Be sure to visit the Action Networks NCAAF Odds page each week to the lay of the land for betting lines. The Alabama Crimson Tide has produced the most NFL players out of all college football teams. Alabama - 319 What College Has The Most NFL Players - 2019 Alabama - 53 LSU - 51 Ohio State - 46 USC - 44 Miami - 43 Florida - 43 The content on this page is for informational purposes only. following organizations: Whoops! Florida State (275) 23. Highest AV in NFL: Randall McDaniel (129), Most touchdowns in NFL: Charley Taylor (90), Most games played in NFL: Terrell Suggs (244). The Boilermakers started playing football in 1892 and have sent big names to the NFL. 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). Iowas defense-heavy mindset seemed to carry on to all of its NFL players as they come up on the short end of touchdowns scored in the NFL. LSU's 3 permanent rivals for 9-game SEC schedule have been set, per report, Quinten Dormady, former Tennessee QB, under playbook investigation in XFL, Alabama basketball adds commitment from 4-star forward, Billy Napier addresses Florida staff openings at start of spring practice, BetMGM Massachusetts Bonus Code: How to Claim the $200 Bonus Bet Offer This Weekend, FanDuel Massachusetts Promo: Pre-Launch Special Scores $100 in Bonus Bets, Jalin Hyatt impresses in limited NFL Combine showing, WynnBET Mass Promo Code: How to Claim Big Value with Pre-Launch Bonus, BetMGM UFC 285 Promo Code: Claim $1,000 First Bet Offer on Any Fight, Texas A&M punctuates impressive SEC season with upset of No. Here's a breakdown of the 10 states with the most NFL players: It's always fun to see which states generate the most NFL talent. Its quality, as well. Stay up to date with what you want to know. Notre Dame, USC, and Ohio State have produced 400 or more NFL players in history. But in recent years, the states that are football factories has shifted a little. 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. Quarterbacks taken ahead of Fouts that year include Bert Jones (Baltimore Colts), Gary Huff (Chicago Bears), Ron Jaworski (Los Angeles Rams), Gary Keithley (St. Louis Cardinals) and Joe Ferguson (Buffalo Bills). 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. Despite ranking fifth among all programs in NFL players produced, Penn State doesnt even lead the Big Ten in that regard, or even rank second. Don Majkowski. Its one of the most exciting times of the year for football fans around the country. Nick Saban has given NFL franchises 29 first-round picks during his time as Alabama's head coach 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. Dick Butkus and Ray Nitschke dominated in the 1960s and '70s, and the Fighting Illinis success also is in yesteryear. Penn State - 359 5. Three legendary Cal stars are quarterback Aaron Rodgers, tight end Tony Gonzalez and running back Marshawn Lynch. The GLIAC has the most active NFL players with 10, followed by the Mid-America conference with 9. That is reflected by the Gators having the fifth-most active players in the NFL despite being outside the top 10 in total players. Yet the Panthers also have the third-most Pro Football Hall of Famers of any football program, pointing to the pull of Pittsburgh for top talent in Western Pennsylvania. The District of Columbia, with one NFL player for every 54,702 residents, has the most NFL players per capita. by Rick Cleveland, Mississippi Today November 1, 2021, This and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.. It's no surprise the schools that dominate on Saturdays see their alumni playing on Sundays. 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. Here are the universities cultivating the talent: In Alabama, theres no denying which school is best at producing professional football players. They grew up just 10 minutes from each other in Chicago and are universally known by their surnames: Butkus and Nitschke. . This makes up 2.79% of the NFL. They are from Pro Football Reference and through the 2022 NFL season. Here is a breakdown of the states where the most active NFL players were born Sign up for notifications from Insider! We also took the combined data we had gathered and made a slightly different graphic for the entire history of the NFL. The combination of our local NFL squad picking at the top of the draft, an accomplished alum serving in a major leadership role for a different team, and our general interest in seeing college students start their careers after school really got our team thinking about what it means for these student-athletes who are preparing to drop the student part of that moniker. The Bruins are considered a basketball school while nearby USC is considered the citys football school, but UCLA gets more than just the Trojans leftovers. The Volunteers can thank three players for boosting up their number of Pro Bowl selections: Peyton Manning (14), Reggie White (13) and Jason Witten (11) account for nearly 30 percent of those nods. Any web site our stories appear on must include a contact for your organization. After starring at Snider High School in Fort Wayne, Indiana, Woodson stayed close to home and became an All-American for the Boilermakers. The numbers were run through a principle component analysis -- boiling the information down to the most important data points -- to create the overall rankings. More Local News to Love Start today for 50% off Expires 3/6/23. Eleven ZIP codes have produced three NFL QBs, and 60 can boast two. At the other end of the spectrum, North Dakota, Delaware, and New Hampshire are each the birthplace of a single player in the NFL. For more information on our cookie collection and use please visit our Privacy Policy. That is more than 30 percent of all active players listed Pro-Football-Reference.com. necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Grand Canyon University. The Ducks didn't win another "Granddaddy" until 2011, when Chip Kelly and his high-flying offense beat Wisconsin 45-38. