Transfer Jai’Lun Hampton ready to get to work at NC State

By Jacey Zembal

Tennessee-Martin tackle and graduate transfer Jai’Lun Hampton didn’t see the point of waiting until his official visit to NC State to state his intentions.

Hampton signed with the Wolfpack on Monday, but he’ll still take part in officially visiting the Wolfpack on March 1-3. He hopes to watch the Duke at NC State basketball game March 2 during his first trip to Raleigh.

Hampton started talking in earnest with NC State offensive line coach Garett Tujague in early February after entering the transfer portal Jan. 10. The 6-foot-9, 335-pounder was a second-team All-Ohio Valley performer this past fall.

“It was a place I felt like would be a good fit for me, honestly,” Hampton said. “Just the way they were going to help me on and off the field, realistically.

“It’s definitely good just to have the school in my corner and somewhere I can call home. Just get back to focusing on what really matters — football.”

Hampton had a Pro Football Focus grade of 67.6, which included 69.4 on pass blocking and 64.9 on run blocking in 733 snaps. He allowed 3 sacks and 10 hurries at left tackle. He also has played right tackle in the past.

Hampton graded out at 82 percent or better in every game, and had 70 knockdowns for UT-Martin. He earned a degree in sociology and has been working on his MBA.

“I do whatever coach thinks is the best fit,” Hampton said. “All players want to be on the field, helping and contributing to winning. I’ll play whatever gets me on the field. I’ll probably play both tackle spots for sure, maybe even guard. Definitely not center. I’m too big for that.”

Hampton is home in Detroit, but is pondering making the move to Raleigh before joining the program in May.

“I was working on my master’s at UT-Martin, but I don’t know how my credits will match, so not sure if I’ll be messing with that or not,” Hampton said. “If possible, I’ll try to finish up my master’s.

“We are still working out the details [on an arrival date], but probably the sooner the better.”

Hampton attended North Farmington High in Farmington Hills, Mich., and grew from being 6-6 and 240 pounds to his current size. He attended Iowa Western Community College and redshirted in 2021. He helped Iowa Western go 10-2 and win the JUCO national title in 2022, and then signed with Charlotte, but didn’t play there. After the 49ers went through a coaching transition, he transferred to Tennessee-Martin.

“It is definitely going to be different [at NC State],” Hampton said. “People have told me [in the past] that I couldn’t do it. I just proved people wrong, but also proved that I was right. It’s a good feeling for sure.”

NC State recently landed nose tackle KaTron Evans, who was at Charlotte with Hampton. Evans went from Charlotte to Marshall and now NC State.

“That is my guy and we’ve been talking, and we’ll probably end up living together,” Hampton said.