Notre Dame - 495 2. The schools other Hall of Famers are quarterback Bobby Layne, running back Earl Campbell and defensive back Bobby Dillon. The answer may surprise you. Some regions of the country, though, have become well known for regularly producing NFL-caliber talent. 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. Florida was also the home of superstars like Dalvin Cook, Amari Cooper, Lavonte David, Derrick Henry, Calvin Ridley and Matthew Stafford. Nebraska, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Alabama round out the top five. 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. We also looked at career length to find which colleges players have the longest average careers on different NFL teams. That is, the Magnolia State, relatively small and poor in so many ways, kicks tail when it comes to producing football talent. And Jacksonville, Florida, native Mac Jones is expected to be the third straight Alabama QB selected in the first round, with none of the three hailing from Alabama. You could say it all started with the godfather of football, Pop Warner. In the last six years . We do not sell or share your information with anyone. 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. 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. 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. This makes up 2.79% of the NFL. California and Texas are still at the top of the list. Many may not think of the Tar Heel State as a football-dominant state, but they sure know how to produce top-talent. First-rounders: 6. That is more than 1 in every 12 players currently in the league. Ohio has 71 players in the league followed by Alabama with 61, Virginia with 58 (and that so many played at prep school in that state helps) and North . Three of those Razorbackers became Hall of Famers: wide receiver Lance Alworth, defensive lineman Dan Hampton and free safety Steve Atwater. Follow on Twitter @RichExner or see previous stories at cleveland.com/datacentral. Ousmane Diallo, a data analyst for Rise at Seven, led a team of five that did the research and tallied the results. The data was analyzed through the lenses of number of quarterbacks, Hall of Fame quarterbacks, Super Bowl wins and NFL approximate value (AV). The Ohio State University has produced a total of 411 players since the 17th NFL season in 1936. Coach Urban Meyer preparing players for the NFL also was a huge attraction as many of those 65 players came under his tenure. His work as a syndicated columnist and celebrated sports writer has appeared in numerous magazines, periodicals and newspapers. 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. 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. NFL draft picks since 2000: 57. Don Majkowski. We also took the combined data we had gathered and made a slightly different graphic for the entire history of the NFL. 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). It features arguably the most successful college football program in history. Help keep the momentum going by rejoining our member community today. 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). Since 1936, 788 NFL players have come from Mississippi. If you share our stories on social media, please tag us in your posts using. 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. Texas is a football crazy state where towns live and die by their local teams at every level. . Among states that have produced at least 15 NFL quarterbacks, Washington has the highest average draft position at 71.3 for its 16 QBs selected in the NFL draft (not counting the supplemental draft). 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. pic.twitter.com/bxIOhq6fqz, Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) September 13, 2018. Those three states currently have 597 players in the NFL. 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). You may have been obsessed with becoming You may have already come across the term senioritis while in high school, and perhaps youve dealt with a bout of it already as you prepared for your high school graduation. accurate as of the publish date. Top editors give you the stories you want delivered right to your inbox each weekday. Though it might surprise some fans, the state of Florida actually has the most current NFL players. 1 overall pick. West Virginia University's Morgantown recruits many of these athletes. 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. No. To learn more about our cartoon syndication services. For more information on our cookie collection and use please visit our Privacy Policy. The Alabama Crimson Tide has produced the most NFL players out of all college football teams. 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. We share information about your use of this site with our social media, advertising and analytics teams who may combine it with other information that youve provided to them. But the Texas total computes to only 8.5 players per 100,000, about one-third of what Mississippi has produced. With 14 cities producing at least four players on Kickoff Weekend rosters, Texas surpassed Florida to lead the league in home states. That would be Grand Canyon University Athletics Hall of Fame member and Antelopes basketball legend Kevin Warren, who has been an executive for multiple NFL teams stretching back to the 1990s. 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. Data was culled from Pro Football Reference to figure out which states have over- or underperformed based on the expected number of NFL quarterbacks produced, decided by population size and the number of Division I programs in a state. Additionally, Miami wins the all-important Battle for Florida since it has more Pro Bowl selections (181) than Florida State (103) and Florida (89). Others create politicians. Check out the full list of 721 quarterbacks divided by state here. 