Click for Ben Hines Highlights
After a big sophomore season, Archbishop Murphy (Everett, Wa.) LB Ben Hines has shown himself to be a player to keep an eye on over the next couple of years.
Hines, who measures 5’11” and weighs in at 220 pounds, finished the 2015 season with 100 tackles on defense while running for 646 yards and eight touchdowns as a tailback on offense.
For his efforts, Hines earned First Team All-League as a linebacker and got Second Team All-League honors for his work at tailback while also being named by the Everett Herald to the First Team All-Area team, the only sophomore to receive the honor.
“I’d say the big thing for me is my leadership,” Hines told Northwest Elite Index. “I mean, the one thing is, I know all of the positions and I know where everyone is supposed to be, so I am able to get guys lined up and make sure we are ready for the play.
“I also spend a lot of time in the film room studying our opponents and I am good at ready things, seeing tendencies and then I react and make the play.”
This offseason, the talented junior-to-be said he wants to work on his overall game, but he’ll focus on a few of areas to maximize his potential.
“I definitely want to work on my speed and I’m already doing that right now,” Hines said. “I also want to get more flexible, so I’m doing a lot of stretching and quick-twitch stuff, and I also want to get quicker, which all of that will help me with that.”
As far as recruiting is concerned, it’s beyond early for Hines, but when he hits the camp circuit this spring and summer, he should start to see things pick up.
“I’m going to hit a lot of camps,” Hines noted. “I’m planning on the Washington, Washington State, Oregon State and Oregon camps and one of the Nike camps and the Northwest Elite camp as well.
“I know I need to get out there and show coaches what I can do,” Hines added. “I love to compete and work against the best guys I can work against, so it should be fun to get out there and show people what I can do.”
Hines shows outstanding football instincts and he’s a natural linebacker who loves to play a physical brand of football. He’s a player who should emerge more and more as we get into the winter and spring and as more schools get a look at him during the May evaluation period, he should see even more interest on the recruiting front.
