That's really got to hurt, for a school that produced NFL sensation, Larry Fitzgerald.

Out of the nine Pitt players, there was not a single one that caught the eye of any of the 32 NFL teams.  Since then, several players have signed free-agent contracts:

• Offensive lineman Lucas Nix with the Oakland Raiders.
• Linebacker Greg Williams with the Houston Texans.
• Defensive back Antwuan Reed with the Cleveland Browns
• Linebacker Max Gruder with the Atlanta Falcons.
• Defensive back Buddy Jackson with the Indianapolis Colts.
• Defensive lineman Chas Alecxih with the Miami Dolphins

Now if none of these players were considered to be in the top 253 players then it is difficult to imagine any of them becoming a starter immediately.

It's going to be the little things.

A role on the special teams unit is more likely at this point in these players' careers.

While some of these players don't have the athleticism to play on special teams or to get real opportunities in their unit, this player will rise above the rest.

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The Tigers signed three linebackers in 2011, and two more in 2012. Auburn whiffed on native Alabaman Kwon Alexander this year, but felt strongly about the possible signature on signing day. Alexander eventually signed with LSU. 

The Tigers are full steam ahead in the linebacker department for the 2013 class with three current commits, but Auburn needs this class to be linebacker-heavy with one or two ready to compete immediately. 

The Tigers will place an obvious priority on linebacker this recruiting season. Here are the five reasons that the Tigers must land talented linebackers in 2013. 

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Tennessee Volunteers head coach Derek Dooley is one of these coaches for college football according to some, but is his seat really that hot?

I can't even beat around the bush with this one. The answer is unequivocally yes.

The Hot Seat 

A professional coach in the NFL ends up on the hot seat after a three-game losing streak, but it usually leads nowhere. I think New York Giants head coach Tom Coughlin has been on the hot seat since the day he was hired in 2004. He has won two Super Bowls since then.

In the NBA, every coach is on the hot seat all the time. It was rumored that if Mike Brown and Vinny Del Negro didn't win their first-round series with the Los Angeles Lakers and Clippers, they'd be fired. Think of that! You coach your team to a top-five seed in the NBA playoffs and might get fired after losing a Game 7.

In college football, we do a little bit better with throwing around the hot seat term. No one knew Tyrone Willingham was on it in 2004, but he got the axe after just three seasons, saving us from hot-seat talk all offseason. On the other hand, everyone knew Rich Rodriguez's seat was boiling and that he had to make the leap in 2010 at Michigan or he'd get fired. Michigan didn't and he did.

It seems that in college, the term hot seat is used more appropriately. In the case of Dooley at Tennessee, I'd have to say the talking heads got it right again.

Dooley Back in 2013?

I talked a few months ago about what I believed athletic director Dave Hart would require of the 2012 Vols in order for Dooley to be brought back in 2013. Due to the turbulence felt in the football program over the past five years, these requirements were somewhat below most fans' preferences, but they seemed reasonable.

Then I got to know Hart more.

Hart was the athletic director at Florida State from 1995 to 2007, during some of the Seminoles' best years in football. He made the move to Alabama to be the No. 2 man under Mal Moore in 2008 and experienced more football success there.

He wants to win and has a history of knowing how to get it done.

The common theme at both Florida State and Alabama was the terrific head coach. Florida State's legendary Bobby Bowden coached through most of Hart's tenure there, and Nick Saban was the man at Alabama. Hart knows what the first step to a winning college football program is: coaching.

Therefore, the expectations for Dooley in 2012 have increased. No longer is a 6-6 season with a bowl win the bare minimum for retention, as I first said.

It's eight wins minimum, and the bowl game is especially important. For example, if Dooley gets the Vols to 8-4 at the end of the regular season and then loses the bowl game, I'm not sure he stays.

It's up to the leadership of the Tennessee squad, the wealth of offensive talent and the solid back seven on the defense to get it done.

For the Program, Let's Hope the Seat Cools

When you can so easily spell out the requirement for a coach being brought back or not, you know he's on the hot seat. Your specific win-loss scenario might differ from my own, but I doubt it's by much. Regardless, the fact that you and all your fellow Vol fans have a checklist for Dooley to meet in 2012 is evidence that the seat is hot.

But let me make one thing very clear: Tennessee needs Derek Dooley to perform.

It's not that he's a brilliant coaching mind (he's solid) or a lights-out recruiter (though he's quite good). It's simply that Tennessee doesn't need to start over for the third time in five years with a new coach. While Georgia and South Carolina continue to improve, and Florida rebuilds itself, Tennessee can't afford to get farther behind in the SEC East.

