WESSON, Miss. – For the third time in four weeks, the Wolves of Copiah-Lincoln Community College will face an NJCAA top-10 opponent. This week Co-Lin travels to Raymond to face the sixth-ranked Hinds Eagles in a pivotal MACJC South Division matchup as the Wolves look to hand Hinds their first home loss of 2019. The game is a must-win for Co-Lin’s playoffs hopes as Wolves hope to end a three-game losing skid. Kickoff for the game is set for 6:30 p.m. on Gene Murphy Field at Joe Renfroe Stadium. Fans can watch the action live at hindsccsports.net or listen live at colinathletics.com/listen or WMJU 104.3 FM in Brookhaven.
Hinds enters Thursday’s matchup off wins over Southwest, Pearl River, and Coahoma, while the Wolves been through the gauntlet of the now ranked No. 2 Northwest Mississippi Rangers, the now ranked No. 1 Mississippi Gulf Coast Bulldogs, and the now ranked No. 19 East Central Warriors, all three of which, resulted in Co-Lin losses. Co-Lin looks to bounce back on Thursday in the key South Division game.
The Eagles average 322.2 yards per game and live off of the big play as the team ranks sixth in the nation in yards per passing completion with 16.4 yards per catch, but they have a balanced offense overall, averaging 168.8 yards on the ground and 153.3 through the air per game. The team also ranks top-10 in both kickoff and punt return averages. Other notable stats for Hinds is the team’s 44% third-down conversion as well as surrendering just 16.5 points per game.
Co-Lin comes into the contest averaging 305 yards per game with a preference to the passing game as 213.8 of those yards come through the air, while 91.2 come through the rushing attack. Despite giving up more points per game than Hinds, Co-Lin’s defense is still very solid, averaging just 267.8 yards allowed and leading the nation in defensive touchdowns with five.
Danny Clark looks to continue to lead Co-Lin as he has racked up 1,283 passing yards with nine scores on the year. Drexlan Allen and JJ Jernighan still handle the bulk of the rushing attack as the duo as combined for 509 yards of Co-Lin’s 547 rushing yards. Antoine Robinson, Malik Heath, Dawson Brown, and Erik Rogers still lead Co-Lin’s receiving corps with all four players having double-digit catches and more than 100 yards on the year. Defensively, the Wolves are led by Khehlan Kenndy with 41 tackles followed by Hayden Hill and Tyrus Wheat with 34 and 32 tackles respectively. Wheat leads the teams in tackles for loss with six, while Jordan Davis and Keyshawn Brinkley lead the Wolves with three sacks each.
Elijah Walker will most likely take the snaps for Hinds. The sophomore has 738 passing yards with six touchdowns and four interceptions. Don Ragsdale, a sophomore running back will lead the Eagles backfield as he has 606 yards on the ground this year and four scores. Javon Antonio and Joe’vontae Shorter are Walkers’ favorite targets with 10-catches each, but Tabashi Thomas leads the team in yardage with 269 yards on six catches. Amos Robinson leads Hinds with 27 tackles, while Harrison Tharpe has 24 and a team-best five tackles for loss.
