Every season has a week or two where the teams in the top-30 get a bit of a wakeup call. This was the week, as six of the top 12 teams in the rankings suffered defeats.

The biggest came in Kansas where previously top-ranked Hutchinson was on the wrong end of a 29-27 score against Highland. The Blue Dragons only led for a brief time in the third quarter as Joseph Cambridge led Highland with a solid performance under center. The Jayhawk now has six teams within a game of first place, making for an exciting finish over the next four weeks. One of those programs is Independence, who blasted previous top-5 Butler 49-20. First year coach Kiyoshi Harris has his Pirates on the move as they jumped up to No. 18 in the Dirty 30 Rankings with the win.

Another game that had an impact was in Mississippi where Northwest raced past East Mississippi, 56-36. The Rangers snapped a 36-game home win streak for the Lions in the process and now sit in a three-way tie the North Division lead. Mississippi Gulf Coast is the last remaining undefeated team in the Mississippi ranks after storming past Southwest 55-24. The Bulldogs moved up to No. 3 in the Dirty 30 Rankings and have a big date on the road this Thursday at No. 31 East Central.

The Southwest Junior College Football Conference has a new leader after Kilgore won a cliffhanger over Trinity Valley, 24-23. Kilgore moved up to No. 10 after the win and has games with Blinn and Tyler to close out the regular season.

The Northeast Conference could be decided this weekend when Lackawanna travels to Monroe. Lackawanna comes in at No. 6 in the rankings after a hard-fought win against No. 44 ASA-Brooklyn. The Falcons could have a shot at the NJCAA title game should they be able to run the table the rest of the way, which could make things interesting.

Mesabi Range all but clinched the Eastern Division of the Minnesota ranks with a 20-6 win against Vermilion. The Norsemen are the only ranked team from the Minnesota Conference, coming in at No. 49. Mesabi Range plays North Dakota State College of Science on the final week of the regular season in two weeks in what could be a preview of the MCAC championship.

Riverside City took back the reigns as the top-ranked team this week when they dismantled a previously undefeated San Diego Mesa team, 61-26. The Tigers appear headed on a collision course with No. 4 Saddleback, who they meet on the final night of the regular season.

San Mateo took control of the Northern California ranks after blasting previous top-10 Modesto, 35-12. The Bulldogs moved up to No. 2 in the rankings as a result and now get a bye before heading into National Bay-6 play. All of the upper-tier programs out west have this week off for a bye.

#3 Gulf Coast at #31 East Central (TH)
#5 Lackawanna at #43 Monroe
#15 Hinds vs. #34 Copiah-Lincoln (TH)
#16 Snow at #27 ASA-Miami
#18 Independence vs. #41 Iowa Western

The rest of the JCGridiron.com Dirty 30 Rankings follow. Just a reminder, JCGridiron.com does not include games against prep schools, club teams, or non-affiliated programs in the records.

* = had forfeit win