Coffee and iPhones: UT coaching staff ready for National Signing Day

It’s an unintended game that breaks out each year during National Signing Day.

Amid the frenzy of building their future class, the Tennessee football staff plays musical iPhones.

“It is always really comical to me because there is no doubt you will lose your phone about six to seven times during the day,” said Bob Welton, Tennessee’s director of player personnel. “You are talking to a kid and you pass it to someone else to speak with him and then you have no idea where your phone is. They are all school phones and look the same, so you need to figure it out by the picture on the front page.”

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Tennessee is preparing for another National Signing Day on Wednesday with a class that is expected to contain 28 recruits.

The future Vols can begin sending their National Letters of Intent to UT at 7 a.m. UTSports.com will feature live coverage from the Ray and Lucy Hand Studio for five straight hours, starting at 7 a.m.

The entire Tennessee staff – from coach Butch Jones down to the student assistants – are involved in the signing day festivities. The coaches will arrive on campus between 6:15-6:30 a.m.

They will be provided breakfast, lunch, snacks and plenty of coffee to keep their energy levels high.

The UT coaches have a schedule of when every recruit is expected to sign and send their NLI. They have a section in the studio set aside to FaceTime recruits and their families once they officially become Vols.

“Really what you want is a pretty boring day. You want things to go exactly how you want them to,” Welton said. “Most of the work is done by the time signing day arrives. Ninety-five percent of your ducks are in a row. The day itself is pretty smooth most years.”

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UT’s coaches held meetings on Monday and Tuesday to map out for every signing day scenario, from players flipping their commitment from UT to other schools to long-shot players unexpectedly signing with the Vols.

“We sit in the room and go through each kid, what we feel good about, what we don’t feel good about,” Welton said. “We go through if he leaves, what our next move is and who we may target or maybe have to call a coach to reach him. You go through every single player on your board and make sure you plan for everything.”

The focus isn’t only on the 2017 class. Throughout the day, the UT coaches are working to secure commitments for future classes.

“For the most part, we are doing a lot more with getting the underclassmen on the phone for the next year. I don’t know if people understand that a lot of the phone calls on signing day aren’t necessarily with kids committing to you,” Welton said. “Although we talk to those kids, most of the time coaches are talking with juniors in high school and getting them ready for next year.”

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Tennessee will dust off the fax machine to have in the studio, but it’s become more symbolic than a practical tool in the process.

“There are a lot of guys that scan their document and email it. You can even take a picture on your phone if you wanted to,” Welton said. “Most of ours will be emailed to our compliance people.”

Tennessee had an issue with the fax machine a few years ago. After receiving his NLI in the mail through FedEx, a recruit took a picture and posted it on social media.

But the fax number was on the photo, and UT had to scramble to change numbers before signing day morning.

“As soon as it was brought to our attention, we all went ‘Oh no.’” Welton said. “We sent a student worker to sift through the faxes on the old number to pick out the good ones. To be honest, we should have kept all the faxes from fans that came in. Those were pretty entertaining. Some of the drawings were funny.”

Before coming to UT in 2013, Welton spent nine years with the Cleveland Browns. He can draw parallels between the NFL draft and National Signing Day.

“The good thing about the draft was you are picking the player, the player didn’t have to pick you,” he said. “But they are very similar. You always hear about draft grades and recruiting class grades. Talk to me in three years because you really can’t grade if they were good or bad until three years from now.”

Once all the documents are signed and calls are made, the UT coaches will get a short break to refresh.

Although Jones will be heading to Memphis and Nashville on Thursday for signing day celebrations, the rest of the staff will have six days off.

“It gives you a chance to breath and relax,” Welton said. “But I know the coaches have their phones with them and are still getting calls.”