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Rutgers class of 2014 commit, Kiy Hester

(Photo provided by Hester, used with permission)

NJ.com was first to inform you of DePaul Catholic (Wayne, N.J.) safety, Kiy Hester, naming Rutgers his leader a couple weeks back. And today, it all culminated in a commitment. Apparently, the top-rated safety in the Garden State had gotten tired of waiting.

"I was gonna commit two weeks ago but my mom told me to hold off just to make sure I'm 100 percent sure, and make sure I don't have any regrets about anything," said Hester. "She doesn't want to see me de-commit or anything because when you give your word, that's it."

The talented Mr. Hester -- who selected Rutgers over a multitude of offers including Ohio State, Michigan, Arkansas, Miami (Fla.) and Nebraska -- had originally planned to leave the state to play college football. But the tides began to turn a few months back. Hester revealed a few reasons for his abrupt change of heart.

"Well, when coach (Darrell) Wilson came in, that gave them that extra boost," he said. "And going out of state is one thing, but when your home-state school is winning games and they're producing, why not just stay home?

"And after so many DBs (defensive backs) being drafted from there, that played a part, too."

When Hester woke-up this morning, he just knew today was the day. Therefore, he put his plan in action and did what he felt inside his heart was the right thing to do.

"I just talked with my mom and my coaches about it," said Hester. "My mom had been thinking about it for a while, since the 7-on-7. I had been telling her that Rutgers is where I wanted to go. And she said, 'I'll leave it up to you and I'm happy for you. And I like Rutgers and would be happy wherever you choose.' So I just said 'yeah, that's where I wanted to go for a while, now.' And that's how it came about."

Rutgers assistant, Dave Cohen, and head coach, Kyle Flood, both received phone calls from Hester, earlier today, revealing the big news. It's safe to say, the coaching staff was elated to land Hester, a consensus four-star recruit, according to the recruiting services.

"I called coach Cohen and coach Flood to let them know that I was on-board with everything," said Hester. "Coach Flood was excited and said he has been waiting on this for a while, now. And that I was one of the top guys from the beginning."

Although celebratory after putting an end to his own recruiting process, Hester knows that he still has work to do. Due to his status as a highly-ranked in-state recruit, his support as an active recruiter could help fill out the class of 2014 with prospects just as talented.

"Now, I'm gonna just keep working to build a better class, and talk to a few recruits in (New) Jersey who aren't committed yet – like Noah Brown, Juwann Winfree and Mike Gesicki. And hopefully, I can help persuade them to pull the trigger, too."

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