Junior to Watch: Tony Hills Jr.

Junior to Watch: Anthony Tramaine “Tony” Hills Jr.

Also goes by: "Big T"

School: Alief (Texas) Elsik

Position: Tight end

Size and Speed: Hills is a towering 6-foot-6, 246 pounds and was last clocked at a 4.9-second 40-yard dash the summer of his freshman year.

Statistics: In his second year as a starter last season, Hills caught 13 passes for 227 yards and one touchdown. Maximum bench press is 280 pounds; his coach doesn’t allow him to go any further. Hills does not play any other school sports but was a member of the Houston Hoops summer league traveling team for the past three years.

Honors: A second-team all-state selection as a junior, named honorable mention all-state as a sophomore and two-time unanimous all-district selection.

Favorite Schools: “The top school that I want to go to is the University of Texas. They would be followed by Miami, Colorado and Iowa,” Hills said. “I just think what coach Brown has done in his time there has been amazing.” Hills attended camp at Texas last summer. Texas A&M, Arizona, Colorado and Iowa have already offered a scholarship. Hills says he wants to stay reasonably close to home. “I want my mom to be able to come see me play. That’s a big deal to me and my family.”

The Skinny: The son of former Houston Oiler Michael Hills, Tony Hills Jr. knows where he wants to be several years from now.

“I want to be in the NFL,” Hills said. “It’s my big dream.”

It’s a dream his high school coach Bill Barron, himself a former college football player, says his star player has the potential to realize.

“I definitely think he’ll play on Sundays,” Barron said of Hills. “He’s just a great, great player. He can run over people, he can catch it in traffic, and he’s just a dominating blocker.”

But it’s something a little extra that Barron thinks will allow Hills to realize his dream.

“His biggest strength is his attitude. He’s a team player and he’s someone that his teachers and teammates and coaches just like to hang out with. So he’s a good kid. And he’s also dedicated to the weight room. He drives to be a good player. Heck, I think he’s probably in the weight room right now.”

Barron says Hills reminds him so much of Miami-bound Midland Lee tight end Eric Winston that it’s scary.

“I’ve known (Lee coach) John Parchman for years and he sent me some film of his tight end,” Barron said. “He’s a great player and so is Tony. They’re both great blockers, great athletes and you can tell they both love to play football.”

"They can both get nasty on the field, but never be out of control."

Hills seems to have the world at his feet. But he’s not getting a big head, rather he’s simply focusing on getting better.

“I go 100-percent every day,” he said. “I’m always looking for what my weakness is, because that’s what somebody would try to expose in a game. That’s why I work so hard in the weight room, why I block so hard, why I’m just always trying to get better. I always want to dominate.”

Combining his on-field ability along with his off-field work ethic, Hills is certainly one of the top prospects in the state of Texas and a poised to be a Rivals100 selection.