The Monday Morning Kickoff

Last week was highlighted by five commitments along with a couple more Rutgers camps. The Monday Morning Kickoff returns to get you caught up on all the latest Rutgers football recruiting news.

It could have been dubbed commitment week at Rutgers as the Scarlet Knights added five new players last week. The week started off with a commitment from in-state linebacker Solomon Manning of Colonia High School. He mentioned what the Scarlet Nation can expect to see from him when he puts on a Rutgers uniform.

"A hard working linebacker, even when I am not on the field I am going to bring something to the table at Rutgers even if that is on special teams. I am going to be able to help the team in some way and I am always looking for something to improve on."

The second commitment came the very next day when Venice High (Venice, Fla.) defensive tackle Jarrod Hewitt joined Rutgers while in the middle of a three-day visit.

"I had an idea that it might happen when I came up for this trip," Hewitt said just after making his commitment. "Once I got here, I realized that this is where I wanted to spend the next four or five years of my life and where I want to play football and succeed in life."

This past weekend was camping time as Rutgers welcomed prospects to its Friday night Big Man Academy and following Saturday skills camp. The evaluations began early on Friday and Poly Prep (Brooklyn, N.Y.) offensive lineman Justin Morgan stood out right from the start.

At 6-foot-6, 338 pounds, Morgan has a lot of potential as this coming season will only be his second playing organized football. He was offered after the Big Man Academy and committed right away.

"It was very unexpected, but it was amazing, I had to [commit]," Morgan told Scarlet Nation right after committing. "It is right here, it is home, my friends are here, a lot of people I know are here and it is a great organization."

A similar situation occurred the next day as Wise High School (Upper Marlboro, Md.) defensive back Damon Hayes used a strong performance to earn himself a Rutgers offer. Hayes also wasted no time and committed on the spot.

"The life after football was important, the education," Hayes said. "I wanted to do sports communication, and they're real big on grades here and being by New York they're close to all the big stuff. I love the way they run their DB's also. I was shocked when I got the offer from Coach Flood, I've always really liked Rutgers."

The weekend concluded with yet another commitment on Sunday when Wallenpaupack (Pa.) High linebacker Rashawn Battle became the latest prospect to pledge his future to the Scarlet Knights.

"It just felt right," Battle said just after making his commitment official. "That is the school I knew I was going to choose as of this day, it was the perfect situation in every way. I am really blessed and happy to be a Rutgers Scarlet Knight."

The commitment watch continues this week as DeMatha High (Hyattsville, Md.) offensive lineman Elijah Johnson will announce his college decision. Rutgers is among his finalists and things are looking good for RU at this point in time.

Another visitor is expected on campus later this week as British Columbia native Chase Claypool of Abbotsford High School is looking to get to Piscataway. Claypool's recruitment has really started to build, although Rutgers was among the first schools to offer the 6-foot-5 three-star prospect.

Stay logged onto The Round Table for more recruiting news as it looks to be another busy week in the Scarlet Nation.