TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Jaylen Waddle waved his hand over a line of five hats during National Signing Day, but by that time he had known for a while where he was going to play college football.
The five-star receiver was silently committed to Alabama months before he signed his National Letter of Intent. However, that didn’t stop Crimson Tide fans from feeling a little anxiety as Texas A&M made a strong push late for the Houston, Texas native.
Fortunately for Alabama head coach Nick Saban, Waddle spared him the suspense.
“The Monday before [National Signing Day] I called Coach Saban to tell him I’m coming,” Waddle told BamaInsider.com. “I was already committed before, but toward the end I started fading away a little bit when Texas A&M came at me hard. In the end, I ended up rejoining and that’s when I called coaches and told them that I’m still good on my commitment and all that.”
Now, Waddle is the one waiting as he counts down the weeks remaining until he can join Saban and his Alabama teammates for summer workouts. That anticipation wasn’t made any easier over the weekend as he received a small taste of what Saturdays this fall will be like while taking in Alabama’s A-Day game inside of Bryant-Denny Stadium.
“I just loved the game. I loved the atmosphere,” Waddle said. “That big crowd with everybody wearing Crimson, it made we want to get out there and try to make something happen.”