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. 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). Heck, it doesnt even finish in the top two in its own division thanks to the two participants of "The Game" beating them out. The sheer size of California and the number of universities within it has propelled the state to #2 on the list. Yes, Bulldogs Dak Prescott and perhaps Fletcher Cox are future Hall of Famers but thats a few years away. Yet Texas leads the U.S. in Super Bowl wins above expectation. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not From there, we ranked which state currently has produced the most NFL players. And giving them three is a bit generous since Troy Aikman started his career at OU, but finished it at UCLA. He was sports editor of Hattiesburg American, executive director of the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Second is California with 187, followed by Texas (160), Georgia (97), Ohio (80), Pennsylvania (66) and Louisiana (63). 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. 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. Many may not think of the Tar Heel State as a football-dominant state, but they sure know how to produce top-talent. Any sources cited were Using traditional offensive and defensive formations as our guide, we were able to create a unique starting lineup of college football teams, using their logos as stand-ins. 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. 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. Second is Ohio State with 67, followed by LSU with 62. Its not just quantity were talking about either. NFL draft picks since 2000: 57. accurate as of the publish date. 4 on the leagues all-time passing yardage list. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). North Carolina can claim 121 current NFL players in the league. 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. Will Furrer. Bottom line: Oregon won a Rose Bowl in their first season in 1916. Texas has produced more active NFL players than any other U.S. state. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. None are bigger than Drew Brees, who threw for 80,358 yards in his NFL career, more yards than any other quarterback in NFL history. Nevertheless, with names like Bo Jackson, Ronnie Brown, and Stephen Davis, the Tigers have been a football factory at producing NFL running backs. Switzer was a center, linebacker, and captain of the 1959 team that won the Southwest Conference and Gator Bowl. And of those, 11 come from high schools located within 30 miles of Atlanta. 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. 4-year graduation rate: 90%. Heres the breakdown: There are three colleges that have dominated Florida football for decades. We support responsible gambling. If you share our stories on social media, please tag us in your posts using. A graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi with a bachelors in journalism, Rick has worked for the Monroe (La.) That Mississippi led all other states, said Diallo, was the part we found super interesting.. 4-year graduation rate: 66%. It features arguably the most successful college football program in history. Trevor Lawrence, of Cartersville High, and Justin Fields, of Harrison High, became the top two recruits in the nation in 2018. 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. Nearly 900 players came from the USC and UCLA campuses (separated by just 11 miles), but the majority of those are singing "Fight On.". How 'bout them Hogs? Rounding out the top five are USC (479), Ohio State (426), Penn State (359), and Nebraska (346). 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. 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. Some regions of the country, though, have become well known for regularly producing NFL-caliber talent. These high schools have produced the most NFL players. And while not everyone can get their name called to start a professional football career, everyone can set themselves up for a successful career in another field with the help of a quality education like the one you will receive at Grand Canyon University. No. Then he starred for the Steelers, Ravens, 49ers and Raiders in the NFL. Another amazing fact: Jackson State, alone, has produced four Hall of Famers, three of them native Mississippians. 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). Heres the full chart that Feldman shared on Twitter below: The District of Columbia, with one NFL player for every 54,702 residents, has the most NFL players per capita. You could say it all started with the godfather of football, Pop Warner. However, players of that caliber have been few and far between in recent years as the majority of Michigan States NFL alums played in the early days of the NFL. Dont forget to take advantage of Caesars Sportsbooks NCAAF odds week-in and week-out! 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. Cardale Jones. 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. Louisiana is famous for its Cajun food, jazz music, Mardi Gras -- and quarterbacks. