There's still room for growth in Anthony Hill's game

Last year, Texas’ Anthony Hill Jr. was one of the best linebackers in the country. A second-team All-American according to several major outlets, Hill had a season that placed him just behind players that ended up going on to start their careers in the NFL. Even with that standout play, there was a part of Hill’s game where there was room to grow.

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A pulverizing run defender and a phenomenal blitzer, Hill was one of the best in the nation when it came to moving forward at the snap. He totaled a team-leading 113 tackles, 16.5 TFL, and 8.0 sacks in 16 games, adding an interception, four forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery. But when it came to moving backwards and defending the pass, Hill had his issues.

Last year as the Longhorns’ Mike linebacker, a position modern offenses attempt to exploit in space, Hill was targeted 60 times. Opposing receivers caught 51 passes for 453 yards with two touchdowns. Hill had a pick-six versus ULM, but the score was nullified due to a penalty. The 102.3 passer rating opposing QBs had when targeting Hill doesn’t indicate a glaring hole in the middle of the Longhorns’ pass defense, but it is an area where any bit of improvement would help Pete Kwiatkowski‘s side of the ball maintain high level of play as it did in 2023. After all, Jaylan Ford allowed just 33 receptions during his senior year in 2023, picked off two passes, and allowed a passer rating against him of 97.2 playing the same position. In 2022? Ford had a 66.9 passer rating against and picked off four passes.

But Ford was not the same downhill defender as Hill. The Texas coaches believe if No. 0 can make the proper adjustments to his game, he’ll be one of the more complete players in burnt orange this year.

“The next step for him is really just to keep growing and improving in his pass coverage, whether it’s man coverage or zone coverage,” Kwiatkowski said Tuesday. “He has a nose for the ball. He plays his tail off. He has a knack for big plays. The consistency in his pass coverage is the next step and he’s doing a good job of that.”

Hill was successful at keeping things in front of him in 2024. The average depth of target against him was 3.2 yards down the field, and the average yards per reception against him was 8.9 yards per catch according to Pro Football Focus. He missed just eight tackles on pass plays all season according to PFF.

One of those coverage mistakes, however, greatly skews those averages. Until the Longhorns’ final game of the 2024 season, the longest pass play where blame was assigned to Hill went for 27 yards. That was versus Clemson, and it occurred with under 1:50 left after Texas’ final turnover on downs.

Then, TreVeyon Henderson caught a screen pass late in the first half of the Cotton Bowl and rumbled 75 yards for a crucial score. Though Hill was the one assigned fault in the stat sheet, plenty of other Longhorns had chances to make a play to prevent the Buckeyes from taking momentum back before the intermission in the College Football Playoff semifinal. Still, it stands as a bit of a reminder of how important coverage is for modern linebackers.

So Hill set out to make himself a better player in coverage and to do more than just keep things in front of him. He worked with Longhorn great Derrick Johnson in the offseason. He’ll be working alongside a fellow Butkus Award watch list member in Liona Lefau as well as Trey Moore at off-ball linebacker. As much as a player can before preseason camp, Hill did everything his coaches asked.

He’ll be asked to do more as preseason camp goes along. The coaches will want to see even more improvement, but Hill’s position coach specifically thinks that it’s almost a certainty.

“Practice,” Texas linebackers coach and co-defensive coordinator Johnny Nansen said Tuesday. “Understanding landmarks, understanding concepts, when to drop, when not to drop, how deep to drop depending on the quarterback’s depth. Those are areas that he needs to improve on, and I thought he did a really good job in the spring. He improved a lot. Obviously, we put so much on him. You’ve got to remember he’s a 20-year-old true junior. It takes time. It’s coming.”

One thing Hill won’t lack for is want-to. Despite his seemingly always-positive demeanor, Hill plays with a motivation level that translates into real violent action on the field. It’s hard to do, as it was evident Hill was one of many Longhorns banged up at the end of the 2024 season. But that never stopped him then, and isn’t likely to stop him now as he looks to post another All-American level season and potentially become the Longhorns’ first three-and-out linebacker since Malik Jefferson.

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“It’s a joy to come to work every single day and work with him,” Nansen said. “He’s always one of those kids that’s looking for improvement every single day no matter what that area is. He’s a football junkie all the time, wanting more and more. It’s always good to have that type of player.”