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Time ticking down as Rivals250 LB Anthony Hines looks to make commitment

Anthony Hines with his parents at his Under Armour jersey presentation on 11/11/16
Anthony Hines with his parents at his Under Armour jersey presentation on 11/11/16 (NICK KRUEGER | rivals.com)

Anthony Hines’ planned commitment date of November 29 is two things: Fast-approaching and not set in stone.

The Rivals250 linebacker from Plano, Texas, is expecting to release a video to announce his commitment, but said at his Under Armour All-America Game jersey presentation on Friday morning that no production details have been decided on. He added that his decision could come a few days earlier or later than the 29th.

Announcement videos aren’t made overnight, so for Hines to stick to that time frame, he’ll likely have to have his mind made up within the next 10 days or so - if he hasn’t already.

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Hines has taken all of his official visits to Florida, Ohio State, Penn State, Texas A&M and UCLA. With the clock ticking down to an announcement, is it possible he’s already made his commitment to the school of his choice?

“I wish I was that sure to be able to do that,” he said.

Hines is as good as anyone at playing coy, but at this point he likely has some idea which way he’s leaning. If he truly doesn’t, than his interest in taking a couple more unofficial visits does have some merit. The two he’d like to make - time permitting - will be to Oklahoma and/or Texas.

As of Friday morning, Hines isn’t on the list of expected visitors for either Texas’ or Oklahoma’s home games this weekend. If he’s serious about an unofficial to either as a last-minute factor in his commitment, he’d likely need to further push back his announcement as both teams are on the road next weekend.

Otherwise, two teams that have been successful this season in the SEC - Texas A&M and Florida - are compelling possibilities for his commitment. The Aggies have had the feel of the favorite in his recruitment, but Florida has been trying to make a push into Texas with a couple of defensive targets, Hines being at the top of the list.

IN HIS WORDS

On Texas A&M, where he took his first official visit

“They’ve been playing very well,” he said. “They slipped up a little bit last week, but I really expect them to bounce back. That was something that shouldn’t have happened, but they’ll come back. I have a good relationship with the coaching staff and talk to Coach (John) Chavis every week so I have a good relationship with them and some of the players like Daylon Mack, I talk to Myles (Garrett) every now and then, my old teammate Landis Durham and Tyrel Dodson too, can’t forget him.”

On Florida, where he took his official visit to on October 15

“Coach (Geoff) Collins was the (defensive coordinator) at Mississippi State and they were my first offer,” he said. “Coach (Randy) Shannon was my tenth offer at Arkansas and now they’re both at Florida as co-defensive coordinators so it’s weird, but I have been talking to those guys for a while. They’ve always been there so for them to unite at the same place - and that linebacker corp, that defense is nasty, so they’ve always been a contender.”

RIVALS REACTION

The tea leaves don’t clearly point to Hines committing as far away from home as Penn State or UCLA would take him, but he could certainly consider himself a defensive anchor in either team’s class. While prognostications vary as to how serious an option Ohio State is, it bears mentioning that two other top Texas recruits - Baron Browning and Jeffrey Okudah - are seriously considering the Buckeyes, among others, and have a close relationship with Hines. While the three have exchanged thoughts about possible destinations, he’s not willing to discuss the three becoming a trifecta for any of the teams they’re mutually considering.

“I don’t even know, you’re just going to have to wait and see,” he said. “Those two dudes are my guys though, but we’ll see.”

The field of candidates seems relatively narrow but if Hines chooses to take a different approach towards announcing his commitment, or pushes the decision back to squeeze in a few more unofficial visits, today’s odds on where he commits stand to get bigger.

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