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P enn State has already hosted a hand- ful of Class of 2017 prospects for of- 6cial visits this season. During the weekend of Sept. 16-18, James Franklin and his assistants hosted three o8cial visitors for the game against Temple, the most notable of whom was four-star linebacker Anthony Hines of Plano, Texas. A member of the Rivals250, Hines is arguably the nation's most cov- eted linebacker, as he's earned an eye- catching 90 scholarship o7ers. His relationship with the Penn State coach- ing sta7 is also one of the strongest he's built, dating back to their time at Van- derbilt. "It was a great time," said Hines' father, Anthony Hines. "The atmosphere [throughout the campus and town] was really good. The camaraderie on the team was also very good. We also liked the whole game-day experience. It was really cool. Their fans are great. "Their campus is unbeliev- able. The whole area around State College, with the mountains and the trees, it's very nice. Also, the people were really nice. We stayed at the Nittany Lion Inn and were very impressed. That place and the people there were awesome. It was great. We're very happy we made the trip." While Penn State's campus and facili- ties made a good impression, the athletic program's commitment to academics also caught their attention. That was clear during a presentation from head coach James Franklin. "They really did a wonderful job show- ing us the academic side," said Hines' fa- ther. "Coach Frank- lin's presentation was very good. We learned a lot about what life is like at Penn State. Between their graduation rate and their new aca- demic building, I thought all of that was awesome. "As a parent, I love what they're doing to bring their program back to promi- nence, both athletically and academi- cally." Hines has yet to narrow his list of schools, but it's become clear that Florida, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Texas and Texas A&M are also high on his list. He was expected to o8cially visit Florida Oct. 14-16, followed by an o8cial visit to Ohio State two weeks later. Three-star defensive tackle Matthew Butler also made his 6rst visit to Penn State for the game against Temple. Head- ing into that trip, the Garner, N.C., native was focused on Duke, North Carolina State, South Carolina and Tennessee, but it's now become clear that the Nittany Lions are 6rmly in the mix. "The main reason they weren't in my Lions play host to official visits Top defensive prospects show interest, but PSU also suffers a setback | F O O T B A L L R E C R U I T I N G For daily and breaking news updates on Penn State football recruiting, visit bwi.rivals.com. CONSIDERING PSU Hines has received 90 scholar- ship offers, but he has a solid relationship with the Lions' coaching staff and visited Penn State in September. Photo cour- tesy of Rivals.com

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