by By Reid Williams
(Grove, Okla.) – How do you make a name for yourself when you are following in the footsteps of another? That is a question Lon “Case” Hampton (Cherokee) has to ask himself. Case is a freshman long snapper at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M (NEO). His brother, Ben Hampton (Cherokee), attended NEO as a long snapper from 2006-2008, before going on to snap at the University of Oklahoma from 2008-2010. At Oklahoma, Ben would play alongside James Winchester (Choctaw), the current long snapper for the Kansas City Chiefs. In college, James and Ben would split snaps, with Ben snapping field goals and extra points, while James handled punts. With a brother that achieved so much at the same position as you, you feel a certain amount of unspoken pressure.
The Hampton brothers both played high school football in Grove, Oklahoma, a town with a population of just over 6,000. Coming from a smaller town where everyone knows everyone, people looked at Case to live up to his brother’s successes not only on the field, but off the field as well. Case played center and handled long snapping duties throughout his high school career for the Grove Ridgerunners. At Grove, Case was a member of the Cherokee High School Heroes, where he would warn elementary children about the dangers of smoking. He competed in the Cherokee Language Bowl, as well as the Challenge Bowl, and was the president of the Heritage Club, a club designed to showcase the strength and success of the Native students of Grove High School.
When getting to know Case, people get to know how much he honors his heritage. Not only can Case speak the Cherokee language, but he grew up learning about his tribe’s culture. When asked who has taught him the most about his culture, his immediate response was “It was definitely my grandmother.“ Lona Hampton, Case’s grandmother, teaches Cherokee Language and Native American Culture classes in Grove and has instilled in Case a sense of pride and ownership of his heritage
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On the playing field Case ranks 16th in the nation according to the KOHL’s 2015 Snappers National Rating System with a time of .78 seconds. When asked if it was a big adjustment going from playing in high school to playing in college, Case said “The adjustment has been easier. Ben has been a huge help. He told me the ins and outs, like what not to do and what to do and just been a really big help. So I came in more prepared than some other guys.” Just two months into the season Case has already seen his snap time improve to .72 seconds. NEO as a team has a 3-2 record and looks to improve it to 4-2 on October 3rd at home against Kilgore College. Case has played in all 5 games to date handling punt and field goal snaps.
Using his brother as guidance and inspiration, along with a solid work ethic, Case is well on his way to making a name for himself.
