Many of the schools on this list are poised to send another great class of rookies to the NFL next season. Miami Hurricane alums rank second in NFL touchdowns scored and fourth in Pro Bowl selections, despite having 60-70 percent of the number of players that the top two schools have produced. In terms of players by decade, the NFL relied heavily on schools from the Midwest such as Notre Dame and Minnesota in the early days, before shifting their focus out west to USC in the 70s and 80s before settling into a varied approach that has seen schools from the Midwest, California, and the Southeast regularly headlining NFL rosters over the last 30 years. With 14 cities producing at least four players on Kickoff Weekend rosters, Texas surpassed Florida to lead the league in home states. With the 2021 NFL Draft now firmly in the rearview mirror, here's an updated look at the 25 schools with the most all-time NFL Draft picks. It is reflected in the NFL as well. While everything may be bigger in Texas, the Aggies come up small in terms of Pro Football Hall of Famers. One of the exciting things about going to college is that youll have the opportunity to direct the course of your own education. Yes, Bulldogs Dak Prescott and perhaps Fletcher Cox are future Hall of Famers but thats a few years away. Highest AV in NFL: Randall McDaniel (129), Most touchdowns in NFL: Charley Taylor (90), Most games played in NFL: Terrell Suggs (244). So we set out to determine what state produces the most NFL players. 211 current NFL players came from a school in Texas. Madison, Wisconsin, may not be the first location that many transfers think of when deciding where they want to finish their college careers, but it has proven to be a much-sought-after destination for some of the NFLs best players. The higher the AV, the greater the career he had. Jones was a Razorback starter at offensive guard and co-captain when the team won the national title. The GLIAC has the most active NFL players with 10, followed by the Mid-America conference with 9. Recent post: What Color Is Associated With The Number 5? is known world wide for having some of the best athletes in the world. Bottom line:While many of the aforementioned schools have had recent success but not decades of winning, the exact opposite can be said for Nebraska. BALTIMORE, MD - SEPTEMBER 09: Quarterback Lamar Jackson #8 of the Baltimore Ravens rushes against the Buffalo Bills during the second half at M&T Bank Stadium on September 9, 2018 in Baltimore, Maryland. LSUs alums rank fifth all-time in touchdowns scored, with most of their best players lining up on the offensive side of the ball. Yet Texas leads the U.S. in Super Bowl wins above expectation. Arkansas football also produced Jerry Jones, Hall of Fame owner of the Dallas Cowboys, and Jimmy Johnson and Barry Switzer, two Super Bowl-winning coaches in Dallas. Its highest touchdown scorer, Elroy Hirsch, found the end zone just 66 times. Some regions of the country, though, have become well known for regularly producing NFL-caliber talent. The numbers were run through a principle component analysis -- boiling the information down to the most important data points -- to create the overall rankings. Subscribe to get the latest insight from Mel Kiper Jr., Todd McShay and all of our experts heading into the NFL draft, plus thousands of your favorite sporting events. After all, our hometown Arizona Cardinals have the first overall pick! Bottom line:1980 was a landmark year for the Georgia Bulldogs football program as they claimed their first national championship while riding the legs of Herschel Walker. Here is another area where Notre Dames influence is readily apparent, as they are the top school at seven of the 24 positions we evaluated, including key positions such as quarterback and running back. Bottom line:Wisconsin has the most NFL players of any school to never win a national championship their highest season-ending finish was No. Trevor Lawrence, of Cartersville High, and Justin Fields, of Harrison High, became the top two recruits in the nation in 2018. Bottom line:Pittsburgh has just six Top 25 finishes in the last 35 years and hasnt won more than 10 games since 1981. This site .css-110721q{color:#0079F0;}contains commercial content. Ohio State is just one of three colleges to produce more than 400 NFL players. Before he expanded to Louisiana and founded his own personal QB franchise, Archie Manning started another unique trend of QB1s from his home state of Mississippi. Please reload the page and try again. Coach Urban Meyer preparing players for the NFL also was a huge attraction as many of those 65 players came under his tenure. The state of California has produced the most players in today's NFL. Once we started looking through historic roster data for various NFL teams, we really didnt want to stop. The University of Alabama has produced the most pro athletes out of college, though, with 82. And that Mississippi number doesnt count such NFL legends as Ray Guy, Robert Brazile and Gene Hickerson, who played their college ball in Mississippi after growing up in nearby states. California and Texas are still at the top of the list. Follow on Twitter @RichExner or see previous stories at cleveland.com/datacentral. These high schools have produced the most NFL players. (You can find them here.). Of those, 74 have made it to the big game, with three former Buckeyes making four Super Bowl appearances each.. Nebraska, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Alabama round out the top five. The Lone Star State produced a plethora of talented quarterbacks, such as Drew Brees, Baker Mayfield, Kyler Murray and Ryan Tannehill. This college has also produced the second-most players in the 2021 season. Action Network conducted a study to identify which state produced the most current NFL talent, which determined that the Lone Star State was the home of 211 active players, which accounts for 1 in every 12 players. Historically, Texas, California, and Pennsylvania have been hotbeds for football talent. St. Ignatius (Ohio) is in the only ZIP code with four NFL quarterbacks, though the most well-known name from that group is Luck -- and it's not the Luck you think it is. Mississippi averages 26.6 NFL players for every 100,000 citizens. Or should. Youd probably expect huge numbers from the likes of Texas, California and Pennsylvania, but when you take into account population, it completely changes the outlook, Diallo said. