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Rutgers class of 2014 de-commit Kiy Hester

(Todderick Hunt/NJ.com)

Kiy Hester, the 6-0, 200-pound consensus four-star has parted ways with the Rutgers program. According to the DePaul Catholic (Wayne, N.J.) safety, he initially reached out to the Rutgers staff, making them aware he had planned to take official visits elsewhere. And unfortunately for the two parties, the conversation did not end well.

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"The whole thing with me was I wanted to take my visits and be 100 percent sure. I was still gonna stay committed, just take two-three visits to make sure I didn't have any second thoughts about it when I got up there or anything," said Hester. "I'm not trying to transfer out in college like I did in high school. I just wanted to make sure I didn't have any second thoughts."

When Hester contacted Rutgers head coach Kyle Flood to reveal his intentions, things did not go as planned. Hester says it was made clear to him that committed players taking official visits elsewhere is frowned upon and would result in him having his scholarship rescinded.

"I called coach Flood, and the way the conversation went, they basically closed the door," said Hester. "That's the way it sounded to me. That's how the conversation basically ended. He was just like, 'There is nothing left to say.' And that was the end of the conversation."

DePaul head coach John McKenna doesn't fault the player or the institution, but the recruiting process itself for the mishaps which occur along the way.

"Kiy says he wanted to go make sure he was making the right decision. It's like this college process is way too early, to be honest to you," said McKenna. "But you have to make your decision because it's a numbers game after your junior year into the summer.

"And you can't go take your visits before that. I know he wanted to take visits. I know he let coach Flood know he wanted to take his visits. He's still interested in Rutgers, but he wants to make sure he made the right decision."

Hester's name was rumored to have been attached to a tentative visitors list for Michigan State's home battle against Michigan on Nov. 2. But those rumors were laid to rest by the fact that Hester was scheduled to take SATs that day.

Hester's relationship with the Rutgers staff appeared solid as staff members visited DePaul Catholic last Friday. And Hester had even set foot on the Rutgers campus as recently as Sunday to discuss the terms of his commitment. However, much has occurred within the past couple hours, leaving the relationship between Hester and Rutgers strained, to say the least. And it all began with an urge to compare what Rutgers has to offer against other schools.

"They were just in here the other day (Friday), which makes this even more unfortunate," McKenna attested. "When you and I were growing up, that was the second best part of being a good player. One was getting a free education, and two was being able to take visits. And now you can't take visits because of the way things are."

Michigan State, Arkansas, Vanderbilt, Ohio State, Missouri and Miami (Fla.) are the programs Hester will consider taking official visits to, although he has yet to officially plan anything. His decision could go all the way to National Signing Day.

NJ.com has also confirmed that Raines (Jacksonville, Fla.) cornerback Lamont Simmons also reversed his pledge from Rutgers, making him the third player to part ways from the program within the past 24 hours.

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