2023 WR Yazeed Haynes talks Rutgers Football commitment
Rutgers made a big splash on Wednesday landing 2023 running back Christopher Johnson out of Florida following his unofficial visit to campus.
The Knights followed that up on Thursday with another big pledge in the current cycle, securing a commitment from wide receiver Yazeed Haynes out of Lansdale (PA) North Penn, who chose RU over other finalist West Virginia, as well as other offers including Ole Miss, Maryland, Boston College, and a few more.
"It feels great," Haynes told TKR. "I've always wanted to play Division I football since I was a kid, so when I committed it was such a happy and great feeling. I chose Rutgers because it felt like home when I went there. Family is everything to me. I'm 1 of 10 kids, so to be able to stay close to home and for my family to be able to see me play every game, it's a dream come true."
Also, academics are a priority for me. I want to study business and Rutgers has a great program. Being 45 minutes from New York City combined with their program will provide great opportunities for me after my football career is over."
The seed was originally planted with Haynes a few weeks back during an early March visit to campus. That laid the foundation for this eventual pledge to the Knights.
"It was a great visit," the talented junior told TKR following that trip. I learned a lot about the culture there and the school as a whole. The thing that stands out to me the most about Rutgers is the culture. Everyone there seems close and they all have strong relationships with one another. They also have the saying FTC, which stands for FAMILY TRUST CHOP and they really live by that."
The 6-foot-2, 170-pound Haynes is now the third pledge in the class, joining running back Chris Johnson and in-state offensive lineman John Stone. He is the first wide receiver to commit to the program under new position coach Damiere Shaw, who also played a big role in this recruitment.
"I have a strong relationship with Coach Shaw and Coach Schiano," he explained. "That has been the case ever since they started recruiting me. Coach Shaw, we come from similar backgrounds and that has helped us build a strong relationship. "I was really impressed when I visited and he had a whole presentation ready for me. He broke down my film and showed me how I can get better, how he was going to help me do that. I'm ready to work with him."
"The coaches told me about their offense and how they use their offensive stars the best they can. They said if I perform well and become one of the top players, they'll work to get the ball in my hands every game, as much as they can."
Haynes is going to enroll at Rutgers early (January 2023), and is excited about what lies ahead for him during his career On The Banks.
"Right now, I want to just be a leader in the class," he responded when asked. "I want to help change the culture and be the best teammate and player I can be. Hopefully one day I can become one of the top players on the team and eventually get to the NFL."
"For the team, I want to win as many games as we can. I want to win bowl games, win conference championships, and win national titles."
The new Rutgers commit is expected back to campus in the near future, with a visit planned for spring practice the weekend of April 2nd, as well as one for the spring game.