New details came to light Wednesday about a DUI-related crash from April involving Oregon football assistant head coach and running backs coach Ra’Shaad Samples.
Police charged Samples with DUI and reckless driving after he backed his truck into another man’s vehicle and then drove away from the scene.
The Oregonian obtained dashcam video from the man, Steven Young, whose car was hit by Samples; it was also revealed that the Oregon coach gave Young the name of former NFL star wide receiver and current Delaware State head coach DeSean Jackson.
As seen in the dashcam video, Young briefly followed Samples to confront him about the collision. The Ducks coach then pulled over before information between the parties was exchanged.
“After I pulled over and stopped, I gave the driver my license and insurance,” Samples told The Oregonian. “I gave him my information that included my name. He kept asking me, ‘Who are you? Who are you?’
“He had my name. I got a little frustrated, and I gave him a cheeky response. ‘DeSean Jackson.’ Jackson is my favorite football player.”
Video of the incident can be seen below.
In the immediate aftermath of the crash, Young said Samples offered him $1,000 to walk away and later offered him $2,500 and football tickets over text messages in exchange for not reporting the incident.
The Oregon running backs coach is expected to earn a salary of $700,000 this year.
Samples joined Oregon in 2024 following stints as an assistant with the Los Angeles Rams (2022) and Arizona State (2023).
“We are thrilled to be able to add a coach of Ra’Shaad’s caliber to our program,” Oregon head coach Dan Lanning said in 2024, per The Register-Guard. “Coach Samples is one of the brightest young coaches in all of football, and it is easy to see why he has had such a rapid rise through the coaching ranks.
“He is a dynamic personality who … will recruit relentlessly to bring the best young men we can find to our program.”
Young and one of the other passengers in his car at the time of the accident with Samples have since filed injury claims and hired lawyers. Young also sent his dashcam video directly to Lanning after Samples’ offer to not report the crash.
“We take these matters seriously and have taken appropriate action,” Oregon University said in a statement on Wednesday.
Samples is scheduled to appear in court again on Aug. 25, while the Ducks football team begins the season 11 days later against Boise State.
“I don’t think he’s a bad guy,” Young said. “I think he made a terrible decision. I think since he made that decision, he’s just been trying to cover it all up. And that’s not what you do when you’re teaching young adults to be men.”
