By John Mesh
To the champions Blue Dragon football team goes the big trophy and the No. 1 ranking.
The Hutchinson Community College Blue Dragons, who defeated Iowa Western 28-23 in the NJCAA Division I championship game Wednesday in Canyon, Texas, are the unanimous No. 1 team in the final NJCAA Division I football ranking released on Friday.
The Blue Dragons (11-1), from Region 6 and the Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference, received all 12 first-place votes and 150 points.
Iowa Western (11-2) placed second. Georgia Military College (10-2) and Northwest Mississippi Community College (9-2), the losing teams in semifinal games against Hutchinson and Iowa Western, placed third and fourth.
Rounding out the top five is Navarro College (9-2).
Three other Region 6/Jayhawk Conference teams were ranked in the final NJCAA poll. Coffeyville (9-3) is ranked eighth, Butler Community College (7-4) is 12th and Dodge City Community College (6-4) is 15th.
Butler CC is the only team that defeated Hutchinson during the 2024 season. The Grizzlies handed the Blue Dragons a 27-22 loss at Gowans Stadium on Sept. 26.
Snow College, Utah, (9-2) and Tyler, Texas, Junior College (7-4) are sixth and seventh.
Nos. 9, 10 and 11 are Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College (8-2), East Central Community College (8-3) and Lackawanna (Pa.) College (7-3).
Nos. 13 and 14 are Holmes (Miss.) Community College (7-3) and East Mississippi Community College (5-4).
Cisco (Texas) Community College (4-5) and Kilgore (Texas) College (6-4) received votes in the poll.
In addition to beating Iowa Western in the national championship game, the Blue Dragons defeated the Reivers 38-37 on Sept. 7 in Council Bluffs, Iowa.