Assessing Tennessee’s 2016 recruiting class entering this summer

The 2016 recruiting class represents an interesting juxtaposition for the Tennessee Vols.

In his third season, coach Butch Jones has resurrected the on-field team from relative disaster to fringe contender with plans to keep rising. He put together Top 10 recruiting classes with less to sell.

But the NCAA scholarship limit remains steady at 85. After accepting commitments from an almost-unfathomable 62 total players in ’14 and ’15, Jones doesn’t hold a surplus of future scholarships. Also, quality four- and five-star players no longer can waltz into Knoxville with an excellent chance to start immediately.

It’s imperative that Tennessee continue to improve its offensive line, and the Vols already hold commitments from a pair of four-star high school offensive tackles. UT also won’t get shut out from the Great SEC Quarterback Migration Of 2016, securing Jarrett Guarantano to mark a quartet of four-star quarterbacks in just two years.

The team still needs to add depth at running back (for ’16) and defensive end (mostly for ’17). In some ways fewer scholarships is a luxury, as long as Jones continues to excel at marketing.

Another interesting angle is whether this class will include a high percentage of early enrollees, as has been the case the last few seasons at Tennessee. Or will the need to get the ’16 class up to SEC speed not feel as desperate?

ASSESSING TENNESSEE’S 2016 CLASS

Current commits or enrollees: 10 (avg. star 3.4; last year: 3.5)
Current big-name targets: ATH Mecole Hardman Jr., WR Diondre Overton, OLB Daniel Bituli
Biggest positions of need: RB, DE and OL
National/SEC rank: 17/7

NOTABLE COMMITS

Christopher Smith

An itinerant journalist, Christopher has moved between states 11 times in seven years. Formally an injury-prone Division I 800-meter specialist, he now wanders the Rockies in search of high peaks.