Last fall, Hinds Community College rode the power of its defensive line all the way to the state championship game.

On Thursday, Eagles head coach J. Mike Smith said his staff still has a way to go in replacing five standouts who will move on to the senior college level.

“Right now, our defensive line is a concern for us. We had four guys on our list, but three of them didn’t sign with us,” Smith said. “The problem with defensive linemen is that you have to go out of state to get them. We can find offensive linemen in the state. And for this signing period, we’ve done pretty well with our skill level players.”

Wednesday’s National Signing Day saw the Eagles sign 20 players. Of that number, 14 were from the Eagles’ protected list.

“We lost eight of those guys. One was Tony Hopson who made his grades and went with Alcorn (State),” Smith said.

Four of the 14 protected list signees come from Warren County. The players signed by the Eagles include Warren Central’s Christian Hales, Donald Neal, Jesse Pedyfoot and Otis Stamps.

Stamps may or may not play at Hinds, depending on academics. The defensive back inked a deal with Southern University on Wednesday.

Pedyfoot and Neal were starting linebackers for the Vikings. The pair combined for 89 tackles last season. Hales, a quarterback, threw for 752 yards.

Smith is hoping to add two more signees from Vicksburg High in tight end Sean Gibbs and defensive back Fabian Quattlebaum.

Gibbs said earlier this week he was considering giving up football to pursue an academic career, but Smith seemed confident the VHS star would end up in Raymond.

“I think we’re going to sign Gibbs,” Smith said. “We haven’t heard from Fabian yet but I think we’ll sign him as well.”

Either Stamps or Quattlebaum could replace departing defensive back D’Eldrick Taylor of Vicksburg. Taylor signed Wednesday with Southeast Missouri State.

“D’Eldrick was a real good football player for us. I kind of compare him to an old-fashioned type player,” Smith said.

A Warren Central product moving on is offensive tackle Deonta Selvy, who signed with Division II Fort Valley State.

The Eagles’ defensive line, however, remains a work in progress with the loss of star players Chad Green and Bryan McBean.

Green, a defensive end from Nashville, signed with North Carolina State. McBean, a 270-pound tackle from Euless, Texas, inked a pact with Oklahoma State.

The Eagles’ other starter at defensive tackle, Kentrell Tanner, signed with North Alabama.

Strong side ends Greg Peterson of Beulahville, N.C. and Ken Griffin of Brandon remain unsigned.

“We hope we can sign three or four defensive lineman through the placement process,” Smith said.