The Pig's Pajamas NJ
Rating
1635
peak 1639 · rated over 27 contests
Best runs
4
straight top-10s
Contests
30
in the data
First seen
2019-04-27
latest 2023-06-24
Best ToY finish
#127
Master 2022
Grand champs
4
2 reserve
Category wins
6
12 podiums
Overall top-10s
16
of 30 contests
Avg finish
top 28%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
677.88 ▲
last 5 Master vs avg 674.46 (+3.42)
Walk rate
87%
contests with a top-10 call
Top-10 streak
4
best run (overall)
Consistency
±11.73
std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 171.10 · weakest Pork (167.47)
Road miles
6039
mi across 30 mapped stops · furthest 1052 mi
Schedule strength
46%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1541)
Purse competed for
$153K
listed at 22 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
3 🏅
GCs in 22 state-championship entries
Master avg
674.46 / 720
27 Master contests · 4 GCs
Storylines
🎯 The one to beat
SMOKIN HOGGZ BBQ - MA has finished one call ahead of The Pig's Pajamas 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
👀 Looking over their shoulder
FOUR SMOKING GUYS has landed one call behind them 3 times.
⚔️ A tough matchup
INSANE SWINE BBQ has come out ahead in 13 of their 16 shared contests.
⚔️ A strong matchup
They've finished ahead of BIG BOB'S SMOKIN QUE in 11 of their 11 shared contests.
🏕️ Happy hunting ground
Twin Valley Fire and Smoke is their spot: 1 Grand Championship in 2 visits.
💔 The heartbreaker
Came within 4.0344 points of the Grand Championship at I Love Barbecue & Music Festival (2021-09-03).
🗡️ Giant slayer
Took the Grand Championship over a 46-team field at Twin Valley Fire and Smoke.
📅 A May team
Something about May: average finish in the top 3% across 3 contests, versus top 28% the rest of the year.
🃏 Against the odds
Their Grand Championship at New Jersey KnoQ-out: Day 2-CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES (2022-04-23) came as the ratings underdog — roughly a 24-in-100 shot against the field's top-rated team, WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ.
Teams like this (closest power rating, NJ first)
Familiar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SMOKIN HOGGZ BBQ - MA | 23 | 12 | 11 | 52% | ⚔ compare |
| PADDY MCQ'S | 18 | 8 | 10 | 44% | ⚔ compare |
| Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit | 17 | 6 | 11 | 35% | ⚔ compare |
| Top Gun Barbecue | 17 | 5 | 12 | 29% | ⚔ compare |
| INSANE SWINE BBQ | 16 | 3 | 13 | 19% | ⚔ compare |
| BOGGS HOG BBQ | 15 | 9 | 6 | 60% | ⚔ compare |
| OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE | 13 | 3 | 10 | 23% | ⚔ compare |
| A MAZIE Q | 12 | 6 | 6 | 50% | ⚔ compare |
| CHUNKY BBQ | 12 | 6 | 6 | 50% | ⚔ compare |
| Rogue Hog BBQ | 12 | 3 | 9 | 25% | ⚔ compare |
| WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ | 12 | 3 | 9 | 25% | ⚔ compare |
| BIG BOB'S SMOKIN QUE | 11 | 11 | 0 | 100% | ⚔ compare |
| SHORTSVILLE SMOKERS | 11 | 5 | 6 | 45% | ⚔ compare |
| FIRE AT THE END OF THE DAY | 11 | 5 | 6 | 45% | ⚔ compare |
| FIRE DOWN BELOW | 11 | 3 | 8 | 27% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 27 | 14 | 3 | 4 | 179.4400 | 161.6456 | 171.10 | top 30% |
| Pork Ribs | 29 | 15 | 0 | 3 | 177.1428 | 157.6916 | 167.97 | top 35% |
| Pork | 27 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 177.7028 | 157.1316 | 167.47 | top 38% |
| Brisket | 27 | 16 | 3 | 4 | 177.7028 | 158.8800 | 168.23 | top 32% |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| NJ | 8 | 1 | top 37% |
| NY | 7 | 0 | top 25% |
| PA | 5 | 1 | top 16% |
| KS | 2 | 0 | top 48% |
| NH | 2 | 1 | top 19% |
| MA | 1 | 0 | top 35% |
| VT | 1 | 0 | top 42% |
| ON | 1 | 1 | top 2% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 3 | 0 | top 41% |
| Medium (20–39) | 10 | 1 | top 26% |
| Large (40+) | 14 | 3 | top 27% |
Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Jersey KnoQ-out: Day 2-CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES | 3 | 1 | 1 | top 24% | 2022-04-23 |
| I Love Barbecue & Music Festival (Masters) (JUDGING FULL) | 3 | 2 | 0 | top 23% | 2022-09-02 |
| Smoke in the Grove (Day 2) | 3 | 7 | 0 | top 24% | 2022-07-30 |
