But well take what we can get. Mississippi averages 26.6 NFL players for every 100,000 citizens. Bledsoe, the No. 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. Bottom line:The dominance of Alabama under Nick Saban isnt limited to just the college game. 2 Alabama, SEC Women's Basketball Tournament action suspended due to weather delay, 2 SEC players named to late-season watch list for Oscar Robertson Player of the Year Trophy, Overrated? Colleges That Have Produced the Most NFL Players From there, we ranked which state currently has produced the most NFL players. 13 Texas A&M at Kyle Field, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. Nearly 900 players came from the USC and UCLA campuses (separated by just 11 miles), but the majority of those are singing "Fight On.". The second-most populous state, Texas also leads the country in a key formula component -- Division I football programs -- with 21, seven more than any other state. 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. Action Network's list of the top 10 states with the most active NFL players is listed below: Texas- 211 California- 149 Florida- 149 North Carolina- 121 Alabama- 109 Pennsylvania- 106 Ohio- 104 Michigan- 103 Louisiana- 102 Georgia- 89 Advertise With Us For You We do not target any individuals under the age of 21. Meanwhile, the Magnolia State has plenty to celebrate when it comes to football or writers and entertainers, for that matter. Mississippi averages 26.6 NFL players for every 100,000 citizens. 2 is Louisiana (one in 76,837) .. No. While Brady (and his seven rings) is the headliner, the Golden State's dominance is more than just the Golden Boy, a sixth-round pick who graduated from Serra High School in 1995. During your secondary school years, you likely had a little One of the most common questions students hear is, What do you want to be when you grow up? For many individuals that answer is subject to change over time. History of Colleges Most Represented on NFL Rosters - GCU Penn State - 359 5. California - 460.6 Aaron Rodgers, Pleasant Valley (Chico) - 104.1 Tom Brady, Serra (San Mateo) - 96.4 Carson Palmer, Santa Margarita (Rancho Santa Margarita) - 88.1 Jeff Garcia, Gilroy - 87.5 Alex Smith, Helix (La Mesa) - 84.5 2. The Buckeye State had 78 players in the NFL ranks in 2014. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. Total enrollment in fall 2021: 13,139. High Schools With the Most NFL Players on 2022 Kickoff Weekend Rosters had produced 63 NFL players, the most among the nation . These colleges have produced the most NFL players, and they have a track record of success on the gridiron. A study conducted by Grand Canyon University found that Notre Dame has produced the most players in NFL history, with 495 of the league's 25,453 all-time players coming out of the school. If youre not able to add the byline, please include a line at the top of the story that reads: This story was originally published by Mississippi Today and include our website, You cannot republish our editorial cartoons, photographs, illustrations or graphics without specific permission (contact our managing editor. In fact, since Saban became coach in 2007, the Crimson Tide have more first-round picks (39) than losses (27). What state produces the most NFL players header image. Louisiana is the state with the best ratio (one NFL player per 76,837 people), followed by Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Florida and South Carolina. More than 25 percent of its 98 Pro Bowl selections came from just four defensive backs: Mike Haynes (9), Eric Allen (6), Louis Wright (5) and Darren Woodson (5). Both J.J. Watt and Russell Wilson started their college careers elsewhere, then ended their playing days suiting up for the red and white of the Wisconsin Badgers. Most touchdowns in NFL: James Lofton (76), Most games played in NFL: John Elway (234). All 11 of the school's conference championships have come under Spurrier and Meyer, who made Gainesville a pipeline to the NFL unlike previous coaches. Any amount helps us keep producing quality journalism for Mississippi. All six of the Nittany Lions' Pro Football Hall of Famers come from those states, including Franco Harris and Jack Ham, who were Penn State teammates and then teammates with the Pittsburgh Steelers. But Knoxville, with its close location to the Gulf Coast, the Eastern Seaboard and the Midwest, is still adept at attracting top college prospects. Recent post: What Color Is Associated With The Number 5? Alabama rounds out the top 5 with 109 active NFL players. Thats right, Mississippi, for its population, produces more pro football players than Texas, Florida, California and more than Louisiana and Alabama, as well. second most all-time wins in college football history. California ranked second among all U.S. states with 151 players drafted. To learn more about our cartoon syndication services. Which college has the most NFL players? - Sportskeeda Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. Some colleges excel at producing Fortune 500 CEOs. Troy