Cameron Hampton scouting report: Rangy 2014 linebacker

Linebacker Cameron Hampton has already made an early proactive jump and made an early verbal to a school of his choice, committing to the University of Texas. Wescott Eberts has more on Hampton and his commitment to the Longhorns.
Hampton is originally from Dallas (Tex.) David W. Carter High school. He stands at around 6’1 and weighs just over 200 pounds. He’s considered a consensus four-star linebacker. 247Sports ranks Hampton a top-200 national recruit, a top-15 outside linebaker and a a top-25 Texas prospect in this 2014 recruiting class. Scout considers Hampton a top-10 middle linebacker up to this point. ESPN puts Hampton on their 2014 watchlist of players to look out for.
Outside of his Texas offer, Hampton has attracted attention from schools like Clemson, LSU, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M and West Virginia, who have all given Hampton offers. It might take a lot to sway Hampton from his current verbal to Texas though.

Cameron Hampton #35 6’2 205 4.6 OLB/DE Dallas Carter HS Class of 2014 (via 31theglove)

SB Nation Recruiting analyst Wescott Eberts:

A rangy linebacker variously listed between 6’1 and 6’2, Hampton has adequate height for his position, as he projects to be an outside linebacker at the next level. On film, he appears to have good speed in pads, although he does not appear to have the frame to add a significant amount of weight at the college level -- he will most likely play between 220 and 230 pounds, which is certainly not undersized for his future position.

A solid striker with a knack for well-placed hits that separate ball carriers from the football, Hampton appears to have done well making the transition from mostly playing defensive end as a sophomore for Carter to playing a more traditional linebacker spot, though there isn’t a great deal of film on him taking coverage drops, an aspect of his game he may have to improve upon if he ends up playing the strongside position in college, as it can often end up being like a nickel corner when teams opt to defend three wide receiver sets with three linebackers.

Mostly a downhill player in high school, Hampton has strong short-area burst when filling gaps and closing on opponents. He can also play some hash to sideline opening up laterally in pursuit, but there isn’t a lot of evidence of him ranging from sideline to sideline or showing his top-end long speed, which may not be as strong as he is in shorter area. As a result, the weakside or boundary linebacker position may be his strongest in college.

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