For the first time since the 2007 recruiting class, the Tennessee Volunteers pulled in a top five recruiting class when National Signing Day came to a close on Wednesday, Feb. 4.
Tennessee’s 2015 class finished in the top five in every major recruiting service, finishing as high as 3rd in the 247Sports rankings. Doing so also allowed the Vols to have back-to-back top 10 classes for the first time since the 2009 and 2010 classes finished eighth and ninth, according to 247Sports.
Part of Tennessee’s recent success in recruiting has been because of Tennessee head coach Butch Jones and his staff’s ability to recruit nationally, pulling in highly-rated prospects from California, Georgia and North Carolina among other states. But the foundation of Jones’s classes at Tennessee have started inside state borders.
“That’s where it starts, securing the home state,” Butch Jones said during his press conference on National Signing Day. “(The talent in Tennessee) continues to be elevated each and every year.”
The recruiting services support Jones’s notion.
According to data provided by the 247Sports recruiting database, high school talent in the state of Tennessee has grown over the past few seasons, and the Vols have taken advantage.
From 2006 to 2009, the state of Tennessee produced only one player rated as a five-star prospect out of high school and just 19 players rated as four-stars. The 2007 recruiting cycle was the lone exception, producing eight in-state four-stars. The Vols took in three of the top seven in-state recruits that year, helping their class finish No. 3 in the nation.
The 2008 and 2009 cycles saw the number of highly-rated prospects in the state of Tennessee begin to dwindle, but 2012 began the resurgence in the state’s talent. From 2012 to 2015, Tennessee has had 32 players rated as four-star recruits and two five-stars come from the state.
The Vols were unable to capitalize initially however, only pulling in one of the six in-state players rated as four-star recruits in 2012. Tennessee’s 2012 class finished 20th in the country, partially due to the lack of successful in-state recruiting.
But Butch Jones has refocused the Vols’ efforts on recruiting in the state of Tennessee, and it appears to be paying off thus far.
Tennessee’s 2014 class that finished seventh in the nation included the top four players from the state of Tennessee and eight of the top 10 in-state prospects. The state’s talent had also replenished since 2012, as eight players were rated as four-star recruits and running back Jalen Hurd was rated as a five-star.
Similarly, Tennessee’s 2015 class that finished third in the country included the top three players from the state. The depth of in-state talent continued to flourish as well, as 10 players were rated as four-star recruits, and defensive end Kyle Phillips sat atop the list as a five-star.
A large part of Tennessee’s recent success in recruiting has been due to the rise of talent in the state of Tennessee, and Butch Jones has recognized that and capitalized on it, leading to success in recruiting for the program in Jones’ first three classes.
“We have great high school football in the state of Tennessee,” Jones stated. “We’re going to start first and foremost in taking care of home. And we’ve been able to do that.”
