The Aggies are thin at linebacker with sophomore Anthony Hines out for the season.

COLLEGE STATION – Texas A&M’s already-thin linebackers corps has taken a big hit early in the season with coach Jimbo Fisher announcing on Wednesday’s SEC teleconference that sophomore Anthony Hines is out for the season after reinjuring himself against Clemson last week.

Hines had missed the Aggies’ opener against Northwestern with a lower leg injury. Hines played last season as a true freshman, so he’ll be eligible for a redshirt under the new NCAA rule that allows a player to compete in up to four games in a season and still redshirt.

Sophomore Buddy Johnson and junior Larry Pryor are listed as Hines’ backups on the Aggies’ depth chart. A&M, which lost 28-26 to No. 2 Clemson, hosts Louisiana-Monroe on Saturday night before playing at topranked Alabama on Sept. 22.

The Aggies are solid at starting linebacker with Otaro Alaka, Tyrel Dodson and now Johnson, but the dropoff is steep following the first three.

S. Carolina cancels game vs. Marshall

After several days of monitoring the approaching storm, the biggest schools in South Carolina had little choice but to alter football games due to Hurricane Florence.

South Carolina canceled its game with Marshall that was scheduled for Saturday night.

Second-ranked Clemson pushed up the start time of its game at home against Georgia Southern, with the kickoff now taking place at 11 a.m. instead of 2:30 p.m. CST.

“Whether or not the game could have been played, we made the decision we think is best for the state and those who are evacuating the coast,” South Carolina athletic director Ray Tanner said. “There is no question this is the right thing to do.”

Appalachian State canceled its home game with Southern Miss. Charlotte moved its scheduled home game against Old Dominion from Saturday to Thursday night to beat Florence's arrival.

East Carolina is relocating its football team to Florida by bus.

Odds and ends

Texas sophomore offensive lineman Patrick Hudson been released from the hospital and will return to classes on Thursday, head athletic trainer Anthony Pass announced. Hudson was hospitalized last week after developing a heat-related illness during practice. No timetable has been set for Hudson's return to physical activity. … Iowa State will host Incarnate Word on Dec. 1 — unless Iowa State qualifies for the Big 12 title game or Incarnate Word reaches the FCS playoffs — to make up for the season opener against South Dakota that was canceled by severe weather.