Aikman, Jonathan Ogden and Jimmy Johnson all have rejected USC for Westwood and currently reside in the Hall of Fame. Perhaps a surprise to some, North Carolina takes the fourth spot. Which college football program sends the most players to the NFL? Nebraska,. Nebraska (21.3 per 100,000), Oklahoma (also 21.3), and Louisiana (21.2) were the three states closest to Mississippi in NFL players per capita. Total enrollment: 46,810. Beyond that local rooting interest, there is at least one Grand Canyon graduate that has a major impact on the fortunes of an NFL franchise, even if most of his work takes place away from the field. We center readers in everything we do, informingand engagingMississippians through reporting, podcasts, events and online communities. LSU - 325 10. Yes, Bulldogs Dak Prescott and perhaps Fletcher Cox are future Hall of Famers but thats a few years away. Switzer was a center, linebacker, and captain of the 1959 team that won the Southwest Conference and Gator Bowl. Its quality, as well. Many may not think of the Tar Heel State as a football-dominant state, but they sure know how to produce top-talent. We may be compensated for the links provided on this page. It features arguably the most successful college football program in history. Their time will come. Top 10 States that have produced the greatest NFL quarterbacks Graphic by Ryan Escobar 1. a proud member of the Among states with SEC schools, the per capita numbers are: Mississippi (first, 26.6), Louisiana (fourth, 21.2), Alabama (fifth, 17), Arkansas (12th, 13.4), Tennessee (13th, 13.3), South Carolina (14th, 11.5), Kentucky (16th, 9.9), Texas (23rd, 8.5), Florida (34th, 6), Georgia (35th, 6) andMissouri (38th, 5.3). 4-year graduation rate: 90%. Several prestigious Texas programs have contributed to the current NFL talent pool. Just because we dont have a college team of our own here at Grand Canyon University doesnt mean that we arent caught up in the excitement and talent infusion the draft brings. Is it any surprise that the Lone Star State tops the ranking? Mississippi produces more NFL players per capita than any other state, and its not really that close. We also looked at the three college teams who had the most players join each professional team in every decade. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. With Trevor Lawrence and Justin Fields, Georgia will get a boost after the 2021 draft, climbing into the top five for the 2010s with six NFL quarterbacks. LSUs alums rank fifth all-time in touchdowns scored, with most of their best players lining up on the offensive side of the ball. These rankings are based on rosters published by Stats LLC on Monday afternoon, three days before the start of the season. as well as other partner offers and accept our. Arkansas (274) 24. The only thing missing from Washingtons NFL alumni is a successful wide receiver. So we set out to determine what state produces the most NFL players. You might mention that the next time the Crimson Tide kicks your favorite teams butt, as it has done to Southern Miss (63-14), Ole Miss (42-21) and Mississippi State (49-9) this season. Bottom line:Michigan has the second most all-time wins in college football history (behind Alabama), produced perhaps the greatest quarterback in NFL history (Tom Brady) and even had a future president play for them (Gerald Ford). Together these seven states are the birthplaces of 846 NFL players. There were at least eight Power 5 starting quarterbacks in college football last season from Arizona, but just two Arizonans started in the NFL last season (Kyle Allen and Ryan Fitzpatrick). But even the most diehard of Notre Dame fans would admit that their best days are well behind them. 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. City of Miami, State of Florida, Saint Thomas Aquinas High School Produce Most NFL Players Which state has most NFL players per capita? Most games played:Sebastian Janikowski (284). Its highest touchdown scorer, Elroy Hirsch, found the end zone just 66 times. Thats a no-brainer. The city of Miami has more NFL players than any other city, and these players just arent your run-of-the-mill second and third-stringers. 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. 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 played. But Michigan also has struggled when it comes to skill position players in the NFL. 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. Graphic: The 10 U.S. States With The Most Current NFL Players Would we Mississippians rather be ranked No. California and Texas are still at the top of the list. Which state has the most NFL teams? - Sportskeeda Now, Warner's name is synonymous with football in the United States, and Stanford has had a legacy of great passers who went on to shine in the NFL. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. They grew up just 10 minutes from each other in Chicago and are universally known by their surnames: Butkus and Nitschke. And that team just happens to be the only one that outpaced USC in NFL players produced. If you feel like you're losing control over your gambling experience, call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ, PA, WV), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-BETS-OFF (IA), 1-888- 532-3500(Virginia) 1-800-522-4700 (NV, TN), 1-800-522-4700 (CO, TN), 1-855-2CALLGA (IL), 1-800-270-7117 (MI). Read on to see the results. 2023 www.clarionledger.com. In Ohio, Cuyahoga County alone is the birthplace of 17 players. 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. 3 is Georgia (one in 78,761). Its one of the most exciting times of the year for football fans around the country. The 2022 season has seen 58 active players from the Alabama lineage. And of those, 11 come from high schools located within 30 miles of Atlanta. In terms of schools that have produced the most NFL players all-time, Notre Dame just edged out USC for the top spot, with Ohio State joining those historic programs as the only ones to send more than 400 players to the NFL. Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license. The school has produced Pro Bowlers at every other position on the field, but theyve yet to send a receiver to the Pro Bowl or have a receiver post a 1,000-yard season. That's reflective of Arizona's NFL history, which includes longtime backup Mike Pagel. First-rounders: 6. Heres the top five schools for sending players to the pros: There are five schools who that dominate when it comes to producing NFL talent in California. Bruce Feldman of FOX Sports shared a chart on Twitter on Thursday that breaks down which states have the most NFL players per capita. In third place for most NFL players is California, which gets to claim two legendary players in Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers. What high school has produced the most NFL quarterbacks? A total of 721 quarterbacks have debuted and played at least one game in the NFL during the Super Bowl era (since 1966), and the Bayou State outperformed expectations the most in a study by ESPN and Pro Football Reference. 211 current NFL players came from a school in Texas. The school has produced at least one player from every season of NFL football since the league resumed play in 2012. Ohio, a traditional Midwest football-mad state, is fifth on the list in terms of NFL players. And in 2018 and 2019, one out of four quarterbacks who started Week 1 hailed from the Lone Star State. The remaining seven states to crack the top 10 are Georgia, Ohio, Alabama, Pennsylvania, Louisiana, North Carolina and New Jersey. Which college teams produce the most NFL players? - Sidelines.io While that number seems impressive, its a low number for this list and ranks just 81st in terms of all college football programs. Bottom line:Perhaps the most impressive thing about the Buckeyes' NFL credentials is that they rank second in active players with 65. That is reflected by the Gators having the fifth-most active players in the NFL despite being outside the top 10 in total players. However, Nebraska hasnt finished in the top 10 in the final AP poll since the 2001 season, and its once-abundant NFL pipeline has all but dried up. But great players in Norman havent translated to great players in the NFL. We also took the combined data we had gathered and made a slightly different graphic for the entire history of the NFL. We will be watching alongside our fellow fans to see how it all unfolds and watch the young men getting drafted move on to the next phase of their lives. accurate as of the publish date. Rod Woodson already has a gold jacket and is the greatest Purdue football alum not named Brees. Most touchdowns in NFL: Lance Alworth (87), Most games played in NFL: Jason Peters (238). Colleges That Produce the Most NFL Players | Stadium Talk Bottom line: The California Golden Bears have been playing football since 1916. By clicking submit, you agree to share your email address with Mississippi Today. Over those100-plus years, they have won two national championships (1920 and 1922) and produced many pro players. 1980 also stands as the midpoint for Georgia football and the NFL draft as 50 percent of all drafted Bulldogs were selected before 1980 while the other half came in 1980 or later. CLEVELAND, Ohio - Half the players on NFL rosters are from just seven states, with Ohio being among the top producers of pro football talent. Copyright 2023 Action Network Inc, All Rights Reserved.Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | AdChoices. Bottom line: While six states on this list landed multiple programs in the top 25, only one city accomplished the feat, and thats Los Angeles. 1 in health, wealth and education? No. Jake Rill contributes to news coverage for Saturday Down South. 