| New Jersey KnoQ-out: Day 1-CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES | 3 | 9 | 0 | top 41% | 2022-04-22 |
| Twin Valley Fire and Smoke | 2 | 1 | 1 | top 4% | 2022-05-13 |
The story so far
- Busiest season: 2022 (12 contests)
- Cooks mostly in NJ (10 of 30 contests)
- Most-entered category: Pork Ribs (29 entries)
- First Grand Championship in the data: Capital BBQ Festival (2019-05-25)
- Wins it all in 13% of contests
- Average Master overall score: 674.46 / 720
Milestones
- 🚩 2019-04-27 — First tracked contest · New Jersey KnoQ-out CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES
- 📣 2019-04-27 — First call · New Jersey KnoQ-out CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES
- 🏆 2019-05-25 — First Grand Championship · Capital BBQ Festival
- ⭐ 2021-09-03 — Career-best overall score (695.4284) · I Love Barbecue & Music Festival
- 📈 2022-07-29 — Peak power rating (1639) · Smoke in the Grove (Day 1)
- 🎖️ 2022-07-30 — 25th tracked contest · Smoke in the Grove (Day 2)
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +15.8 | Capital BBQ Festival | 2019-05-25 |
| +13.9 | I Love Barbecue & Music Festival | 2019-07-05 |
| +13.9 | New Jersey KnoQ-out: Day 2-CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES | 2022-04-23 |
| +13.5 | Twin Valley Fire and Smoke | 2021-05-14 |
| +12.1 | I Love Barbecue & Music Festival | 2021-09-03 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -10 | New Jersey KnoQ-out: Day 1-CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES | 2022-04-22 |
| -6.7 | "Last Chance" KnoQ-out - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES | 2020-07-30 |
| -5.6 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue - INVITATIONAL CONTEST | 2022-09-29 |
| -4.5 | Smoke in the Grove (Day 2) | 2022-07-30 |
| -1.7 | Hudson Valley Ribfest | 2019-08-16 |
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) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 32% | 95.4% | 95.4% |
| 2022 | 12 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 75% | top 30% | 96.6% | 94.4% |
| 2021 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 100% | top 23% | 96.6% | 93.9% |
| 2020 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 48% | 93.6% | 92.6% |
| 2019 | 7 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 86% | top 22% | 93.7% | 92.7% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-06-24 | Frog Alley BREW-B-QUE Cookoff Schenectady, NY | 6 / 19 (686.8112) | 3 (174.8456) | 2 (173.1428) | 9 (168.5372) | 7 (170.2856) |
| 2022-10-01 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue - SIDES Kansas City, KS | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2022-09-29 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue - INVITATIONAL CONTEST Kansas City, KS | 158 / 249 (677.0512) | 85 (173.1428) | 119 (170.8572) | 72 (173.1200) | 232 (159.9312) |
| 2022-09-29 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue - OPEN CONTEST 🏅 Kansas City, KS | 161 / 505 (678.1940) | 165 (170.8228) | 20 (177.1428) | 257 (167.3712) | 300 (162.8572) |
| 2022-09-02 | I Love Barbecue & Music Festival (Masters) (JUDGING FULL) Lake Placid, NY | 10 / 22 (661.0744) | 4 (172.5716) | 13 (157.6916) | 13 (158.8228) | 4 (171.9884) |
| 2022-07-30 | Smoke in the Grove (Day 2) 🏅 Spring Grove, PA | 19 / 42 (686.2744) | 12 (176.5600) | 37 (161.7144) | 7 (176.0000) | 12 (172.0000) |
| 2022-07-29 | Smoke in the Grove (Day 1) 🏅 Spring Grove, PA | 7 / 54 (682.2056) | 5 (177.1428) | 4 (174.2628) | 14 (169.6800) | 34 (161.1200) |
| 2022-06-04 | Granite State BBQ Championship - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES 🏅 Merrimack, NH | 1 / 37 (691.3712) | 1 (179.4400) | 7 (170.8228) | 4 (173.1428) | 14 (167.9656) |
| 2022-05-13 | Twin Valley Fire and Smoke 🏅 Morgantown, PA | 2 / 39 (690.7884) | 7 (174.8456) | 13 (167.9772) | 14 (170.2628) | 1 (177.7028) |
| 2022-04-23 | New Jersey KnoQ-out: Day 2-CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES 🏅 Blairstown, NJ | 1 / 41 (695.4056) | 15 (173.7028) | 3 (174.8572) | 5 (174.2628) | 7 (172.5828) |
