signing day helmetKNOXVILLE -- There were bucket hats, bricks and names on the backs of orange, white and gray jerseys.
The bow tie may be what becomes the lasting image from 2015 signing day for Tennessee.
On an otherwise uneventful day for Butch Jones and the Volunteers, Tennessee orchestrated a signing day flip to land Drew Richmond, one of the nation's top-rated offensive tackles out of Memphis University School, to top off another touted signing class.
Complete coverage of Signing Day
Signing Day 2015 Live Coverage* Reports have Drew Richmond dropping Rebels for UT Vols* Wiedmer: We need different dreams for today's signees* East Hamilton's Martez Durrah switches from UTC to MTSU* McCallie junior Nygel Edmonds already has 22 offers* High Tide again: Alabama closing in on seventh No. 1 recruiting class in the past eight years * Irish's Kareem Orr to play for Arizona State Sun Devils * Area coaches, players like early signing proposal * Auburn-Florida battles could highlight signing day * List of 2015 SEC football commitments * McKenzie eager to continue family heroics with Vols * UTC 'fighting battles' for 'difference-makers' * Tennessee Vols avoiding recruiting fallout from Bajakian's departure * Brady's recruiting path is different * Toser, Brewer finding scholarships scarce for kickers
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* Local Commitments/Signees * UT Commitments/Signees * UGA Commitments/Signees * UTC Commitments/Signees
Richmond committed to Ole Miss back in September, but he gave the Vols a fifth player with a five-star rating according to at least one recruiting service.
"It completed the class," Jones said Wednesday afternoon.
"We get back to improving our overall athleticism in the offensive front, and Drew obviously does that. He's a left tackle, and he's very athletic. When we watch film, one of the big things, along with toughness, is balance, and when you watch Drew Richmond on video, he was never on the ground. He could always recover.
"I'm excited because he's going to add to the offensive line. What a great way to finish the recruiting class off, to stay in-state, in Memphis and keep one of the top three players in the state at home was big for us. He brings everything that we're looking for in an offensive lineman."
The 6-foot-5, 310-pound Richmond capped a class heavy on offensive and defensive line prospects as Tennessee tries to improve along the line of scrimmage.
Including Tennessee's 10 early enrollees, the Vols added eight players from Tennessee and Georgia, plucked two apiece from Texas and California and pulled highly-rated prospects out of Virginia, North Carolina, Michigan and Indiana.
It was Richmond, though, who put the bow on the class.
"Ole Miss is a great program, and I loved those guys," he told The Commercial Appeal newspaper in Memphis. "They have something special going around, and they're going to be successful. It's just my heart wasn't there. I felt like my heart was at Tennessee, so I had to do what I feel like was best for myself."
When he announced the signing of Richmond, who took an official visit to Knoxville last weekend, Jones put on a bow tie -- for the first time, he'd later reveal -- as he'd promised Richmond he would if he chose the Vols.
Vols T logoJones said the Vols arrived at the Anderson Training Center early Wednesday morning hopeful for good news on their lone remaining target after "a lot of phone calls (and) conversations" on Tuesday.
Tennessee's third-year coach also said Richmond kept him in the dark up until he signed with Tennessee.
"We knew we had a great opportunity, but he wanted to make me work right until the end," Jones said. "Even 10 minutes before he signed, he called me, thanking me, and he said, 'Will you still love me if I don't come to the University of Tennessee?'
"I told him love was conditional on some things, but we're really fortunate to have him and very excited about his future here."
The Vols added linebacker Darrin Kirkland (Michigan) and quarterback Sheriron Jones (Florida) after those prospects re-opened their recruitments due to coaching changes, but the signing-day flip, something the Vols memorably have been on the other end for in the past, of Richmond was different.
Whether or not Tennessee continues to recruit a committed player, Jones said, depends "on the circumstance." It's become a fairly normal part of recruiting. A few of the players the Vols signed on Wednesday took official visits to other programs as Tennessee commitments.
"When Drew committed, we gave him his time, and then we went back," Jones said. "You recruit to the end, but we try to give them their space, and if there's interest, we continue to recruit. I know a lot of coaches say, and we found this out with our guys, the real recruiting process starts after they commit.
"We gave him his space, but we also continued to recruit him. Drew and I had a very unique relationship, probably one of the top five relationships I've ever had with a prospective student-athlete. I think that helped down the end."
Richmond's flip helped Tennessee end with a 2015 class ranked third in the country according to 247sports and fifth nationally according to Rivals and ESPN.
"It's a lot of the things outside of the film that excite you about Drew," Tennessee offensive line coach Don Mahoney said. "He wants to be great. He works extremely hard at it. This weekend, with the visit, he probably spent more time talking about, 'What do I need to do to get better?'
"That's what you're looking for, that's what makes him special and that's what we were excited about all along."
Contact Patrick Brown at pbrown@timesfreepress.com.