So while Dave Hart and the Big Orange faithful might have a list of coaches ready to go if Dooley doesn't work out, there is no doubt that the best-case scenario is for the 2012 team to come together, win and help throw some water on Dooley's hot seat.

The orange pants can only take so much heat.

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The current BCS contract runs through 2013, so any changes agreed upon will be in place for the 2014 season, but before we get to that point, you can rest assured that anyone and everyone will have their say about any playoff proposals.

So where do we stand, and what changes are needed to level the playing field?

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While most of the financial noise surrounding the game is centered around the astronomical television contracts that have recently come to light, quietly, coaches' salaries are climbing at a similar pace—with Alabama head coach Nick Saban ascending to the top of the ladder joining Mack Brown of Texas as coaches with salaries north of $5 million per season. 

However, in a race to stay competitive in the market for quality coaches, some schools may not be getting the most bang for their bucks—while others are enjoying bargain rates and winning big at the same time. 

So which coaches are being overpaid and which of them deserve a raise?

Here are the five most overpaid and the five most underpaid college football coaches. 

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The biggest reason for the likely improvement is that Miller will move into the spread offense run by Urban Meyer and Tom Herman.

Miller should be very comfortable with his new offense because it is very much like the offense he ran in high school in Huber Heights, Ohio.

But this is another level, and it means more responsibilities for Miller in this offense.

Here are his new responsibilities as the QB in the Meyer offense.

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Alabama started the 2010 season ranked No. 1, and so many thought they would go all the way, again, repeating as champions. 

A lot of that was attributed to the fact that Mark Ingram, the then-incumbent Heisman Trophy winner, would still be wearing crimson. 

The season ended in a "disappointing" fashion. The Tide went 10-3 with two close losses to LSU and Auburn. 

The critics of the Tide think that same scenario will play out again this year, as there are "too many" new faces leading the depth chart. 

Another 2010 letdown? Preposterous!

And here's why. 

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Today, the Trojans received a verbal commitment from top running back recruit Ty Isaac of Joliet, Illinois. They could also land another running back on Thursday, when Justin Davis is set to announce his college decision.

The addition of Isaac is huge for the Trojans because he comes at a position of need.

He joins a class that already includes top quarterback Max Browne, defensive tackle Kenny Bigelow, wide receiver Eldridge Massington, cornerback Chris Hawkins and defensive lineman Kylie Fitts. With six players already, the class of 2013 is sitting with the potential to be another top class with just 15 to 18 scholarships on tap (three early enrollees).

The big picture behind all these commits, however, is that USC is still a place of dominance. Not only on the field, but in recruiting as well.

It all starts with the mastermind Lane Kiffin, who has put together an amazing staff with many recruiting experts such as Ed Orgeron, Monte Kiffin, Tee Martin and James Cregg. They not only control the state of California, but they have began to open pipelines in Florida and the South thanks to their new wide receivers coach Martin.

The USC Trojans have taken the sanctions imposed on them by the NCAA and turned getting only 15 scholarships into a good thing.

Having 10 fewer scholarships forces the coaching staff to focus on the players that they feel are "can't-miss," needing to convince nearly all targets. It allows the coaching staff to focus on quality over quantity, and that is exactly what they are doing.

To think that a 2013 recruiting class could feature multiple top players at each recruited position is truly a thing of beauty. Not to mention Browne, Hawkins and Fitts are working to be early enrollees for the Trojans, getting them into the fold and learning everything quicker.

Behind Coach Kiffin and the rest of the staff, these Trojans are proving that dominance wears cardinal and gold—and not just in Los Angeles.

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1) Most blocked kicks in a game with two. (Tied with three other players.)

2) Most blocked kicks in a career with five.

3) Most tackles for loss in a game with seven. (Also holds the second spot with six.)

4) Most tackles for loss in a season with 39.

5) Most tackles for loss in a career with 68.

6) Most sacks in a game with five. (Also holds the second spot with four.)

7) Most sacks in a season with 27. (Also holds the second spot with 18.)

8) Most sacks in a career with 52.

9) Most QB hurries in a game with nine. (Also holds the second spot with six.)

10) Most QB hurries in a season with 44.

11) Most forced fumbles in a season with seven.

12) Most forced fumbles in a career with 10. (Tied with two other players.)

