While the professional level is an altogether different beast than the amateur ranks, you would be hard-pressed to find an NFL athlete who doesn’t still care quite a bit about his alma mater and follows his fellow alumni. That might be even more true of those who come out of smaller schools like Charlotte.
The Pittsburgh Steelers have collected themselves a couple of Charlotte 49ers now since signing veteran defensive lineman Larry Ogunjobi last month, who just so happens to have played with third-year Alex Highsmith, at least for one season, before being drafted in the third round by the Cleveland Browns in 2017.