Blue Dragon Sports Information

For the fourth-consecutive week, the No. 1-ranked Hutchinson Community College football team will be matched up against a nationally ranked opponent.

Also, for the fourth time in six games, the Blue Dragons will be on the road. Hutchinson travels to No. 20 Highland for a 1 p.m. kickoff at Kessinger Field in Highland, Kansas.

The game will be broadcast live on Blue Dragon flagship station KHUT-FM (102.9) and sister stations KWBW-AM/FM (1450/98.5) at 12:30 p.m. with Glen Grunwald (play-by-play) and Daren Dunn (color) calling the action. The game will also be videostreamed live on the Blue Dragon Sports Network at 12:30 p.m.

Hutchinson's September gauntlet has seen the Blue Dragons play No. 7 Iowa Western, No. 17 Fort Scott and No. 2 Butler. When the Dragons played Independence on August 31, the Pirates were receiving votes.

The Blue Dragons, whose first-ever stint as the No. 1 team in the NJCAA Rankings has now lasted five weeks, moved to 5-0 for the first time since 2014 after a thrilling 35-27 victory over No. 2 Butler last Saturday at Gowans Stadium.

The 5-0 start is only the seventh such start in Blue Dragon Football history. The Dragons were also 5-0 in 1936, 1947, 1948, 1969, 2010 and 2014.

Hutchinson sophomore quarterback Mark Wright was named both the KJCCC and NJCAA National Offensive Player of the Week as he accounted for 316 total yards and four touchdowns to lead the Blue Dragons against the Grizzlies. Wright guided three-straight scoring drives to start the game and build a 21-0 lead. He threw a 46-yard touchdown pass to Mitchell Tinsley with 9:01 to play in the fourth quarter to give the Blue Dragons a two-possession lead.

The victory wasn't secure until Dionte Gipson's quarterback sack with about 20 seconds left and Butler getting called for a false start on the final play, which caused a 10-second runoff to end the game.

No. 20-ranked Highland has won two games in a row after a 1-2 start. The Scotties knocked off No. 15 Iowa Central last week 20-14 at Kessinger Field. With the game tied at 14 late in the fourth quarter, Scotty quarterback Joseph Cambridge threw a 42-yard touchdown to Antavious Cook to take the lead.

Cambridge is the leading passer in the Jayhawk Conference at 272.8 yards per game.

Hutchinson has a decisive series advantage over Highland with a 33-4 overall record. But over the last 13 games (since 2006) the Dragons are 9-4.

The last two games have been three-point contests, both won by the Blue Dragons. Two years ago in a double-overtime 13-10 win at Gowans Stadium, Luke Niemeyer booted a 37-yard field goal for the win. Last season, it was a Sebastian Garcia with a 37-yarder with 1:34 left for a 16-13 victory.