Admittedly, the National Football Foundation is not really concerned with how great a player was for his specific team. The NFF is concerned with the player's contribution to the sport on the whole.

The 27-sack single-season record that stands at Alabama also stands for FBS (Division 1-A) football. Thomas was a force on the field, as was another elite 'Bama snub on the 2012 list of nominees (by the name of Bobby Humphrey).

On many other teams, the argument "he set a ton of records" would not mean much, as many teams do not have long histories of championship-level success.

The simple fact that Alabama has produced championship-caliber teams in almost every decade since the 1920's should speak to the kind of player that Thomas was.

Thomas was a beast, and he should be Alabama's 24th player in the College Football Hall of Fame. He should be inducted as soon as possible, not eventually.

Was a linebacker inducted this year? Yes. Who was it? Mark Simoneau, the 67th pick of the 2000 NFL draft. Thomas was selected fourth overall back in 1989, in the draft class that included Troy Aikman, Barry Sanders and Deion Sanders.

Simoneau is a great player and deserves to be inducted, eventually. My point is that Thomas should have been inducted before he was, not after. Thomas left his mark in the SEC and departed back in 1988.

I mean, the college football record of 27 sacks in a season has belonged to Thomas since Simoneau was 11. Seriously, National Football Foundation? I think Tide fans are awaiting a press conference with a formal public apology. (To say nothing of the Thomas family.)

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Ahead of Frazier on the Hall of Fame’s list were such notables as Greg Myers (defensive back, Colorado State, 1992-1995) and Mark Simoneau (linebacker, Kansas State, 1992-1995). And, look, both Myers and Simoneau were great players. But neither of them were players of Tommie Frazier’s status or accomplishment. And I picked Myers and Simoneau because they were either contemporaries of or played after Frazier worked his magic for Nebraska.

So, the Hall of Fame can’t fall back on omitting Frazier because there were players waiting longer than the 17 years Frazier has for his Hall of Fame selection. If that’s not the reason for Frazier’s omission, then what is?

According to Ivan Maisel of ESPN.com, the Hall of Fame has “a rule against taking players from the same school in consecutive years.” Will Shields was elected into the Hall of Fame in 2011, so according to this no-consecutive-years rule, Frazier would have been ineligible in 2012. Except he was eligible, according to the website of the National Football Foundation, the organization that runs the Hall of Fame. Frazier was number 27 on the list of 76 eligible players, which included Eric Crouch and Trev Alberts.

So Frazier, along with Crouch and Alberts, were clearly eligible according to the NFF’s own criteria. But apparently there are unwritten rules the voters abide by, and this no-consecutive-years rule is one of them. Right?

Actually, it’s worse than that. Corn Nation pointed out what makes the process even sillier and more ridiculous than it seems at first blush. All of those ballots that go out, and all of those votes that are cast for the Hall of Fame class, don’t decide who goes into the Hall of Fame. Here’s the rule, straight from the NFF:

The ballot of players and coaches is mailed to all dues-paying members for a member vote, of which results are provided to the Honors Court as part of the information for its meeting. The Honors Court selects the Class. (emphasis added)

Mind-boggling. So the NFF will release a list of eligible players, except some of them aren’t really eligible. That list goes to voters who will cast ballots, except those ballots don’t really decide anything.

And, as a result, we have a Hall of Fame class that is honoring Greg Myers, Mark Simoneau and Steve Bartkowski, and excluding Tommie Frazier, Orlando Pace and Derrick Thomas. And that's not even getting into the argument about Howard Schnellenberger being excluded because of an arbitrary win percentage requirement that his time at Florida Atlantic messed up.

Someone explain to me why this particular Hall of Fame has any credibility left, please.

I will make the case that Tommie Frazier is the best college quarterback in history. As a Nebraska fan, I confess to a bias, but I’m not alone in reaching a similar conclusion.

What seems unassailable, though, is that a quarterback who went 33-2 for his career, won two national titles, four conference titles, ran for 2,154 yards, threw for 3,626 yards, and scored 82 (!) touchdowns is Hall of Fame worthy. No disrespect to Myers and Simoneau, but a Hall of Fame without Frazier, and without players like Pace and Thomas, is simply a joke.

If you would like to contact me directly to schedule an interview, ask a question or to get my recipe for a killer peach cobbler, you can send an e-mail to patrickrunge@gmail.com. (DISCLAIMER: Peach cobbler recipe might not be all that killer.)

Or, you could always...Follow @patrickrunge.

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