Tennessee will trade suitcases for televisions this week in recruiting.

The Vols will play Auburn in the SEC championship game Saturday in Atlanta. The week of game preparation coincides with the first major week of on-the-road recruiting. That means double duty for UT coaches.

"The most important thing we can do is win this game," said UT recruiting coordinator Greg Adkins. "If we can get that accomplished, then that will certainly make up for any time we missed on the road.

"We'd be out every day if we weren't playing. We'd be on the road all day long. Right now, we're doing some things at night and that's all we're doing."

This week will be the most grueling test of the season for UT's coaches. A typical morning for an assistant begins at 6 a.m. Meetings and practice fill the day. Then, it's time to recruit.

"It's demanding on the coaches," said UT running backs coach Trooper Taylor, who is in his first season as an assistant with the Vols. "Coach (Phillip) Fulmer and his staff have done it so long they already had a plan in place. It's been very well organized.

"Coach Adkins has done a good job having planes ready for you to get out and go. You may take a private plane just because of time. Otherwise you wouldn't be back."

Getting back means 1 a.m. in some cases. Then, a few hours sleep before UT's coaches do it again. It's tough. But it's actually been worse.

"At least I know where the bumps in the road are," said Fulmer who will be making his fourth SEC championship game appearance. "Not to overstretch my staff. I think I've done that once or twice trying to get too many places in recruiting."

"I've always been one to jump in there with both feet as fast as I could because that's the life blood of what we do. I've learned you better stand back, look, and let things work themselves out before you go visiting guys that may not be interested in you."

Coaches aren't lamenting the extra work when there's a championship on the line. Viewed strictly from a recruiting standpoint, the exposure UT will gain during Saturday's CBS broadcast far outweighs any amount of travel coaches will miss.

Only seven Division I games are scheduled Saturday. The SEC championship will capitalize on the small schedule by drawing a large audience. Over 12 million viewers are expected to tune in. Some will surely be UT prospects.

The game is also a great lure for Atlanta-based high school players. Lovejoy offensive lineman Chris Scott is one prospect that will be at the game.

"That's the cream of the crop in the SEC," Lovejoy coach Al Hughes said. "Everybody likes to be part of the cream. It might be the deciding factor if they can see the bright orange and playing for the championship. I think it's a big plus for our entire area.

"It would reflect highly on the winning school especially. Kids in this area are aware of this game."

One prospect that was lured by the SEC championship game was UT cornerback Jonathan Wade. Wade still remembers watching the game in 2001 against LSU. Two months later, he signed with Tennessee.

"Everybody doesn't get a chance to play at that level," Wade said. "Seeing a game like that is huge. The fact that my future school is playing for an SEC championship plays a big part in recruiting. That's very inviting."

UT coaches will crosscheck to make sure no prospect feels neglected. Not only is the primary recruiter responsible for contacting a prospect, so is his projected position coach.

With eight commitments and Demonte Bolden, who is at a prep school, UT is nearly halfway to their completing its 2005 class. The Vols are expected to sign 20 prospects. That allows UT to be more choosey in whom they visit this week.

Even at peak efficiency, UT coaches cannot visit every prospect they would like to. Fulmer said those tough phone calls to prospects aren't necessarily so tough.

"From a recruiting standpoint, we've got to call guys and tell them we can't come visit them this week because we're playing in a championship game," Fulmer said. "That rings pretty well for guys that want to be a part of a championship. Recruiting-wise it helps."

With an SEC championship at stake and an important recruiting class in the works, this could be UT's most significant football week in three years.

"We're going to get the work done," said Taylor. "We're not going to short this game and the players we have here but we also have to go out and recruit. We have to do what it takes to get good players. We have to balance out the practice as well as getting out and seeing those guys and showing them how important they are to us.

"Everybody wants to be a part of a winner. We've got to get back to winning SEC and national championships."

Recruiting Trail Mix: Oak Creek, Wis., wide receiver Travis Beckum said Wisconsin is the leader for his services. Teammate Raymond Henderson, a defensive lineman, is leaning to UT according to his coach Joe Koch. Both players visited UT last weekend. Maryland wide receiver Derrick Williams said he enjoyed his trip to UT last weekend. He will announce his decision on Dec. 22. South Carolina's Steve Spurrier is pushing hard for Williams to visit Columbia. Williams is one of the top five prospects in the nation. Kentucky linebacker Brandon Logan will visit Michigan and Kentucky before announcing his decision. He was in Knoxville last weekend.

The Future: The season debut of Football Futures airs tonight on WNOX (990 AM, 99.1 FM) at 7 p.m. Tonight's guest will be Indiana lineman J.B. Paxson, Williams, and several UT coaches.