Spring opener provides some movement
The first week of the 2021 spring season is in the books for the NJCAA ranks and with it comes some juggling of the JCGridiron Dirty 30 Rankings. A couple of cliffhangers highlighted a weekend where things seemed to go off without a hitch.
Unlike the fall season, things went off smoothly for the spring opener with zero games getting canceled because of COVID-19. Two of the top games had sensation endings, bringing us some change in the rankings.
Up in Iowa at Iowa Western the Reivers were upended in the final minute by the Snow Badgers. Snow scored with 14 seconds remaining when Garrison Beach found Tejhuan Palmer on a 19-yard score, giving the Badgers a 31-30 win over IWCC. Snow climbed 10 spots in the rankings as a result and now sits at No. 10. Iowa Western dropped to No. 16 in the rankings with the loss.
On Friday the same thing happened to Butler when Independence running back Tavion Thomas rambled 26 yards for the winning score with 47 seconds remaining on the clock. Independence walked away with a 31-24 win and moved up four spots to No. 7 in the rankings while Butler dropped five spots to No. 14.
Two of the better performances of the weekend were turned in by Hutchinson and Kilgore. Hutchinson led from start to finish, turning in a dominating 33-10 win over Coffeyville. The Blue Dragons moved into the top-10 as a result and now sit at No. 8 in the rankings. Kilgore ripped apart solid Blinn squad for a 56-21 win, scoring 39 points in the opening half and never looking back. The Rangers moved up to No. 12 in the rankings with the win.
Just a reminder on the rankings, as teams continue to cancel games during the spring they will fall in the rankings. The California ranks have mostly said they won’t play during the spring, and the programs will gradually fall in the rankings throughout the season.
Here is the rest of the updated JCGridiron Dirty 30 Rankings. The Dirty 30 Rankings do not include games against club teams, prep schools, non-CCCAA, non-NJCAA or non-HJCAC programs in its rankings.
Rank | Team/Program | City | Record | Next |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
Northwest |
Senatobia, MS |
6-0 |
Finished |
2 |
Garden City |
Garden City, KS |
1-0 |
v Ft. Scott |
3 |
Lackawanna |
Scranton, PA |
0-0 |
v #10 Snow (Apr 10) |
4 |
Gulf Coast |
Perkinston, MS |
5-1 |
Finished |
5 |
Riverside City |
Riverside, CA |
0-0 |
Canceled |
6 |
Iowa Central |
Fort Dodge, IA |
1-0 |
v #16 Iowa Western |
7 |
Independence |
Independence, KS |
1-0 |
@ Ft Scott (Apr 10) |
8 |
Hutchinson |
Hutchinson, KS |
1-0 |
@ #14 Butler |
9 |
San Mateo |
San Mateo, CA |
0-0 |
Canceled |
10 |
Snow |
Ephraim, UT |
1-0 |
v S. Shreveport (Fri) |
11 |
Hinds |
Raymond, MS |
3-1 |
Finished |
12 |
Kilgore |
Kilgore, TX |
1-0 |
@ NEO |
13 |
San Francisco |
San Francisco, CA |
0-0 |
Canceled |
14 |
Butler |
El Dorado, KS |
0-1 |
v #8 Hutchinson |
15 |
Northeast |
Booneville, MS |
5-1 |
Finished |
16 |
Iowa Western |
Council Bluffs, IA |
0-1 |
@ #6 Iowa Central |
17 |
Long Beach City |
Long Beach, CA |
0-0 |
Canceled |
18 |
Georgia Military |
Milledgeville, GA |
0-0 |
Canceled |
19 |
Ventura |
Ventura, CA |
0-0 |
Canceled |
20 |
Trinity Valley |
Athens, TX |
1-0 |
@ #29 Tyler (Fri) |
21 |
Jones |
Ellisville, MS |
3-2 |
Finished |
22 |
Canyons |
Santa Clarita, CA |
0-0 |
Canceled |
23 |
Blinn |
Brenham, TX |
0-1 |
v #34 Cisco |
24 |
Navarro |
Corsicana, TX |
1-0 |
v New Mexico Military |
25 |
Laney |
Oakland, CA |
0-0 |
Canceled |
26 |
Sierra |
Rocklin, CA |
0-0 |
Canceled |
27 |
Saddleback |
Mission Viejo, CA |
0-0 |
Canceled |
28 |
Modesto |
Modesto, CA |
0-0 |
Canceled |
29 |
Tyler |
Tyler, TX |
0-1 |
v #20 TVCC (Fri) |
30 |
Gila River |
Arizona |
4-0 |
Finished |