Alabama, Florida put more in NFL during USC sanctions
While USC was down, the NFL began filling up with Alabama and Florida alumni.
Fox Sports college football writer Bruce Feldman tweeted Friday morning about how the NFL has changed since USC was hit with sanctions three years ago. He noted that the Trojans’ dominance on active players in the NFL began shifting toward the Crimson Tide and Gators. Neither school is No. 1 in terms of alumni on active NFL rosters (that’s LSU), but UA and UF were the two to see the biggest increases during USC’s probationary period:
Re: NCAA sanctions: Just 3 yrs ago, #USC had most players on NFL opening day rosters with 40. This year #Trojans rank tied for 9th with 30.
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) September 9, 2016
The two programs that made the biggest jumps in 3 yrs in terms of players on NFL roster: #Alabama from 30 to 42 and #UF from 26 up to 38.
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) September 9, 2016
Most players on opening day NFL rosters by coll>1 #LSU-44; 2 #Bama-42; 3 #FSU-41; 4 #OSU 39; 5 #UF-38; 6 #UGA-36; 7 #Clemson-34. 8 #Miami-31
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) September 9, 2016
The Alabama numbers are hardly surprising as Nick Saban’s draft day dominance is well documented. The number of Gators in the NFL will likely surprise many people, as that three-year spike is made up of Will Muschamp recruits. Despite all that NFL talent, Muschamp was fired from Florida in 2014, posting a 28-21 record over four seasons.