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. The Sooners have only three Hall of Famers. Texas ranks last in ESPN's QB formula because of the expectations given the state's resources. Most games played:Sebastian Janikowski (284). 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. Time will tell! The higher the AV, the greater the career he had. Rick has been recognized 13 times as Mississippi Sports Writer of the Year, and is recipient of multiple awards and honors for his reporting and writing. 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. Here is a breakdown of the states where the most active NFL players were born Sign up for notifications from Insider! The NFLs all-time leading receiver and touchdown scorer is Jerry Rice, from Crawford and Mississippi Valley 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. Washington is 10th overall in our rankings thanks in large part to Drew Bledsoe, Chris Chandler, Mark Rypien and Jon Kitna, whose careers have the highest approximate values among the state's 22 QBs. 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? Pennsylvania - 443.4 Mississippi State has no former players the Pro Football Hall of Fame. 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. Hall of Famers Warren Moon and Hugh McElhenny came from Los Angeles, six-time Pro Bowl center Olin Kreutz came from Hawaii, and Marcus Peters was from Oakland. Action Network makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the information given or the outcome of any game or event. After starring at Snider High School in Fort Wayne, Indiana, Woodson stayed close to home and became an All-American for the Boilermakers. Of that 82, 74 are playing in the NFL after spending time at Nick Saban's powerhouse football program. Notre Dames lack of recent success bears out in the number of active players the Irish have in the NFL. With the 2020 season officially underway, CBS unveiled an incredible graphic that shows which states produce the most NFL players. 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). Remember, were talking about per capita here. 1 overall picks and 6,532 TD passes. Despite ranking ninth in all-time NFL players, the Huskers rank just 26th in active NFL players. North Carolina State has never been to a BCS bowl and hasn't won an ACC title since 1979. Total enrollment in fall 2021: 13,139. In Ohio, Cuyahoga County alone is the birthplace of 17 players. 1. You make the call. The most notable star to come from the Sunshine State is Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson. About 20 miles on I-75 separate the Georgia high school homes of two of the draft's top QB prospects. It only seems as though Tom Brady has been playing long enough to have hung out with the Lizard King himself, and that Jim Morrison was talking about Brady and California QBs when he crooned, "The West is the best, get here and we'll do the rest." Still, they dont have decades of winning traditions, which is why they fall a little lower on this list than many might expect. Bottom line:Another one of the schools without a national title, the Hawkeyes are a perfect nickname for Iowa because their best two players seemingly had hawk eyes. By Jackson. USC - 479 3. Read on to see the results. While the Razorbacks are no longer the class of the tough SEC, they have won 14 conference championships in program history and brought home a national championship to Fayetteville in 1964. Bottom line: The California Golden Bears have been playing football since 1916. Bottom line:Did you know that the Washington Huskies 40 game win streak from 1908 to 1914 is the second-longest in NCAA history? But Florida State is rising up the ranks, and of its four Hall of Famers, three have been enshrined in Canton this decade. Penn State - 359 5. Which city has the most NFL players in 2020? 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. That makes them a bit of an outlier since every other school in the top seven is in a warm-weather location in either the South or Southern California. Try selecting a different location. These high schools have produced the most NFL players. 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. Will Texas cede its dominance, or will it hold strong as the top NFL-producing state? Coming in at second for most NFL players on Week 1 rosters is Texas. While everything may be bigger in Texas, the Aggies come up small in terms of Pro Football Hall of Famers. We also identified the college football programs that sent the most players to the NFL within those states. Yes, Bulldogs Dak Prescott and perhaps Fletcher Cox are future Hall of Famers but thats a few years away. And now, theres even data that would appear to back it up. To republish online, simply click the button, copy the html code and paste into your Content Management System (CMS). Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. California alone, at 225 active players, accounts for more than ten percent of NFL players. 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. That's reflective of Arizona's NFL history, which includes longtime backup Mike Pagel. A new, thorough study confirms what I have long contended to be true. 