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images). Brett Favre, from Kiln and Southern Miss, is No. Others create politicians. But the Ducks have had a lot of talent over the years. By continuing to navigate this site you are consenting to the collection of information via our use of cookies. Nick Saban has given NFL franchises 29 first-round picks during his time as Alabama's head coach Brees also won a Super Bowl (XLIV), was Super Bowl MVP, a 13-time Pro Bowler and a one-time All-Pro. The universities to follow Alabama were Ohio State, Florida, Louisiana State and Michigan, all courtesy of its football programs. Total enrollment in fall 2021: 13,139. But Michigan also has struggled when it comes to skill position players in the NFL. Colleges That Have Produced the Most NFL Players Alabama's Crimson Tide has 58 former student-athletes in the NFL, producing more pro players recently than other colleges. The state of Mississippi has placed the most players in the NFL capita, according to a by Sidelines. Nebraska,. Active NFL players from Texas include Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes; Buffalo Bills linebacker Von Miller; Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans; Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray; San Francisco 49ers offensive tackle Trent Williams. While ranking 22nd in all-time NFL players, Auburn ranks 23rd in active players after ranking eighth in 2019, pointing to their recent struggles. How 'bout them Hogs? Bottom line:Lots of schools have proclaimed themselves as "DB U" due to the prolific number of defensive backs they have sent to the NFL. Weve ranked the best NFL-talent producing universities in Texas, California, Florida, North Carolina, and Alabama. In fact, those three states rank 1-2-3 all-time for states where NFL players were born. California, with 141 quarterbacks, is tops in the union with 14 Super Bowl wins in 25 starts, three Hall of Famers, seven No. Did you also know that the streak started a dozen years before the NFL was founded so none of the players on those teams made it to the league? Bottom line:Whether or not Notre Dame is the greatest program in NCAA history is up for debate, but theres no denying the impact that the Fighting Irish football program has had on the NFL. A graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi with a bachelors in journalism, Rick has worked for the Monroe (La.) We also took the combined data we had gathered and made a slightly different graphic for the entire history of the NFL. In the City of Miami, State of Florida, Saint Thomas Aquinas High School produces the most NFL players. And some make NFL players. Arkansas has sent almost 300 players to the NFL. To learn more about our cartoon syndication services. Bottom line:Most people think of Michigan State as a basketball school, but the Spartans are one of the best football programs in the nation in producing elite receivers. The content on this page is for informational purposes only. Only five players in the program's history have been selected first . Kiper's two-round mock draft: Top-five trade, record QB haul, Kiper's favorite draft prospects at every position, Biggest question marks for draft's top quarterbacks. as well as other partner offers and accept our. A cleveland.com review of opening week rosters found Florida leads with the way with 193 players, based on the place of birth of each player. Every April, a new crop of young men try to make the leap from college to the pros where they will try to carve out a career for themselves in the NFL. After Georgia the drop-off is significant. Texas used to be the dominant team in the state, but the rise of other programs like Texas A&M and TCU in recent years has taken some wind out of its sails. U.S. News rank: 57 (tie), National Universities. More:Mississippi State upends No. and Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett, who rated as the top prospect from the Lone Star State for the 2014 national recruiting cycle before signing with Texas A&M. Of the 16 Tigers to make at least one All-Pro first team, 11 were offensive players including Hall of Famers Y.A. According to Pro Football Reference, Arizona has produced 19 NFL quarterbacks, eighth most in the country, but it has the lowest percentage of starts (55%) among states with at least 400 games . North Carolina can claim 121 current NFL players in the league. Even though Florida has had over 385 former Gators suit up in the NFL, none of those players were ever drafted first overall out of UF. California alone, at 225 active players, accounts for more than ten percent of NFL players. Miami - 341 8. Rounding out the top five are USC (479), Ohio State (426), Penn State (359), and Nebraska (346). Mississippi not only produces the most NFL players per capita, but not only that, the state also produced the most Pro Football Hall of Famers per capita, as well, Diallo said. Not only have they sent the most players to the league, but they also have sent the most players to the Pro Football Hall of Fame (14), which is perhaps an even better measure of the talent produced by a program. The data was analyzed through the lenses of number of quarterbacks, Hall of Fame quarterbacks, Super Bowl wins and NFL approximate value (AV). Florida, California, Texas, Georgia and Ohio are the states where the most NFL players were born, based on rosters the Monday before the start of the 2016 season, cleveland.com research found. Is it any surprise that the Lone Star State tops the ranking? They grew up just 10 minutes from each other in Chicago and are universally known by their surnames: Butkus and Nitschke. 4-year graduation rate: 66%. Using this data we were able to illustrate some key data points for every franchise in the league, as well as the league as a whole. It's no surprise the schools that dominate on Saturdays see their alumni playing on Sundays. They both were middle linebackers and played for rival franchises in the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers, respectively. Be sure to visit the Action Networks NCAAF Odds page each week to the lay of the land for betting lines.