COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The phone calls began arriving early Wednesday morning for the Golden Eagle football coaching staff on 2016 NCAA National Signing Day, receiving word that national letters of intent (NLI) have been signed and delivered by recruits who will make up head coach Marcus Satterfield's first signing class.

By mid-morning, the class was completed with all 19 players in the fold.

"I'm very excited about this group," Satterfield said. "Our staff did an unbelievable job, in a short amount of time, in identifying the type of student-athletes that we were looking for."

"Our first signing day was exhilarating," Satterfield said. "When the calls came in to alert us that the NLI was on the way, then when the NLI came in and we hung them on the wall, we were giving each other five, and hugging each other like a bunch of kids that just scored a touchdown on the playground.

"To see all the hard work that our staff did come to fruition was great to be a part of," Satterfield said. "For it to happen this quickly, with such high quality kids, it was magical, it was electric. We had some drama in the morning, but it ended up all working out for us. It was a great day for the Golden Eagles."

The incoming Golden Eagles come from seven different states and are projected to fill eight different positions. Ten of the 19 come out of Tennessee high schools, with three from Florida and two from Alabama. Tech signed one player each from Kentucky, Georgia, South Carolina and Arkansas.

The makeup of the class incudes five linebackers, three offensive linemen, three defensive backs, two each at tight end, running back and defensive line, one wide receiver and one quarterback.

"The first thing we had to do was build quality depth," Satterfield said. "We knew with just 17 days and three official visits we couldn't be as position-specific as we will be going forward. This signing class was about getting the best football players, and the best young men, the best student-athletes available, and our guys did a great job.

"We got them on campus, and I think the campus and community sell themselves," Satterfield said.

"From the day they arrived on campus, our staff worked relentlessly to get out into the state and get that first weekend set up," Satterfield said. "We got 12 guys on campus, and we received commitments from 11 of the 12. We're finding that with this city, this area, and this campus, if we can just get those kids and their families here, it's an easy sales job because how great the university is."
With 10 signees from Tennessee Satterfield pointed out that in-state recruiting was a priority.

"We have to reestablish ourselves within the state of Tennessee, make it the most important recruiting area for our program," Satterfield said. "We saw a lot of coaches, and we let them know how important the state of Tennessee will be for our program."

Satterfield said the focus of his staff's efforts was finding the best people for the Golden Eagle program that they could find.

"We had position-specific needs, but we knew we couldn't just say we were going to sign a certain amount of offensive or defensive players, or for any particular position," he said. "We didn't want to pass up on any great players. We knew we needed some offensive linemen, and we knew we needed linebacker/safety-type players. We were not just going to take people at those position to fill a number, and pass up on a  great player an another position, but we feel like we definitely filled those two specific needs."

Named head coach just over a month ago, Satterfield said the quality of the Golden Eagle recruiting class is impressive, not only on the field but also in the classroom.

"We're excited about the high quality of athletes that we've signed, but we're really excited about the quality of young men that our coaches were able to identify," Satterfield said.

"College is not easy. You can't just come in and float through four years. You've got to really work at it. The guys we've signed, guys who are now going to be part of our family, are guys who are really committed to succeed, and they are going to be driven by those challenges. That helps make championship teams and we're looking forward to seeing where this group can take us."

Tennessee Tech's 2016 Football Signees (19)

Click on the names in the roster to access a capsule look at each of the Wednesday signees