1 overall picks and 6,532 TD passes. Time will tell! We are particularly interested in which colleges have been the most successful at sending players to the pros. Heck, it doesnt even finish in the top two in its own division thanks to the two participants of "The Game" beating them out. North Carolina Perhaps a surprise to some, North Carolina takes the fourth spot. In fact, 12 of their Pro Bowl players played either running back or fullback. Or should. That is about 9% of the current active players in the league. North Dakota State's Trey Lance could be the first Minnesota QB selected in the first round. North Carolina can claim 121 current NFL players in the league. Arkansas has sent almost 300 players to the NFL. As one of the oldest teams in the league, the Cardinals have one of the largest rosters of players all-time, clocking in at over 1,800! Of that 82, 74 are playing in the NFL after spending time at Nick Saban's powerhouse football program. All four of those states are among the top 10 in producing NFL players, so Penn State is in an ideal location to land top talent. Rich Exner, data analysis editor for cleveland.com, writes about numbers on a variety of topics. The data was analyzed through the lenses of number of quarterbacks, Hall of Fame quarterbacks, Super Bowl wins and NFL approximate value (AV). Follow on Twitter @RichExner or see previous stories at cleveland.com/datacentral. Once we started looking through historic roster data for various NFL teams, we really didnt want to stop. The Bobby Bowden-Jimbo Fisher era was the best run in program history, and that was evident by FSU having 46 active players in the NFL in 2019. That list doesnt even include Cam Newton, who is the NFLs all-time leader in rushing touchdowns for a quarterback. This makes up 2.79% of the NFL. 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. Bottom line: Smack dab in the middle of Pennsylvania, Penn State isnt far from Ohio, New York and New Jersey. There have been 149 players in NFL history to rush for 5,000 yards in a career, but none of them have donned the maize and blue. No promotions available. Most touchdowns in NFL: Mike Alstott (71), Most games played in NFL: Drew Brees (287). This site .css-110721q{color:#0079F0;}contains commercial content. It's no surprise the schools that dominate on Saturdays see their alumni playing on Sundays. He might be No. Building The Roster: States that produce most, least NFL players Bottom line:No program has more wins or a better win percentage since World War II than Oklahoma a testament to the great players who have come through Norman. Oliver Luck hailed from St. Ignatius, but the 44113 doesn't get credit for his son Andrew, who went to high school in Texas. Dick Butkus and Ray Nitschke dominated in the 1960s and '70s, and the Fighting Illinis success also is in yesteryear. Although the Magnolia State has boasted just 11 NFL quarterbacks during the Super Bowl era (tied for 12th among all states), almost all of them were QB1s. Which college football program has the most NFL players active in the They have won just two conference titles in the last 35 years, and of their 61 Pro Bowl players, only one was drafted in the last 15 years (Vontae Davis, 2009). No school has more active NFL players than Alabamas 77, and that doesnt even include its 10 players taken in the 2019 draft, which was the most of any school. . This college has also produced the second-most players in the 2021 season. By state, NFL training-camp rosters had 336 former Texas high school players, 293 from Florida, 285 from California and 232 from Georgia. Second is California with 187, followed by Texas (160), Georgia (97), Ohio (80), Pennsylvania (66) and Louisiana (63). The most prolific quarterback state of the 2010s is Florida with nine, including Lamar Jackson and Teddy Bridgewater. Only 44 wide receivers in NFL history have reached 10,000 receiving yards, and three of them came from MSU Andre Rison, Muhsin Muhammad and Derrick Mason. The United States of quarterbacks will add more members to the club April 29-May 1 with the NFL draft (on ESPN/ESPN App) and maybe someday make some QB-starved states proud (we're looking at you, Utah and Minnesota). Newman had Peyton and Eli Manning, and Westlake's Drew Brees and Nick Foles also led world champions. The Penn State Nittany Lions, who began play in 1889, are among the most storied programs in . That is more than 30 percent of all active players listed Pro-Football-Reference.com. Chris Spencer (center for Tennessee Titans), Jamarca Sanford (defensive back for Minnesota Vikings) and Damien Lewis (offensive line for Seattle Seahawks) are all outstanding players from Mississippi. Try selecting a different location. In terms of 2018 rosters, however, it comes as no surprise that Alabama, the premier program in college football over the last decade, leads the way with 53 players, enough for an entire official NFL roster, suiting up during the most recent season. Oklahoma - 328 9. The most notable star to come from the Sunshine State is Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson. Eleven ZIP codes have produced three NFL QBs, and 60 can boast two. More Local News to Love Start today for 50% off Expires 3/6/23. The rest of the country and other places around the world are home to 838 players. For the Cardinals, this means that Georgia Tech and Duke footballers last the longest with the franchise at nearly four seasons on average.