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Tennessee football: 5 takeaways from Day 1 of the Early Signing Period

Published: Dec 19, 2018 · 2:45 PM EST

Relax. Exhale. For now.

Tennessee signed 13 prospects Wednesday and held onto one of the most important coaches on its staff. It was a good day for the Vols and coach Jeremy Pruitt, whose class is solidly inside the top 20 and is led by 5-star OL Wanya Morris.

Here are five takeaways from the first day of the early Early Signing Period.

1. Craig Fitzgerald has a flare for the dramatic

It’s hard to exactly ascertain what losing Fitzgerald, who is considered one of the top strength and conditioning coaches in the country, would have meant to UT’s class, especially for prospects who were ready to sign Wednesday morning. Perhaps the Vols wouldn’t have lost any commitments? Fortunately, the Vols don’t have to find out since Fitzgerald told Pruitt that he would remain at Tennessee early Wednesday morning.

Fitzgerald’s presence in recruiting is incredibly underrated. That’s why UT made sure to publicize his decision to stay as soon as possible. Strength and conditioning coaches are important to astute prospects. Some might have had second thoughts about the Vols, especially when you combine a possible Fitzgerald departure with former offensive coordinator Tyson Helton also leaving. For a program that needs stability, losing two key members of the staff would have sent a bad message.

2. Tennessee still has some waiting to do

Two of UT’s most important commitments, safety Anthony Harris from Havelock (N.C.) High School and linebacker Lakia Henry from Dodge City (Kan.) Community College, won’t sign their letters of intent until the more traditional signing day in February. Both are key. Harris would show once again that the Vols have a strong presence in North Carolina. Henry could be an immediate impact player considering he is a junior college prospect. Both are 4-star prospects.

Tennessee will also have to wait on two 3-star commitments: LeDarrius Cox from McGill-Toolen Catholic High School in Mobile, Ala. and defensive end/linebacker Jalil Clemons from Starkville (Miss.) High School. They are slated to sign in February.

The Vols won’t have to wait as long on 4-star running back Eric Gray from Lausanne Collegiate School in Memphis, Tenn. He is scheduled to announce his decision on Thursday at 1 p.m. Gray is considering several schools, including Tennessee, Ole Miss and South Carolina.

✔️ Competitiveness
✔️ Toughness
✔️ Character@CoachJPruitt seeing the intangibles in today's signees.#T19 // #PoweredByTheT pic.twitter.com/d6Kk4ml3nZ

— Tennessee Football (@Vol_Football) December 19, 2018

3. Tennessee can actually beat Clemson in recruiting

Wooing Tyus Fields from Hough High School in Cornelius, N.C., to sign with UT was no easy feat. Clemson made a strong push and had a good tie to the 4-star cornerback. Fields’ brother, Mark Fields, is wrapping up his career as a Tigers cornerback. That connection didn’t matter as the Vols were able to hold onto Tyus.

That’s certainly a much different narrative than when the Vols lost two Knoxville-area prospects to Clemson in the 2017 class: receivers Tee Higgins and Amari Rodgers. Beating the Tigers anywhere in the Carolinas is impressive given their success lately.

4. Pruitt can offer up a positive surprise

Normally stoic, Pruitt showed a flare for the dramatic Wednesday. Somehow Pruitt convinced Jerrod Means to sign with the Vols. UT would have probably been happy with just a commitment. However, they convinced the 6-2, 200-pound receiver from Lovejoy (Ga.) High School to actually become an early signee. Means is certainly a pleasant surprise to the class.