MUS hopes to ride ‘rare’ talent Hampton to big year
Maurice Hampton Jr. should be locked in on the first football game of his senior season.
After all, Memphis University School’s 2018 opener kicks off in less than a week (the Owls host Ridgeway at 7 p.m. Friday), and Hampton is integral to the success of Bobby Alston’s team. If it is to add a sixth state championship trophy to its trove, MUS is going to need all it can get out of the 6-foot, 205-pounder.
Currently, though, football isn’t exactly at the top of his list of priorities. But it’s understandable. Especially considering the laid back, mild-mannered Arlington native is one of the top high school baseball prospects in the country and at 7:18 p.m. Sunday will be playing at Petco Park in San Diego alongside 51 of the nation’s best amateurs at the Perfect Game AllAmerican Classic.
The fact that Hampton — who is committed to play both sports at LSU — hasn’t been in Memphis much lately, while his MUS brethren have long since begun preparations for the upcoming campaign, isn’t stressing Alston out.
“I don’t care (that) he’s not here for football practice this week,” he said Tuesday. “When he gets back, he’ll be the best player we’ve got and he’ll outwork everybody.”
In fact, MUS has grown quite accustomed to Hampton’s excused absences. Over the past two months, he has pinballed from Tampa to North Carolina to Atlanta to Chicago to Hoover, Alabama, to Los Angeles, and now, to San Diego. Most other summers have resembled this one.
“Maybe the last four years, all my summers have been jam-packed with baseball,” said Hampton, who celebrated his 17th birthday on Aug. 1 by walking twice at the East Coast Pro showcase in Hoover. “I haven’t been on vacation without baseball in I don’t know how long. I don’t know what I did when I did have free time.”
He has taken the life of rising blue-chip prospect in stride. Hampton’s top-flight talent was evident well before he was even old enough to obtain a learner’s permit. The scholarship offers from highprofile baseball programs began pouring in after a whale of a performance at the 14U Perfect Game World Series in Cartersville, Georgia, when he was 13. His first official offer came before that, though, when Miami took notice.
A cornerback, wide receiver and kick returner on special teams, Hampton is a 4-star recruit and the 14th-ranked cornerback in the nation, according to 247 Sports. Since his freshman year, he has made 71 tackles, come down with seven interceptions and deflected 16 more passes. On offense, he has accumulated 1,293 yards on 96 catches (13.4 yards per reception) and a dozen touchdowns.
Alston is entering his 21st season as head coach at MUS. Before that, he was an assistant with the Owls for 20 more years.
“We’ve had other pretty good players, and it’s hard to compare guys,” he said. “But I’d say rare. You’re lucky to get to coach a guy like him once or twice in your career.”
MUS baseball coach John Jarnagin is in the same boat.
“Many people throw this term around, but he’s an elite athlete,” he said. “He runs a 6.4 in the 60. He throws 90 from the outfield. When he leaves here, it’ll be hard to replicate that kind of thing.
“We won’t see (a player like) him again. And I can only imagine what he’ll be in a couple years.”
While his coaches — and most, if not all, onlookers — agree on his physical attributes, they also both recognize that Hampton’s intangibles help set him apart from the pack even further.
“He’s an unbelievably hard worker,” Alston said. So much so that that we spend a lot of time making sure he’s rested. Otherwise, he’ll just work himself to the bone. As young as he is, we’ve got to make sure he doesn’t put himself in a position to risk injury because he’s overtraining.”
Hampton — who also runs track at MUS — committed to play football and baseball at LSU in 2016, between his freshman and sophomore years. As the number of professional scouts he’s played in front of grows, so too does the likelihood he’ll bypass Baton Rouge altogether. If he is selected in next spring's Major League Baseball draft, the amount of money he will likely be offered might make for a difficult decision.
But the idea of forgoing college in favor of playing professional baseball exclusively isn’t all that attractive.
“Obviously, if I’m drafted, they’ll want me to put down football,” said Hampton, who identifies most with Boston Red Sox star Mookie Betts and Minnesota Vikings pro bowler Xavier Rhodes. “But I don't try to stress myself out about things. Some guys get into it too much. I take it day by day.
"I plan on playing both sports in college. I’ve been doing it so long, I don’t see myself stopping.”
Reach Jason Munz at jmunz@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @munzly.