Playmaking '17 LB Anthony Hines on All-American status, decision date

Elite linebacker Anthony Hines was recently named an Under Armour All-American, and Jason Howell caught up with him after he received the honor. Hines is close to nailing down a decision date after taking all five of his official visits.

On being named an Under Armour All-American...

"You know, it’s a surreal feeling. It’s always been a dream of mine to be an Under Armour All-American. To see it finally coming true, it’s truly a surreal experience."

On when the honor set in for him...

"Really just now, actually. You can’t really prepare yourself for this, and you know for it to finally happen is just a completely different experience. It’s amazing."

On UA All-Americans that had success after high school...

"That’s one of the reasons I accepted this, just to have guys like Julio Jones and Deshawn Watson, James Winston all those guys – Leonard Fournette. Just to be mentioned in the same conversation, you know possibly be doing things that they’re doing now in the near future. It’s definitely a big reason why I chose this game. It's just a huge honor."

On the work he put in to get to this point...

"Really I started realizing that these things can come true really around 7th grade. You know, I just started going to camps – around that time 7th, 8th grade we started putting in work with my dad and all these trainers. Jerome Givens, Clay Mack, just working with those guys, just refining my techniques, and once I figured out I went to camps and did pretty well. You know, there’s a good chance that I can be successful in this."

On the next step of his recruitment...

"Next is commitment. That’s coming right around the 29th, maybe a little after, maybe a little before."

On the major factors in his decision...

"You know all the factors, all aspects of life – not only on the field but educational and social, as well. All 5 official visits that I took, they all have all those aspects, so from here it’s just looking at the little things and what differentiates them.

On narrowing his list of schools...

"Yes, you know it’s down to the nitty gritty right now. It’s really the 5 official visits and Oklahoma. It’s really just trying to decide between those guys."

On possible unofficial visits before his commitment...

"There’s a good chance. If it is anything, it will be something around here, maybe Texas or Oklahoma.

On what is keeping him from a firm decision date...

"Just not being sure, to be honest with you. Not exactly sure right now where I want to go, but in the near future I look to fix that."