After a stellar senior season for the El Dorado Aztecs, receiver Tyquez Hampton affirmed his commitment by signing with the Utah Utes on Friday. After a recruiting process that had him change his mind multiple times, it was Utah’s strong sense of family and support that attracted Hampton to Salt Lake City.
“When I went on my visit, they treated all of us like family,” Hampton said, “and being around that environment made me really want to go.”
It wasn’t just the support on the recruiting trip that sold Hampton; it was the support that he would get in the classroom that made him even more comfortable.
“One thing that stood out to me is that no one is failing their classes on the team,” he said, “So with the nursing degree I’ll be studying for there, I know I’ll have the support I need to be successful in class.”
Hampton finished this past season with 74 catches for 989 yards and 13 touchdowns. He was a key part in the Aztecs winning back-to-back District 1-6A championships for the first time in program history. As he gets set to enroll early, his coach sees his maturity as a key ingredient to his success.
“I think what surprises a lot of people when they meet Tyquez is his maturity,” head coach Ruben Torres said, “He’s brought a great level of maturity to a lot of players that we needed to bring up and I think a big reason why this team achieved so much was because of his leadership and helping his teammates grow this season.”
He won’t be the only Texan heading to the Pac-12. Frisco Lone Star quarterback Jason Shelley and receiver Jaylen Dixon have also committed to the Utes and Hampton says that he talks with both of them on a regular basis. Now that his high school playing career is done, Torres also sees a bright future for Hampton, who had only played receiver each of the last two years.
“I think that Utah understands that they’ve got something that they can help nurture and mold,” Torres said, “He’s going to be a very special player for them both on and off the field.”
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