Hampton

[stangfan]

Hampton has great size, hands and leadership but his speed is questionable. Has he always been this slow? I hope he gets a lot of sprint work this spring!

Awesome game MUSTANGS!! You didn't give up once. This game demonstrated the skill that our players have. A good player can be an excellent player with decent plays to run.

[SMUPonyFan]

Hampton may not have the speed of KG or Jonas, but he is fast. You must look at things in context. He plays just about every down on offense and most special teams. He has it harder than a lineman because he not only blocks but will have to sprint down field. He has a variety of roles. You must also remember that he is our "dump man" in a way. When a QB is in trouble he usually gets the ball thrown to him over the middle so not only does he have to catch it, he must hold on to it while he gets hit multiple times by angry people. What I am getting at here is Hampton fatigues and I don't blame him.

He is a workhorse on offense and that slows him down.

[rogershealy]

Hampton doesnt need to be that fast. He is a lot faster than most Tight Ends. He also makes things happen after he gets the ball. He also is allergic to Lia Tsesmelli.

[PonyGirl]

I just liked the way he came back after those two early drops. Had a great game, overall.

[PerunaPunch]

Mr. Consistency (Hampton) was uncharacteristically hot and cold Saturday. I wasn't counting, but I seem to remember him dropping more than just 2.

Glad he bounced back. That over the middle grab was beauuutiful!

[jettison]

Gotta step in here... He definitely blew the first two passes - first for an obvious first down and plenty more, and second which spotted Rice a 7-0 lead. We were all cringing...

But the rest of his 'drops' as PerunaPunch tells us about, were not easily catchable, or just completely off the mark. Only one was he even able to get his hands on, and that was after jumping higher than I ever thought he could jump. And on another he drew an interference call. So just because the PA system says a pass was intended for 86 does not mean he dropped the pass.

My favorite two plays were his and Hrncir's back to back 'lost ball in the sun' routes. It looked like Hrncir froze in a ready position only to see the ball zip by 5 yards away. I was glad we stopped throwing to that side until we turned directions in the 4th.

As for his speed, heck, why don't we try and get Graham from Colorado to transfer here. Finding freakish speed in a Tight End (4.5 to 4.7ish for a TE) and expecting him to play every down, going in motion on virtually every play, sometimes cutting back on a counter, lead blocking on QB bootlegs... well, those are rare and usually find themselves drafted in the first round. More often, they have great hands or speed, but don't get open, or can't block. Or they are great blockers, but run routes poorly, or whatever. You usually don't get EVERYTHING. I'd rather have 3 or 4 playmaking recievers/running backs to get those big plays and create excitement.

John's not a 'freak,' but knows how to read defenses, get open, make a catch and a few extra yards. Sounds like a decent Tight End.

With that said, let it be known we were happy Rice did not win by 7 points!

[stangfan]

You all are right. You don't find too many tigt ends with lots of speed...

[RedRiverPony]

I'll take a team full of John Hamptons. Not only did he bounce back from the early passes that got away from him to catch several balls later on, but he also nearly killed a couple of guys with blocks, allowing Page and ShanD to run for extra yards. Hamp is the ultimate team player.

[doby]

This is my first and last post for the season. When a player is told before the season starts that he is "out of the offensive equation" this year preparation for the game is different mentally.

Who says that a TE has to be 4.6-4.7 speed? They don't. We know for a fact that John's receptions have fallen off dramatically this year for a number of reasons. Lack of speed is not one of them.

For anyone that thinks John is too slow to be a TE, stand in front of him and you'll join all the linebackers he put out of the games this year. Remember, he is about 60 pounds heavier than the wideouts and that's a pretty good load to move.

If you watched the games this year, who has been leading the blocks for all of the yardage for our great backs?

It's like the saying on the back of a bus, "I may be slow, but I'm ahead of you"

Go Mustangs! Beat the Tarheels! Keep up the good work John!

[PK]

Hampton is one of my favorite players....I love seeing him punish and runover the linebackers.

[ponytalk]

It is time that Hampton be put on one of those football posters that they make at the beginning of the year. He has deserved it. So has Vic, KG, and Jonas.

Hampton is the offensive ironman!

[click]

I've got to join in here. John is not a speed demon but he has plenty of speed for a tight end.He is a great team player and practices harder than anyone on the team.He has all the tools to play at the next level along with a couple of other players,Jonas and Kevin to name a few.John will be the first to tell you he should have caught those first two passes but look at the comeback he had,and not just the catches but the blocks he made.John is awesome and I think he will be even better with a real OC next year.

[This message has been edited by click (edited 11-26-2001).]

[This message has been edited by click (edited 11-26-2001).]

[Mickey]

Only people that don't know football would think Hampton is slow. For a TE he is not slow. I've seen him get a lot of yac's (yards after catch)compared to most TE's He may get run down 20 to 25 yards after the catch but most TE's get tackled at the point of of the catch. He is also getting caught by DB's 3inches shorter and 60 pounds lighter. Bottom line, he is a TE, not a WR. John may not be the best blocker, but running routes and catching the ball may get him drafted by an NFL team.

[stangfan]

Did you not read my second posting? Excuse my ignorance. I didn't even know what position Hampton was. I know he can catch and is dependable. He just looked slow to me. I am a rookie on this thing. Forgive Me!

[brooks]

Mr. Hampton is the best thing that has happened to SMU football in a long time. He has the best hands on the team, is a great blocker, and is faster than most of the other tight ends in the country. I cannot believe that there could ever be a negative sentence written about him, especially from a fan of the Mustangs. Furthermore, John is not only a great player on the field but he is also one of the most liked leaders of the team. Coming from someone who has seen the reaction to John of the field I think everyone on that team wishes there were a few more John Hamptons on the team, and it really bothers me that "fans" find that so hard to see.