The Tennessee Volunteers are slated to begin their spring practice season on Saturday, Mar. 24. That’s now less than a month away, and the spring game on Apr. 25 is now less than two months away, giving Vols fans something to look forward to in the coming weeks and months.

Tennessee took a big step forward by earning its first bowl win since 2007 last season, and now it will look to begin building on that success with a productive spring practice season to follow a strong recruiting season.

Here are what the Volunteers’ top 5 priorities should be entering spring practice:

1. Joshua Dobbs’ development: The Vols won four of Dobbs’ five starts to close last season, and now he’ll have his first chance to start a full season under center at Tennessee. It’s important that head coach Butch Jones doesn’t allow Dobbs to simply rely on last season’s success and that he challenge him to develop and improve the weaknesses in his game before the fall. Often the players who suffer a proverbial sophomore slump are the players content with past success. Dobbs doesn’t seem like the kind of player who would settle, but the coaching staff must still hammer that point home and dare him to focus on areas in which he can improve this spring.

2. Teaching Mike DeBord’s new offensive system: DeBord hasn’t coached in any capacity at the college level since 2007, meaning it’s vital he get his new system installed early in the spring to ensure all the kinks are worked out and all the young members of the offense are up to speed by the spring game. There are growing pains for any new coach and the players he’s tasked to lead, but it would serve the Volunteers well to suffer through those growing pains now and not in August or September.

3. Work with the early enrollees: Tennessee hauled in the No. 4 recruiting class in the nation this recruiting cycle, and 10 of its 27 new signees enrolled in school early, giving them the opportunity to participate in spring practice. This is a huge opportunity for Jones and his team, as some of the nation’s top talents will get a head start on most other freshmen in acclimating themselves to the college game and the new programs they’ve joined. Many view UT’s 2015 class as the foundation for a revitalized program that can serve as one of the nation’s elite in a couple of years. The faster Jones and his staff can bring along these early enrollees, the faster Tennessee can return to its dominant ways.

4. Avoiding further injury troubles, building depth: According to a report by College Football Talk, 12 Volunteers have either been ruled out or will be limited during the spring practice season, and many of those dozen players are expected to be key contributors this fall. Sack artist Derek Barnett and four-star early enrollee Kyle Phillips are among the players ruled out of spring practice, and star tailback Jalen Hurd and top wideout Marquez North will both be limited throughout the spring. Tennessee would be wise to take a better-safe-than-sorry approach this spring, because while developing talent and chemistry is vital keeping players healthy enough to make an impact when the games really matter is always priority No. 1.

5. Setting new expectations for 2015: Last season, Tennessee was overjoyed to merely finish the regular season with a 6-6 record and a modest bowl invitation. That’s because winning six games (seven after the bowl) and reaching the postseason served as a major step forward for the program. Now the Vols must set new goals in their journey back to the top of the SEC. Will they pursue the 10-win plateau? Will the goal be to win four of eight SEC contests or to topple Oklahoma in Neyland Stadium in September? Since UT is still rebuilding, it must make sure its players know what constitutes a success and what does not. Otherwise, UT runs the risk of hovering at the six-win mark for a number of years, something Jones nor the fan base wants to experience.