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Inside The Huskies

UW Roster Review, No. 2-99: With Hampton In, Huskies Book Some Down Time

The junior defensive back made a big move for more playing time during spring drills.
Dan Raley|
UW Roster Review, No. 2-99: With Hampton In, Huskies Book Some Down Time
UW Roster Review, No. 2-99: With Hampton In, Huskies Book Some Down Time

Dominique Hampton pulls off his shiny gold helmet while reaching for a cup of water at a University of Washington spring football practice, revealing a large earring in the form of a cross.

Which makes sense because playing in the Husky secondary is sort of like embracing religion. 

In Hampton's case, he's been reborn, showing up from Glendale, Arizona, as a cornerback three years ago before radically changing his body shape and making the conversion to safety this past spring.

"There's a lot to like about Dom Hampton," UW coach Jimmy Lake said. "The light has finally clicked on for him. He's really immersed himself in the playbook and the details."

As one of the spring's big story lines, Hampton committed himself to safety, a position area that needs immediate help whereas All-America candidate Trent McDuffie and the supremely athletic Kyler Gordon, both juniors similar to him, appear to have the No. 1 corner slots locked down.

Hampton wants to play right now, not wait another season or two for those jobs to open up, not be content with game-day scraps.

He became one of the spring's biggest story lines by showing up with his sturdier 6-foot-2, 225-pound physique, some 20 pounds heavier than when he arrived as a freshman in 2018. He spent nearly every one of the recent 15 workouts running with the No. 1 defense, making it tough for anyone to dislodge him.

Going down the roster in numerical order, this is another of our post-spring assessments of all of the Husky talent at hand, gleaned from a month of observations, as a way to keep everyone engaged during the offseason.

Hampton seemingly has always been on the verge of greater responsibility. He played in four games as a UW freshman, just enough to get a taste yet preserve his redshirt status. As a redshirt freshman, he appeared in 11 of 13 games, becoming part of the regular rotation in the Husky secondary. Last fall, he drew minutes in each of the four games of the short season.

All in a reserve roll, all spelling or supporting others, none of it nearly enough for a guy with NFL ambitions. 

Clearly motivated to expand his role, Hampton bulked up without losing any of his quickness, took advantage of fellow safeties Asa Turner and Alex Cook missing most of spring practice with injuries and has people believing in him now as a starter.

"His size, his speed, his strength, his physicality, we really like at safety," Lake said. "The scary thing is, he's so fast and athletic he can still play corner. We will still bounce him out to corner if need be."

Hampton's 2021 Outlook: Projected as weak safety starter

UW Service Time: Played in 19 games, no starts

Stats: 9 tackles, 1 pass defend

Individual Honors: None

Pro prospects: 2024 NFL second-day draft pick 

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Dan Raley
DAN RALEY

Dan Raley has worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, as well as for MSN.com and Boeing, the latter as a global aerospace writer. His sportswriting career spans four decades and he's covered University of Washington football and basketball during much of that time. In a working capacity, he's been to the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, the MLB playoffs, the Masters, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and countless Final Fours and bowl games.

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