Two losses to two top-five teams in the last two weeks has knocked Butler football out of the top 10 in this week's NJCAA Top 20 National Poll.
After having a remarkable 23-game winning streak over rival Hutchinson snapped, Butler (1-2 overall, 1-1 KJCCC) fell six spots to 15th in this week's poll. Hutchinson, who moved up one spot to fifth, defeated the Grizzlies 35-26 Saturday at BG Products Veterans Sports Complex.
For the first time since 1997, Butler is 1-2 to start the season. The back-to-back losses to Iowa Western and Hutchinson is the first time that the Grizzlies have lost consecutive games in the same season since 2005.
The top four in the NJCAA poll remained unchanged for the second straight week, as East Mississippi retained the No. 1 spot, received 140 votes and all nine first-place votes. Iowa Western, Trinity Valley (TX) and Mississippi Gulf Coast stayed put at spots two through four. Hutchinson is the lone addition in the top five.
Rounding out the top 10 are Jones County (MS), Nassau (NY), Navarro (TX), Copiah-Lincoln (MS) and Tyler (TX).
Butler and Hutchinson are the only two KJCCC teams ranked in this week's poll. Coffeyville (2-1) received five votes this week, just one short of No. 20 Georgia Military.
The Grizzlies will host Fort Scott this Saturday at 7 p.m. at BG Products Veterans Sports Complex. After a season-opening 24-17 win over Iowa Central, the Greyhounds (1-2 overall, 0-2 KJCCC) have lost to at Hutchinson (55-10) and home to Coffeyville (56-21).
| 2014 NJCAA TOP 20 FOOTBALL POLL | ||||
| September 16, 2014 | ||||
| Rank | Team | Record | Points | Prev. |
| 1. | East Mississippi (9) | 3-0 | 140 | 1 |
| 2. | Iowa Western |
3-0 | 133 | 2 |
| 3. | Trinity Valley, TX | 3-0 | 126 | 3 |
| 4. | Mississippi Gulf Coast | 3-0 | 118 | 4 |
| 5. | Hutchinson | 3-0 | 110 | 6 |
| 6. | Jones County, MS | 3-0 | 108 | 5 |
| 7. | Nassau, NY |
3-0 | 98 | 10 |
| 8. | Navarro, TX | 2-1 | 86 | 12 |
| 9. | Copiah-Lincoln, MS | 2-1 | 81 | 11 |
| 10. | Tyler, TX | 2-1 | 75 | 13 |
| 11. | Kilgore, TX | 3-0 | 70 | 14 |
| 12. | Arizona Western | 3-1 | 60 | 15 |
| 13. | Snow, UT | 2-1 | 52 | 8 |
| 14. | Scottsdale, AZ | 2-1 | 42 | RV |
| 15. | Butler | 1-2 | 39 | 9 |
| 16. | Central Lakes-Brainerd, MN |
3-0 | 37 | 16 |
| 17. | Dean, MA | 3-0 | 34 | 19 |
| 18. | ASA, NY |
1-1 | 20 | 7 |
| 19. | Rochester, MN | 3-1 | 9 | 20 |
| 20. | Georgia Mililtary | 1-2 | 6 | RV |
Other schools receiving votes: Coffeyville (2-1, 5); Glendale, AZ (3-1, 1); Iowa Central (2-1, 1); Lackawanna, PA (2-0, 1).
Dropped from rankings: DuPage, IL (17); Pearl River, MS (18).
