Tennessee, Texas, Arizona and Auburn hired new coaches between the two signing days. We take a look at how they, along with the other new hires in Power Five conferences, closed out their recruiting classes this week.
*****
NSD 2021: Farrell Awards | Winners and losers from NSD | Alabama wins recruiting title | Mind of Mike | Announcement Guide
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS: Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly | Alabama coach Nick Saban | Ohio State coach Ryan Day | Clemson coach Dabo Swinney | Auburn's Bryan Harsin | Oregon's Mario Cristobal | South Carolina's Shane Beamer | Vanderbilt's Clark Lea | Kentucky's Mark Stoops | Iowa's Kirk Ferentz | Boston College's Jeff Hafley | Mizzou's Eli Drinkwitz | UNC coach Mack Brown | Florida State coach Mike Norvell | Penn State coach James Franklin | USC coach Clay Helton | Arkansas coach Sam Pittman | Georgia coach Kirby Smart | Maryland coach Mike Locksley | Miami coach Manny Diaz
CLASS OF 2021 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
CLASS OF 2022 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
COVERAGE: Rivals Transfer Tracker | Rivals Camp Series
*****
SHANE BEAMER, South Carolina
Shane Beamer came into the South Carolina job on fire. He extended new offers to prospects across the South and reeled in New Orleans linebacker Kolbe Fields in January, then landed four-star JUCO linebacker Tavareon Scott and three-star Alabama defensive back LaDareyen Craig on National Signing Day.
The Gamecocks also held on to long-time in-state defensive line commit TJ Sanders. Fields had a fantastic senior campaign and emerged as one of the best linebackers nationally this fall. Scott could be a key cog in Beamer's defensive rebuild in Columbia.
Grade: A
SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH SOUTH CAROLINA FANS AT GAMECOCKCENTRAL.COM
*****
BRET BIELEMA, Illinois
Bielema replaced Lovie Smith in December but began getting commitments in January. The Illini inked each of Bielema's first two commitments in his new Big Ten gig – three-star Alabama running back Joshua McCray and three-star Georgia linebacker Dwayne Johnson.
Grade: C
SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH ILLINOIS FANS AT ORANGEANDBLUENEWS.COM
*****
JEDD FISCH, Arizona
Arizona lured former college assistant Jedd Fisch away from the New England Patriots. One of his first additions was unrated Connecticut athlete Anthony Simpson Jr., who was a target of his defensive coordinator Don Brown when Brown was at Michigan.
Arizona also inked two-star Texas cornerback Jakelyn Morgan, who committed earlier but didn't sign early. A quiet signing day should make for a busy spring.
Grade: C-
*****
BRYAN HARSIN, Auburn
Auburn opened February on a roll. The Tigers closed out their 2021 class with in-state defensive back Juwon Gatson and finally signed Tarvarish Dawson out of Florida. Earlier in the week, first-year Auburn coach Bryan Harsin landed a commitment from three-star Georgia quarterback Holden Geriner. The Tigers maintained a good chunk of their 2021 haul in December and had a productive finish.
Grade: B
*****
JOSH HEUPEL, Tennessee
Josh Heupel found a way to add one more piece to Tennessee's 2021 class with JUCO offensive lineman Jeremiah Crawford at the buzzer. As he gets his feet wet at Rocky Top, Heuepel will have plenty of talent that the Vols were able to hold onto from December, most notably Rivals250 prospects Kaidon Salter, Aaron Willis, Dylan Brooks and Kaemen Marley. While the Vols had a quiet National Signing Day, all eyes will be on Heupel this offseason.
Grade: C+
*****
CLARK LEA, Vanderbilt
It was a relatively quiet, yet productive close to Vanderbilt's 2021 class and first-year coach Clark Lea, who took over the Commodores two days before the initial signing period.
Vanderbilt signed all but three of the players committed to Derek Mason, then on Wednesday signed the remaining three who elected not to sign in December – three-stars CJ Taylor, Michael Mincey and Dylan Betts-Pauley. Lea also added a surprise signee in two-star New Jersey RB Patrick Smith, who was a big Vanderbilt target since October. We're anticipating Vanderbilt to keep making more noise on the recruiting trail in the spring.
Grade: B-
*****
STEVE SARKISIAN, Texas
Coach Sark hit the ground running when he took over in Austin. Within hours of winning the national championship as an Alabama assistant, he reeled in a commitment from Rivals250 WR Armani Winfield. This week, he bolstered his '22 haul with Rivals100 RB Jaydon Blue, then signed longtime four-star commitment Ishmael Ibraheem and Christmas commitment Keithron Lee, who was a major riser in-state at the wide receiver position as a senior at Bryan (Texas) Rudder.
The Longhorns also signed talented three-star defensive end David Abiara to close out this year's haul. Abiara was a longtime Notre Dame commitment who didn't sign in December. Both Ibraheem and Abiara are talented prospects that didn't sign earlier amid off-the-field events.
Grade: A