Vanderbilt’s bread-and-butter is finding a 3-star recruit, or several, and develop at least a couple of them into blossoming stars. Most notably, the Commodores have done that with Ralph Webb along with Oren Burks and Darrius Sims, all part the 2013 class.

In the 2017 class, Vanderbilt appears to have its quarterback of the future and key additions to the line of scrimmage, including four offensive tackle commits.

While Kyle Shurmur is expected to be the starter for two more seasons, Jacob Free could take the job from there, or bolster the depth chart alongside fellow 3-stars Wade Freebeck and Deuce Wallace.

Family trees have been important for Derek Mason as Vanderbilt has landed the younger brothers of defensive end Dare Odeyingbo and tight end Jared Pinkney. Speaking of brothers, early enrollee Dimitri Moore, a linebacker, is from Cedar Hill, Texas, and the younger brother of Texas A&M linebacker Richard Moore. He chose Vanderbilt over A&M and Colorado.

The other early enrollee, Tae Daley of Warner Robins, Ga., picked Vanderbilt over seven other offers, though he didn’t take an official visit elsewhere.

Though key players in the class have been known for a while, the Commodores have added four commits in the last two months.

SEC class rank: 14
Overall class rank: 62

5-stars: 0
4-stars: 0
3-stars: 16

Did they own state? No. Vanderbilt does not yet have an in-state player committed in this recruiting cycle, which is remarkable because it has three players from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., alone. More than 20 schools have landed at least one commit from Tennessee, but the Commodores are not among them.

Last year, Vandy signed two of the state’s top 12 players, including No. 2 prospect Joejuan Williams, a 4-star defensive back who played in all 13 games as a true freshman.

Top player: The highlight so far is Free, a 6-5, 200-pound pro-style quarterback from Brantley (Ala.) High School. He chose Vanderbilt over offers from Louisville and Western Kentucky. A 3-star recruit, Free is the 24th-ranked pro-style quarterback in this class, and 31st-best player overall in Alabama.

Free’s high school team lost in the second round of the 1A Class playoffs in Alabama. He’s also a pitcher.

Still chasing: Vandy only has 16 players in its class, so it has room to grow on signing day. And in what could foreshadow the final day of this recruiting cycle, Vanderbilt recently landed Feleti Afemui, an inside linebacker from Hawaii, and Mason is chasing the third-ranked recruit from Hawaii, Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa, a 3-star defensive end.

Miki Suguturaga is another 3-star defensive end from Hawaii, which the 247 Sports Crystal Ball has pegged 100 percent to Vanderbilt.

Best unit: Pass rushers and pass protectors are each ranked highly in their respective states, as Vanderbilt has a pair of defensive ends, Stone Edwards and Dayo Odeyingbo, ranked in the top 50 of their position. The top two offensive tackle commits, Bryce Bailey and Cole Clemens, are ranked in the top 15 of players in Indiana and Utah, respectively.

Biggest area of need: Pass rushers. Vanderbilt not only lost Adam Butler, who had a team-high 4 sacks in 2016, but All-SEC linebacker Zach Cunningham, who left early for the NFL. What’s more, even with Butler and Cunningham, Vanderbilt was last in the SEC by a mile in sacks with only 15, which was five behind next-to-last Ole Miss, which totaled 20 in one fewer game.

Better or worse than last year: Similar, though slightly worse, as the Commodores were also ranked last in the SEC (No. 53 overall) in 2016, but stars and rankings are rarely a key element for academic-minded Vanderbilt.

Historically, while they have landed some 4-stars, like Cunningham and Shurmur, the recipe for success is developing overlooked or under appreciated recruits.