National Signing Day was last week, and 29 players signed national letters-of-intent to play with the Bulldogs next year.

For the most part, coming off two consecutive losing seasons, Tech needs the majority of the incoming players to contribute immediately.

Heading into spring practice, which is just a month or two away, the two glaring questions appear to be at quarterback and on defense.

One incoming recruit will battle for the quarterback position.

Andre Daniel is a 6-4, 207-pound transfer from Northeast Oklahoma A&M and will have three years of eligibility remaining when he arrives in the fall.

The main thing, in addition to his arm strength and accuracy, that head coach Jack Bicknell likes about Daniel is the fact that he's a raw athlete who brings the added dimension of speed to the quarterback position.

However, with former high school All-American and Oklahoma transfer Brent Rawls and redshirt freshman Zac Champion, along with juniors Matt Kubik and Donald Allen, talent is not the problem.

It's experience.

On defense, the talent level needed to be seriously upgraded after last year's group ranked dead last in the nation in total defense. Therefore, the majority of the 11 junior college transfers play on that side of the ball.

Highlighting the new defenders is 6-3, 240-pound inside linebacker Barry Robertson, who most likely will start alongside T.J. Jackson on Tech's new 3-4 defensive alignment.

Other potential playmakers on defense are Torrance Hampton, a junior college All-American at corner back, Eddie White, a 6-3, 260-pound defensive end who chose Tech over Illinois, Oren Lewis, a 6-1, 285-pound defensive tackle and Jacob Peeler, a 6-3, 285-pound center who is expected to challenge incumbent Marcus Stewart for a starting position.

Another glaring need for the Bulldogs during the recruiting season was in the secondary, particularly at the safety positions.

So Bicknell signed three outstanding high school prospects and a junior college transfer.

Matt Butler (6-3, 215), Quin Harris (6-3, 220), Brett Naquin (6-3, 205) and Bo Cox (6-2, 200) all bring size, speed and toughness to the safety position.

Butler and Harris each have the size to grow into an outside linebacker, as well.

Perhaps the biggest coup of the whole class is Freddie Franklin, a 6-foot, 190-pound athlete from New Orleans who broke an oral commitment with Nebraska to sign with the Bulldogs.

Franklin played running back in high school, but with the presence of juniors Ryan Moats and Shelton Richardson, Franklin may move to slot receiver to get on the field immediately.

Bicknell said at the Signing Day luncheon that he expected Franklin to play immediately. He is a major talent. But so are Moats and Richardson. Expect him to get on the field in some capacity, and also expect many of the other new Bulldogs to join him.

Bret H. McCormick is a senior journalism major and serves as associate sports editor for The Tech Talk.