Hinds Community College suffered its first loss of the season last week. Now the Eagles have to make sure it doesn’t end up torpedoing their season.

Hinds returns to action Thursday night at 6:30 in Raymond when it hosts Copiah-Lincoln. Already a game behind in the MACJC South standings thanks to its 41-28 loss to Mississippi Gulf Coast, Hinds (2-1, 0-1 in division play) is in danger of dropping well off the pace.

Hinds fell 10 spots, to No. 16, in this week’s National Junior College Athletic Association poll following its loss to Gulf Coast. Hinds, however, is still loaded with offensive firepower.

Four players, led by sophomore running back Jabari Baker (332 yards, five touchdowns), have rushed for more than 100 yards in three games. As a team, the Eagles are averaging 280 rushing yards per game — the sixth-highest total in the country. The strong ground attack should be an asset against a Co-Lin defense that’s given up 163 yards per game.

Hinds’ problem has been its habit of starting slow. In the last two outings, it has scored only seven points in the first half. In the opener against Mississippi Delta, it led 18-13 at halftime. The Eagles have outscored opponents 86-34 in the second half, but a poor first half led to a 34-0 deficit last week that was too much to overcome.

Co-Lin (2-1, 1-0), meanwhile, jumped out to a 20-3 halftime lead last week against East Central en route to a 47-10 victory. The Wolves are led by dual-threat quarterback Chandler Rogers, who has 349 passing yards and four touchdowns and is also the team’s leading rusher with 92 yards.

In addition to Thursday’s football game, Hinds will honor alumnus Trell Kimmons during the game. The Coldwater native won the silver medal in the men’s 4×100 meter relay at the London Olympics in July.