It wasn't by choice, but Tennessee Vols head coach Josh Heupel and Ole Miss Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin both provided an important reminder for college football fans this offseason. 

Heupel and Kiffin both suffered tough family losses in recent months. 

In May, Heupel's mother, Cindy, passed away at the age of 69. 

On Thursday, Kiffin's father, Monte (a former Vols defensive coordinator), passed away at the age of 84. 

In Heupel's case, his mom's passing came just a couple of weeks before a string of several massive recruiting weekends in Knoxville (Tennessee, like many programs around the nation, started hosting official visits at the end of May). 

The loss of a parent is a tough time for any human. The grieving process is obviously different for everyone, but it's undoubtedly one of the toughest things that anyone will go through in life. 

Most folks with "normal" jobs might get some time to step away from their careers after suffering the loss of a loved one. Or maybe their bosses are a bit more lenient with their workload as they work through the emotions of losing a parent. In Heupel's case, he had to continue to recruit and prepare for numerous huge official visits that will shape Tennessee's football program for years to come. 

Being a college football coach is already a high stress job. But while everyone was counting on Heupel to nail these recruiting weekends, the fourth-year Vols head coach had to simultaneously deal with the loss of his mother. Heupel had to find a way to do his job without letting his loss affect his focus. It sounds like a nearly impossible task, but he found a way. 

The same applies to Kiffin, who is also still hard at work with recruiting while preparing for SEC Media Days next week, as well as the start of fall camp for Ole Miss near the end of the month. There are essentially no off days for a college football coach (especially in the current landscape).

It's important to remember that these coaches are human. It doesn't matter how big their contract is, nothing eases the pain of losing a loved one — especially a parent. These guys are just like anyone else in the community. They love, they hurt, they cry, they deal with anxiety and pressure. And they have do all of that while living in the public eye and while also facing massive expectations (it's the SEC…it just means more, right?). It's not easy. In fact, I have no clue how they do it. 

So yeah, I get that these guys are paid to win games no matter what. They're paid to land the top recruits in the nation and to joyfully shake hands with donors even when their mind is a million miles away. But they're human. And no amount of money or championship glory changes that. 

It seems like we could all show a little more grace these days — especially in this current age of social media — and the personal losses of Heupel and Kiffin this offseason are a big reminder of that. 

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