.8% of a perfect score
10 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
2026 ↗	Master	#287 (678 pts)	#322 (648 pts)	#219 (938 pts)	#247 (793 pts)	#239 (798 pts)

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to PJ's Magic Smoke, each with one reason worth a look.

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

ODB's Ribticklin BBQ

#5,983 of the rated field

1435 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1435

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 10 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 10 contests
last seen Sep 13, 2019

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Vegan Tears BBQ

#5,976 of the rated field

1435 power rating

Contests: 11
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 18%
Peak: 1435

Careers of much the same size, 11 contests to 10, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 11 contests
last seen Nov 21, 2025

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SmokeStack BBQ

#5,972 of the rated field

1435 power rating

Contests: 11
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 9%
Peak: 1435

Their rating is built on 1 Grand Championship in 11 contests, alongside a 9% overall top-10 rate.

rated over 11 contests
last seen May 25, 2024

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Bayshore BBQ

#5,986 of the rated field

1434 power rating

Contests: 9
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1434

Their last contest in the data was back in 2023, 3 years before PJ's Magic Smoke's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 9 contests

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PORK RADIO 810

#5,980 of the rated field

1435 power rating

Contests: 12
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1512

They were already cooking in 2013, 13 years before PJ's Magic Smoke's first contest.

rated over 12 contests
last seen Nov 5, 2025

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Disco Balls

#5,978 of the rated field

1435 power rating

Contests: 12
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1435

Level with PJ's Magic Smoke on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 12 contests
last seen Apr 22, 2022

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
FIRE & SHINE BBQ	10	0	10	0%	⚔ compare
SUSQUEHANNA SMOKERS	10	0	10	0%	⚔ compare
Leaning Jowler BBQ	9	0	9	0%	⚔ compare
B'S QUE	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare
BEER TIME BBQ	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare
Capt. Blue BBQ	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare
Tame the Flame BBQ	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare
4 BOXERS Q	7	3	4	43%	⚔ compare
All About the Wood	7	2	5	29%	⚔ compare
MRC_Barbecue	7	1	6	14%	⚔ compare
Oink N' Doink BBQ	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
Yardogs BBQ	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
Ain't That Rich	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
Backwooder BBQ	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
Castleton Q	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	10	0	165.1200	154.7772	161.32	top 91%
Pork Ribs	10	1	177.1428	157.0856	164.93	top 70%
Pork	10	1	172.5828	158.8344	164.19	top 77%
Brisket	10	1	171.9772	157.0972	163.51	top 77%

“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	Avg finish
Small (<20 teams)	2	top 100%
Medium (20–39)	7	top 86%
Large (40+)	1	top 77%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	Avg finish
PA	6	top 91%
NJ	2	top 90%
DE	1	top 56%
VA	1	top 96%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
Smoke on the Rail BBQ Festival (Day 2)	2	33	top 85%	Jul 25, 2026
York County BBQ Festival (Day 2)	2	13	top 96%	Jun 13, 2026
Twin Valley Fire and Smoke (Day 2)	2	17	top 92%	May 16, 2026
New Jersey KnoQ-out - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES (DAY 2)	2	21	top 90%	Apr 18, 2026

More numbers

Most contests held in PA 6 of 10 contests · 4 states in all

Contests visited 6 4 of them more than once

Opponents faced 177 finished ahead 59 times, behind 426

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

20268 milestones

Apr 17 First tracked contest New Jersey KnoQ-out - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES (DAY 1)
Apr 17 Peak power rating (1487) New Jersey KnoQ-out - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES (DAY 1)
Apr 18 First call New Jersey KnoQ-out - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES (DAY 2)
Apr 18 First overall past 90% of a perfect score664.9716 New Jersey KnoQ-out - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES (DAY 2)
Sep 25 10th tracked contest First State BBQ Bash
Sep 25 Career-best overall score670.7656 First State BBQ Bash
Sep 25 Career-best single call (Pork Ribs)177.1428 First State BBQ Bash
Sep 25 Most recent contest First State BBQ Bash

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+0.9	First State BBQ Bash	Sep 25, 2026
+0.2	York County BBQ Festival (Day 2)	Jun 13, 2026

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-13.2	New Jersey KnoQ-out - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES (DAY 1)	Apr 17, 2026
-9.1	York County BBQ Festival (Day 1)	Jun 12, 2026
-8.6	Smoke on the Rail BBQ Festival (Day 2)	Jul 25, 2026
-8.1	Twin Valley Fire and Smoke (Day 2)	May 16, 2026
-8.1	New Jersey KnoQ-out - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES (DAY 2)	Apr 18, 2026

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)

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Sep 25, 2026	First State BBQ Bash 🏅 Milford, DE	22 / 39 (670.7656)	26 (165.1200)	4 (177.1428)	34 (160.5028)	21 (168)
Aug 21, 2026	Stoney Creek BBQ Cookoff 🏅 Edinburg, VA	25 / 26 (653.5660)	24 (163.9544)	11 (170.2628)	26 (158.8344)	24 (160.5144)
Jul 25, 2026	Smoke on the Rail BBQ Festival (Day 2) 🏅 New Freedom, PA	36 / 39 (660.9600)	36 (163.9544)	35 (164.5372)	31 (167.3828)	32 (165.0856)
Jul 24, 2026	Smoke on the Rail BBQ Festival (Day 1) 🏅 New Freedom, PA	33 / 43 (667.2456)	39 (162.8000)	25 (167.3828)	30 (166.2400)	20 (170.8228)
Jun 13, 2026	York County BBQ Festival (Day 2) 🏅 Delta, PA	13 / 13 (649.5656)	13 (161.6456)	13 (158.2400)	6 (172.5828)	13 (157.0972)
Jun 12, 2026	York County BBQ Festival (Day 1) 🏅 Delta, PA	23 / 25 (639.2116)	23 (160.5028)	24 (158.8116)	21 (159.9428)	21 (159.9544)
May 16, 2026	Twin Valley Fire and Smoke (Day 2) 🏅 Morgantown, PA	17 / 17 (650.1608)	17 (159.4060)	11 (169.1316)	15 (162.2516)	17 (159.3716)
May 15, 2026	Twin Valley Fire and Smoke (Day 1) 🏅 Morgantown, PA	21 / 25 (651.2688)	23 (161.6572)	19 (160.5140)	15 (167.3944)	20 (161.7032)
Apr 18, 2026	New Jersey KnoQ-out - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES (DAY 2) 🏅 Blairstown, NJ	21 / 26 (664.9716)	23 (159.3716)	19 (166.2400)	17 (167.3828)	9 (171.9772)
Apr 17, 2026	New Jersey KnoQ-out - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES (DAY 1) 🏅 Blairstown, NJ	26 / 26 (631.7600)	26 (154.7772)	23 (157.0856)	24 (159.3716)	24 (160.5256)

PJ's Magic Smoke

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

Storylines (7 found in their record)

High-water mark

The one to beat

A tough matchup

A strong matchup

Pork Ribs nemesis

Going the wrong way

The metronome

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

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)

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)