| 2022-04-23 | New Jersey KnoQ-out - Master of Ribs - Saturday Night Blairstown, NJ | — | — | 5 (173.1200) | — | — |
| 2022-04-22 | New Jersey KnoQ-out: Day 1-CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES 🏅 Blairstown, NJ | 30 / 48 (657.6112) | 36 (161.6456) | 28 (163.9772) | 10 (173.1084) | 32 (158.8800) |
| 2022-04-22 | New Jersey KnoQ-out - Master of Ribs - Friday Night Blairstown, NJ | — | — | 4 (170.8456) | — | — |
| 2021-09-25 | Nor'Easter BBQ Showdown 🏅 Southwick, MA | 9 / 26 (663.3372) | 7 (166.2744) | 10 (163.3944) | 8 (170.2628) | 11 (163.4056) |
| 2021-09-03 | I Love Barbecue & Music Festival 🏅 Lake Placid, NY | 2 / 15 (695.4284) | 1 (178.2972) | 6 (170.8456) | 3 (177.7028) | 6 (168.5828) |
| 2021-07-30 | Smoke in the Grove 🏅 Spring Grove, PA | 7 / 54 (676.5488) | 26 (168.0000) | 3 (174.2744) | 14 (171.4172) | 23 (162.8572) |
| 2021-06-12 | Granite State BBQ Championship 🏅 Hancock, NH | 11 / 32 (667.3716) | 12 (170.2744) | 10 (167.9772) | 13 (165.7144) | 19 (163.4056) |
| 2021-05-14 | Twin Valley Fire and Smoke 🏅 Morgantown, PA | 1 / 46 (688.5716) | 5 (170.2856) | 4 (172.0116) | 6 (169.6916) | 1 (176.5828) |
| 2021-04-24 | New Jersey KnoQ-out: Day 2-CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES 🏅 Blairstown, NJ | 12 / 40 (672.4912) | 18 (169.7144) | 15 (167.9656) | 22 (165.7028) | 7 (169.1084) |
| 2021-04-23 | New Jersey KnoQ-out: Day 1-CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES 🏅 Blairstown, NJ | 14 / 40 (668.5144) | 31 (161.6684) | 21 (163.4172) | 7 (172.5716) | 5 (170.8572) |
| 2020-07-31 | New Jersey KnoQ-out: DAY 2-CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES 🏅 Blairstown, NJ | 11 / 28 (674.1596) | 8 (171.9656) | 7 (170.2628) | 11 (167.3712) | 17 (164.5600) |
| 2020-07-31 | New Jersey KnoQ-out: Day 1-CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES 🏅 Blairstown, NJ | 9 / 35 (671.3256) | 11 (171.4172) | 25 (161.0856) | 7 (170.2628) | 10 (168.5600) |
| 2020-07-30 | "Last Chance" KnoQ-out - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES Blairstown, NJ | 14 / 18 (654.1600) | 16 (166.2972) | 15 (158.2284) | 13 (160.5144) | 4 (169.1200) |
| 2019-09-21 | Oinktoberfest 🏅 Clarence, NY | 10 / 43 (663.9432) | 9 (167.9772) | 18 (163.4172) | 28 (157.1316) | 2 (175.4172) |
| 2019-09-07 | Green Mountain BBQ Championship- CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES 🏅 Braintree, VT | 13 / 31 (658.7544) | 12 (170.8228) | 17 (160.5600) | 20 (159.3944) | 10 (167.9772) |
| 2019-08-16 | Hudson Valley Ribfest 🏅 New Paltz, NY | 16 / 53 (659.9200) | 17 (167.4172) | 14 (166.2744) | 26 (162.2400) | 17 (163.9884) |
| 2019-07-20 | Ribs and Rhythm & Blues 🏅 Auburn, NY | 8 / 34 (671.9888) | 5 (170.8572) | 11 (170.8572) | 17 (162.8572) | 5 (167.4172) |
| 2019-07-05 | I Love Barbecue & Music Festival 🏅 Lake Placid, NY | 3 / 32 (668.5600) | 9 (167.9772) | 8 (163.4744) | 19 (161.6456) | 1 (175.4628) |
| 2019-05-25 | Capital BBQ Festival Ottawa, ON | 1 / 43 (674.8800) | 1 (172.5828) | 7 (169.1544) | 17 (163.4056) | 6 (169.7372) |
| 2019-04-27 | New Jersey KnoQ-out CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES 🏅 Blairstown, NJ | 9 / 43 (673.6800) | 5 (173.1544) | 5 (171.4172) | 23 (159.3712) | 7 (169.7372) |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 ↗ | Master | #833 (159 pts) | #751 (219 pts) | #775 (244 pts) | #957 (129 pts) | #916 (149 pts) |
| 2022 ↗ | Master | #127 (1387 pts) | #158 (1247 pts) | #123 (1390 pts) | #175 (1152 pts) | #183 (1127 pts) |
| 2021 ↗ | Master | #145 (1193 pts) | #200 (943 pts) | #188 (1048 pts) | #185 (1008 pts) | #167 (1068 pts) |
| 2020 ↗ | Master | #309 (366 pts) | #340 (366 pts) | #393 (311 pts) | #318 (391 pts) | #286 (421 pts) |
| 2019 ↗ | Master | #241 (1172 pts) | #235 (1162 pts) | #344 (937 pts) | #615 (557 pts) | #191 (1297 pts) |
| 2018 ↗ | Master | #613 (552 pts) | #558 (672 pts) | #550 (687 pts) | #579 (647 pts) | #658 (562 pts) |
| 2017 ↗ | Master | #1075 (295 pts) | #854 (460 pts) | #1111 (310 pts) | #975 (380 pts) | #1122 (295 pts) |
| 2016 ↗ | Master | #1305 (216 pts) | #915 (401 pts) | #1235 (261 pts) | #1472 (206 pts) | #1232 (256 pts) |