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Others create politicians. Editorial cartoons and photo essays are not included under the Creative Commons license and therefore do not have the "Republish This Story" button option. Eventually, we had gathered data on every player to ever appear on an active NFL roster, including their position, who they played for, how long they played in the league and of course which college they attended. Bottom line:Wisconsin has the most NFL players of any school to never win a national championship their highest season-ending finish was No. Ousmane Diallo, a data analyst for Rise at Seven, led a team of five that did the research and tallied the results. When you factor in population, the state produces 26.6 pro football players for every 100,000 people. Bottom line:The Auburn Tigers are not currently considered an SEC powerhouse, but it wasn't that long ago when they were. No. U.S. News rank: 18 (tie), National Universities. The University of Alabama has produced the most pro athletes out of college, though, with 82. Most touchdowns in NFL: Tony Gonzalez (111), Most games played in NFL: Tony Gonzalez (270). Troy Aikman, Jonathan Ogden and Jimmy Johnson all have rejected USC for Westwood and currently reside in the Hall of Fame. Bottom line:No list about football would be complete without the state of Texas, and the Longhorn State lands its first of two proficient programs. No matter who you root for, the NFL Draft represents an exciting time in the lives of football fans, one that brings the promise and potential of new talent and new hopes for on-field success. Time will tell! With 14 cities producing at least four players on Kickoff Weekend rosters, Texas surpassed Florida to lead the league in home states. Or should be. Only five players in the program's history have been selected first . is known world wide for having some of the best athletes in the world. Across NFL draft history, Notre Dame and USC have seen the most alums get drafted, according to drafthistory.com -- and they are also the most popular programs for the Eagles over time. West Virginia University's Morgantown recruits many of these athletes. The school actually has more Heisman winners (2) than Pro Football Hall of Famers (1), though Von Miller or even Shane Lechler may one day even things up. Bottom line:Illinois never won a national championship, but the Illini had two of the most iconic players in NFL history. Bruce Feldman of FOX Sports shared a chart on Twitter on Thursday that breaks down which states have the most NFL players per capita. For the Cardinals, this means that Georgia Tech and Duke footballers last the longest with the franchise at nearly four seasons on average. Notre Dame - 495 2. Walter Payton, from Columbia and Jackson State, is the NFLs second all-time leading rusher. Coach Urban Meyer preparing players for the NFL also was a huge attraction as many of those 65 players came under his tenure. How 'bout them Cowboys? In the 1980's, the L.A. Rams featured one of the best NFL running backs of all time in Eric Dickerson, who tore defenses apart and set the league's single season rushing record in 1984. North Dakota State's Trey Lance could be the first Minnesota QB selected in the first round. Weve ranked the best NFL-talent producing universities in Texas, California, Florida, North Carolina, and Alabama. Read on to see the results. The schools other Hall of Famers are quarterback Bobby Layne, running back Earl Campbell and defensive back Bobby Dillon. Bottom line: Stanford didn't invent football, but the school helped popularize it in the 1920s and '30s with Pop Warner, who coached the Cardinal from 1924 to 1932. We are particularly interested in which colleges have been the most successful at sending players to the pros. Nebraska,. We believe that an informed Mississippi is a better Mississippi. But even the most diehard of Notre Dame fans would admit that their best days are well behind them. Evans . We may be compensated for the links provided on this page. Most touchdowns in NFL: LeGarrette Blount (58), Most games played in NFL: George Martin (201). 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. 20 college football teams we aren't sold on in 2023, SEC Basketball Power Rankings: Mizzou shocks Tennessee, Alabama downs Auburn and more, SEC Basketball Power Rankings: Alabama stays unbeaten in SEC play, Tennessee outlasts Auburn and more, SEC Basketball Power Rankings: A new top team emerges, Alabama loses in blowout fashion, Mizzou lights it up again. With your help, we've gotten a lot done but we're not finished yet! 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. For the Cardinals, this evaluation showed us that there was a particularly strong connection to Notre Dame from the 1920s to the 1950s when the team was located in nearby Chicago. The NFL is known world wide for having some of the best athletes in the world. Is it any surprise that the Lone Star State tops the ranking? Brees or Woodson at the top of the Purdue football alumni depth chart? . Most touchdowns in NFL: Mike Alstott (71), Most games played in NFL: Drew Brees (287). Additionally, Miami wins the all-important Battle for Florida since it has more Pro Bowl selections (181) than Florida State (103) and Florida (89). second most all-time wins in college football history. Our site uses cookies to personalize content, to provide social media features/ads and to analyze site traffic. The research was done by Sidelines, a sports technology and digital media company, which also found that Texas has produced the most NFL players (2,515) of any state. Of the 16 Tigers to make at least one All-Pro first team, 11 were offensive players including Hall of Famers Y.A. In Georgia, one NFL player is played for every 81,409 people, while in Florida, one is played for every 91,847 people. Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. No promotions available. Former Buckeyes in the NFL draft this year include Kendall Sheffield (CB, Atlanta Falcons), Rod Smith (RB, Carolina Panthers) and Justin Fields (QB, Chicago Bears). The Sunshine State comes in at #3 with 149 total players in the NFL. Before making life miserable for NFL defenses, they were doing the same to opponents in college. Miami - 341 8. We also identified the college football programs that sent the most players to the NFL within those states. 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). In fact, those three states rank 1-2-3 all-time for states where NFL.