Tennessee Volunteers Football: Recruiting Thoughts For 2014
By Jonah Byrd
Sep 22, 2012; Knoxville, TN, USA; Tennessee Volunteers girls softball recruit Abby Lockman (blue t-shirt) from Norco high school in Corona California gives a high five to Tennessee football team members as they enter the stadium during the traditional Vol Walk prior to the game against the Akron Zips at Neyland Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports
Recruiting seems to get harder and harder each year. Coaches work twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week to secure commitments. Butch Jones had less than sixty days to accomplish what he did with the 2013 class. He spent most of his days all over the nation, talking to recruits to salvage what he could for the 2013 recruiting class. Signing day has come and gone with Tennessee landing some great talent . A full calender year is ahead for 2014, with some great recruits to keep an eye out for.
Starting August 1st, 2013 new NCAA rules will allow coaches to contact recruits as much as they wish by phone, text messages, social media, and mail. There is also no limit on how many coaches can recruit off campus at the same time. Coaches will be working even more to get commitments from recruits.
It’s already tough for recruiting in the SEC. You’ve got to compete with Alabama and LSU, who offered a Scholarship to Dylan Moses, a 14 year old 8th grader. Moses plays running back and linebacker, stands 6’1″ and weighs in at 215 pounds. He runs a 4.46 40-yard dash with a 34 inch vertical.
The new changes to the rules will have a tremendous impact on recruiting this year. Nick Saban and Les Miles have set the standard, putting the pressure on the rest of the SEC to consider offering scholarships to promising 8th graders.
Will coaches change their whole approach to recruiting given the new guidelines and freedom to contact recruits as much as they wish? Only time will tell. I will be reaching out to a few 2014 recruits to get their thoughts and opinions on the upcoming year. Stay tuned to see what they have to say.