Newly surfaced video is putting Oregon assistant coach Ra’Shaad Samples back in the spotlight after an April crash in Eugene, where he is facing charges of driving under the influence and reckless driving.
The footage shows Samples backing his Ford F-150 into a parked Dodge Ram, with dashcam from the other vehicle catching the collision. After the impact, Samples stopped for a moment before driving off even as people nearby shouted at him. The other driver, Steven James Young, then went after him and confronted him.
Samples has said he did not know he had hit anything. “I did not realize I backed into anything until I pulled away,” Samples said Tuesday in a statement released to The Oregonian/OregonLive via his lawyer.
Young said Samples gave the name Deshaun Jackson at the scene. Text messages later included that same alias along with insurance screenshots. Samples later told investigators he used the name as a joke and said DeSean Jackson is his favorite player.
Recorded phone calls added another layer to the case. In those conversations, Samples asked Young not to send the video to head coach Dan Lanning and offered game tickets and cash to cover damages.
“If I can do something for your family, if there’s a game, if there’s anything I can do bro,” Samples told Young in the phone call in the days after the incident. “It would make me feel better if I’ve shown some appreciation, if you ever need it.”
Through his lawyer, Samples said he regularly gives tickets away to people he meets and does not remember making any specific ticket offer in this situation. “While I saw no damage to his vehicle, I offered to pay for any damage,” he said via his lawyer.
“I don’t remember offering him any game tickets. I routinely give people game tickets.
If I meet someone who wants to go to a game, I give them tickets. I don’t believe I’ve ever told someone no.”
The University of Oregon issued a short response. “We take these matters seriously and have taken appropriate action,” UO athletics said.
Samples is still listed on the team website as assistant head coach and running backs coach. Fall camp begins this week.
Young and some passengers in his vehicle now say they were injured, and they have hired attorneys to pursue the matter. According to the DMV report, no field sobriety test was conducted at the scene.
Eugene police are still investigating. Samples had his initial court hearing in July, and his next court date is set for late August.
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