National Signing Day 2012: Notre Dame and Teams in Need of Last-Minute Push

To avoid a bleak future, the following teams need to strike gold as the 2012 national signing day approaches. 

All three of these teams are big-time programs that are used to landing their chosen prospects, and a big finish in the recruiting season certainly wouldn't be a surprise. 

While the future of exactly who will fill out their recruiting class is cloudy, what these teams need is not. 

Notre Dame

Notre Dame's recruiting season got a big boost when QB Gunner Kiel ditched LSU to head for the Irish. They are now in a position to turn their recruiting class into the best in the nation. 

This is an impressive turnaround for a program that was licking its wounds when CB Ronald Darby turned them down. 

While the Kiel coup lessons the blow to the ego served by Darby's departure, it does nothing to help fill the hole at his position. The Irish need to sign another solid CB to ensure this is a strong recruiting class. 

They are in a position to do just that. According to IrishIllustrated.com, CB Anthony Standifer wants to attend Notre Dame, but has to get his grades in order. 

Corner aside, the Irish could come out smiling like bandits. One of the nation's top recruits at any position, DL Arik Armstead, is reported by Charles Goldgerg of The Huntsville Times to have Notre Dame and Auburn as his two finalists. 

If the Irish can land both of these players, all of a sudden they will have the best recruiting class in the country. 

USC

USC began this recruiting process at a disadvantage. They are dealing with a reduced scholarship total as a punishment for rules violations. 

The Trojans are losing some serious muscle in the trenches. Most notably, they are losing their main contributors at defensive tackle and their blindside protection for their QB as Matt Kalil ventures to the NFL. 

USC has their blindside hopes tied to tackle Kyle Murphy. He is one of the nation's highest-ranked tackles, and is strongly considering USC. 

At defensive tackle, Aziz Shittu has the Trojans among his finalists and he is also ready to step and help USC immediately fill their void at defensive tackle. 

Florida

The Gators suffered through a down season in 2011. At the heart of their problems was miserable QB play and a lack of playmaking. 

They can go a long way towards solving that lack of playmaking with this recruiting class. Stefon Diggs and Nelson Agholor are two highly-ranked receivers that Florida is right in the mix for. 

Adding one—or both—of these players would go a long way into transforming this into a top-flight recruiting class for Florida. 

They also have pass-rush specialist Dante Fowler coming in for a visit. It is clear the blue chip prospects are there for the signing. 

If the Gators have a strong stretch of recruiting between now and signing day, they can land one of the nation's top classes.