KNOXVILLE — Jeremy Pruitt was named head coach on Dec. 7 and had just 10 days to put together a signing class before a dead recruiting period.

Following a big on-campus recruiting weekend ahead of Pruitt returning to Alabama to continue his job as defensive coordinator for the Crimson Tide during the College Football Playoff, the new UT head coach signed 12 players on the first two days of the Early Signing Period.

“We are very excited to welcome this group of outstanding young men who signed with us today,” Pruitt said after the first day. “They are terrific football players, who also display exceptional character off the field. We appreciate the commitment they have made to the University of Tennessee. They will be the foundation for our first signing class here.”

Seven signees are from Tennessee and six have been selected for postseason high school All-Star games, including U.S. Army All-American Bowl participant Greg Emerson and the nation’s No. 2 punter and an Under Armour All-America Game selection Paxton Brooks. With the graduation of punter Trevor Daniel, Brooks could see action immediately.

Dominating the home state was a priority for Pruitt during the early stages of his tenure at Tennessee. Step two was re-establishing UT’s national brand.

“We said we were going to build a fence around the state and this is a good start,” Pruitt said. “We also know that Tennessee is a national brand, and it’s exciting that some of these players from across the country will be wearing the ‘T’ on their helmets. We hope to have a few more guys sign these next two days, too.”

The national brand along with his track record of respectability on the recruiting trail nationally, Pruitt hit the ground running in the short amount of time across the country.

And some of the new additions will have an opportunity to play as freshman.

Quarterback JT Shrout took an official visit ahead of the signing period and did so being committed to California. Shrout ultimately flipped his commitment to Pruitt and Tennessee. The 6-3, 190-pound pro-style quarterback passed for 3,064 yards and 27 touchdowns as a senior at Hart High School in Newhall, Calif.

Shrout is the same size that new offensive coordinator Tyson Helton is accustomed in developing from his quarterbacks previously at UAB when coaching alongside new UT offensive line coach Will Friend.

How far along will Jarrett Guarantano, Will McBride or Quinten Dormady progress under Helton will be determined this spring and Shrout could potentially be placed in the mix this fall if the others do not adapt to the new offense.

Jerome Carvin (Cordova, Tenn.), a 4-star OT, will be an asset for the UT backfield in providing pass protection and run blocking. Carvin was being looked at by former Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen and Pruitt was able to land the 6-4, 330-pound lineman. Carvin will be an early enrollee, which will bode well in playing early.

A pair of in-state 4-star defensive tackles — 6-3, 280-pound Greg Emerson (Jackson) and 6-foot-3, 285-pound Brant Lawless (Nashville) — can provide flexibility along the defensive line for Pruitt as he fields multiple defensive looks in 4-3 and 3-4 schemes. Emerson will be an early enrollee and will be in the strength and conditioning program and spring practices before fall training camp arrives.

Carvin’s teammate, 6-2, 215-pound running back Jeremy Banks, will provide depth at running back and eventually be a reliable piece to the UT backfield as John Kelly enters his last season on Rocky Top. Kelly could also decide to leave early for the NFL Draft. The deadline to file is Jan. 15.

Other candidates to play early are 4-star JuCo tight end Dominick Wood-Anderson and in-state 4-star wide receiver Alontae Taylor. Taylor will sign with the Vols at his high school’s gym at 12 p.m. CST today, the last day of the early signing period.

Tennessee has kicked off the 2018 signing period on a good note, but Pruitt is not finished putting the entire class together and his pursuit of adding more players that could potentially play early is ongoing through the last official national signing date of Feb. 7.

“We know we still have a lot of work to do on the recruiting trail, as we will sign several more players in February,” he said. “We will get back to work when I return in January. I want to thank Vol Nation for all of the support these first two weeks on the job. I am honored and humbled to be your head coach, and I’m looking forward to devoting all of my time to our football team following the College Football Playoff.”