Tennessee Volunteers

Butch Jones spends his birthday with in-state recruits

Published Jan. 18, 2016 1:55 p.m. ET

foxsports

Recruiting is the lifeblood of any successful college football program, something Butch Jones knows as well as anyone. That's why the Tennessee head coach spent his birthday on the road visiting with a few members of the Vols' 2016 recruiting class over the weekend.

First up was 6-foot-6, 285-pound offensive lineman Ryan Johnson, the first prospect to commit to the 2016 class - Johnson committed in July of 2014. The four-star is the fifth-ranked prospect in Tennessee according to 247Sports and looks to be an huge addition to a Tennessee program still seeking to upgrade both the talent and depth on its offensive line.

Had a great evening with @UTCoachJones and @UTCoachThig #VFL #GBO @theBAFootball -- Thanks for the lasagna, Mom pic.twitter.com/yzilZ8Id2c
— Ryan Johnson (@ryancj96) January 18, 2016

Next up was 6-foot-4, 230-pound linebacker Daniel Bituli, rated as a four-star prospect and the No. 2 prospect in the Volunteer State according to 247Sports. Bituli's family even sang to Jones for his birthday:

Birthday boy!! @UTCoachJones pic.twitter.com/hgOCNz9Kc9
— DEENO (@DBituli) January 17, 2016

When Jones was first hired at Tennessee, he pledged to make the state his top priority in recruiting and with the commitments of Johnson and Bituli, the Vols are well on their way to securing two of the top prospect the state has to offer yet again.