Oregon wide receiver Messiah Hampton was arrested and booked Friday over an alleged high-speed chase in which he successfully eluded police, according to OregonLive’s Ryan Clarke.
The true freshman reportedly faces two felony charges of attempting to elude police and one misdemeanor charge of reckless driving. He was released from custody Friday,in Springfield, Oregon.
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The chase in question occurred on Oct. 18, the same night another Oregon wide receiver, Evan Stewart, was arrested and charged with DUII. Two other vehicles were pursued by Springfield police and evaded them, with one later found abandoned near the area where Stewart was arrested.
Police told OregonLive they now believe Hampton drove one of those vehicles and they’re still looking for the other driver:
“Mr. Hampton has been identified as the driver of one of the vehicles,” Springfield Police deputy chief George Crolly said on Friday evening. “We are still working to identify the driver of the other vehicle.”
Another Oregon player, tight end, Jamari Johnson, was also reportedly cited for speeding that night. Neither he nor Stewart are considered suspects in the eluding police case.
Hampton was a four-star recruit in the Class of 2026 and was already seeing some playing time under head coach Dan Lanning. He ranks sixth on the team with 161 receiving yards, while Stewart and Johnson rank second and third respectively.
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He was abruptly added to the Oregon injury report earlier Friday, getting ruled out for the Ducks’ game against Oregon.
