Jaaron and Hunter Hayek (Photo taken from Twitter)

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By Todderick Hunt | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Monday, Rutgers head coach Chris Ash received his second pledge to Rutgers' recruiting class of 2019 when Wayne (N.J.) Hills athlete Jaaron Hayek joined the fold. The younger brother of Rutgers freshmen Tyler and Hunter Hayek, Jaaron could turn out to be the most explosive of them all.

"I committed tonight about an hour or so ago," Hayek told NJ.com early Monday evening. "I called coach (Bill) Busch and talked to both of them, him and coach (Chris) Ash, and let them know I was ready. Even though it's still early in my recruitment, I figured why wait when I know what I want."

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But when did he know inside that Rutgers was the place for him?

"The last couple times I've been down there talking to the coaches and everything. At the beginning of the season, I kept talking about it felt more like home. Then I visited back down there again for the Maryland game," Hayek said. "I thought about it the last couple games but after that Maryland game, everyone's got to be blind not to see the progress they made in the last four games. So I figured right now is the time because in about a year or so, they're gonna blow up."

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The Hayek brothers on national signing day 2016 (John Munson | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com)

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A 6-1, 180-pound athlete with twitch, Jaaron began to show his vast potential in 2016 as a sophomore, playing alongside his brothers. Hayek is versatile and projects to a number of positions, and that versatility is what caught the eye of the Rutgers staff.

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"I'm not exactly sure (where I'll play)," he said. "We haven't discussed exactly what my role will be. But I'm down to play whatever. Special teams, offense and defense, but I definitely would like to play more than just one side of the ball."

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Hayek is happy to be back where he belongs: Competing alongside his brothers.

"It's obviously an amazing feeling," he said. "Just playing high school ball with them was amazing at MetLife. That was awesome. But now we're moving on to a bigger stage, especially Big Ten football with them. It will be amazing to play with them same time, same field."

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The Hayeks at Wayne Hills (Photo taken from Twitter)

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However, his decision was an independent one, he says.

“They gave me my own choice. Obviously, they’d like for me to come to the same school as them. I talked it over with them before I decided to call coach Ash. And they said to do what you want. 'If you feel it’s right then do it,'" Jaaron recalled. "So I told them it’s not based on them being there, it's just what I wanted deep down.”

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Up until this year, Hayek ran the 100, 200 and 4X100 with his older brothers. But which of the three is the fastest?

"I don't know yet this year," Jaaron said. "Me and Tyler are pretty close. But I think Hunter is still faster than both of us."

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With his brothers on the banks, Hayek will do what it takes to touch the field early in order to play with them.

"After my senior season, I plan to work my butt off in the weight room in the off-season, and probably what every freshman's goal is -- try to get some playing time, especially with my brothers there," he said. "And definitely compete for a spot on the field whether it be offense, defense or special teams."

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The Hayek brothers plus one (Photo taken from Twitter)

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Hayek has seen his older brothers have success as freshmen at Rutgers, especially Hunter who it appears has a knack for making tough grabs down the field.

“It was awesome especially against Michigan in the Big House. Growing up, it doesn’t get much bigger than that in college football,” Hayek said. “So seeing him making plays there, that was pretty awesome. And then, it just felt like why not all of us make plays about two years from now. It should be pretty cool.”

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In 2016 as a sophomore, Hayek accumulated 30 tackles, one sack, two INTs, two pass break-ups, a fumble recovery, 35 rushing yards, 89 receiving yards, 79 kick return yards, 48 punt return yards and three total TDs.

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The Hayek brothers on national signing day 2016 (John Munson | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com)

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So far this year, he's passed for 953 yards and nine TDs out of team need, to go along with 869 rushing yards, 13 rushing TDs, 28 tackles, six pass break-ups, one fumble recovery and 226 kick return yards.

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Todderick Hunt may be reached at thunt@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter@TodderickHunt. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.