Signing Day was a long time coming for Everett Wormley

Signing Day marked the beginning of a new era for Burlington Township wide receiver Everett Wormley. Now that he has signed a national letter of intent to Rutgers University, his future as a Big Ten student-athlete is official.

“It was a very long, but exciting day. I had my [signing] ceremony at eight o’ clock in the morning,” Wormely said. “I had administration, board of education, a lot of family members there, all the people who helped me along through the process; coaches, some media, friends. It was a very productive day.”

Wormley committed to Rutgers last April and was the fifth member to do so in the 2017 class. He also never wavered from that commitment.

“When I made the commitment, I locked it up because I believe in what Coach [Chris] Ash was preaching,” Wormley said. “I knew it was going to be a rough season, but I wanted to be a part of something special. And to rebuild the state program would be something so incredibly special. So I just kept believing.”

The time frame between Wormley’s verbal commitment and when he actually signed with Rutgers was a long one and he talked about what it’s like now that the wait is over.

“It is relieving now that the process is over. It was something I enjoyed. It was long because it started very early for me. I got to call Coach Ash and Coach [Jafar] Williams after I signed. They were excited, everybody in the room was excited. It was great.”

While many uncommitted recruits were scrambling these last few weeks, Wormley could vouch for the benefit of making an early commitment.

“Last minute stuff is crazy with guys having top schools and those schools pulling out on them. I had been committed for nine months so I knew I had my spot compared to some other guys who had to do some last-minute searching. Just being able to sit back and watch was not stressful at all.”

Looking ahead, Wormley has a very real chance of playing as a true freshman and the drive towards seeing the field athis coming season has already begun.

“I am just training and getting ready for the Big Ten. I want to go in and compete for playing time at receiver because the opportunity is there and the window is wide open. Now is the time to prepare myself.”