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. The University of Alabama has produced the most pro athletes out of college, though, with 82. But Texas surpassed the Golden State in the 2000s with 25 quarterbacks (to California's 22), and they are tied with eight in the 2010s. A graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi with a bachelors in journalism, Rick has worked for the Monroe (La.) More NFL players (199) graduated from Texas than any. There are 151 NFL players that came from colleges across California. Heres a breakdown of every states active NFL players. In fact, 12 of their Pro Bowl players played either running back or fullback. We know most people arent fans of the Arizona Cardinals, so we went ahead and made a similar graphic for every other team in the National Football League, which you can click through in the above slideshow. However, 13 Wolverines have reached 1,000 NFL rushing yards with the latest being the greatest, Tom Brady. But even the most diehard of Notre Dame fans would admit that their best days are well behind them. From 1960 to 1987, the franchise was located in St. Louis, and that westward move brought with it more players from the Southwest and Great Plains regions, as players from schools like Utah, Missouri and Nebraska starting appearing on the field more for the NFL franchise. The school has just one first-round NFL pick since the 2011 season with Prince Amukamara going 19th overall in that years draft. The remaining seven states to crack the top 10 are Georgia, Ohio, Alabama, Pennsylvania, Louisiana, North Carolina and New Jersey. Look for the "Republish This Story" button underneath each story. Bottom line:The Auburn Tigers are not currently considered an SEC powerhouse, but it wasn't that long ago when they were. But the Ducks have had a lot of talent over the years. 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. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. But the Texas total computes to only 8.5 players per 100,000, about one-third of what Mississippi has produced. Second is California with 187, followed by Texas (160), Georgia (97), Ohio (80), Pennsylvania (66) and Louisiana (63). Bottom line: Oregon won a Rose Bowl in their first season in 1916. Seven of the school's 11 national championships came in the first half of the 20th century, and none of those titles have come in the last 30 years. Brett Favre, from Kiln and Southern Miss, is No. 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. Here is an in-depth look at the top five states. is known world wide for having some of the best athletes in the world. That stat does deserve a caveat as Matthew Slater and Wally Henry were both Bruins receivers who made the Pro Bowl, but they did so at the positions of special teams and return specialist, respectively. 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. Which ZIP code has produced the most NFL quarterbacks? The most NFL players have come from Saint Thomas Aquinas High School in Miami, Florida, and the state of Florida. 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. One of the first things we found was how many players have ever donned the teams uniform throughout the entirety of the franchises history. 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. In fact, those three states rank 1-2-3 all-time for states where NFL. Keep this news free and accessible to all by becoming a member and giving a recurring donation of any amount today. 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. 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. The schools that dominate on Saturdays have their alumni playing on Sundays. Its highest touchdown scorer, Elroy Hirsch, found the end zone just 66 times. - Notre Dame, USC, and Ohio State are the schools with the most NFL players in history and the only colleges who have produced 400+ NFL players. This site .css-110721q{color:#0079F0;}contains commercial content. Rounding out the top five are USC (479), Ohio State (426), Penn State (359), and Nebraska (346). For the Cardinals, this means that Georgia Tech and Duke footballers last the longest with the franchise at nearly four seasons on average. 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. But Knoxville, with its close location to the Gulf Coast, the Eastern Seaboard and the Midwest, is still adept at attracting top college prospects. 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). Mississippi State upends No. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Vinny Testaverde. 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. 1 overall pick in 1993, was one of four first-round picks from Washington and one of 12 taken within the first 100 selections. Our stories may appear on pages with ads, but not ads specifically sold against our stories. Our site uses cookies to personalize content, to provide social media features/ads and to analyze site traffic. The state of Mississippi has placed the most players in the NFL capita, according to a by Sidelines. Others create politicians. The NFL is known world wide for having some of the best athletes in the world. The Boilermakers started playing football in 1892 and have sent big names to the NFL. All rights reserved. Twenty-eight states have fewer.The Cuyahoga natives, with the listed place of birth, are: Rankings could vary slightly because the birth places for 14 players were not immediately available, and rosters can change daily. While ranking 22nd in all-time NFL players, Auburn ranks 23rd in active players after ranking eighth in 2019, pointing to their recent struggles. The Cornhuskers have won more games against Power 5 opponents than any other school in history, and their dominance stretches from the early 20th century all the way to the 1990s. Now youre an History of Colleges Most Represented on NFL Rosters, 3300 West Camelback Road - Phoenix, AZ 85017, Criminal Justice, Government & Public Administration. 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 Penn State Nittany Lions, who began play in 1889, are among the most storied programs in . 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. Founded in 2016 as the states first nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom, Mississippi Todays roots in Capitol coverage have grown to encompass a myriad of beats beyond politics and policy, including education, public health, justice, environment, equity, and, yes, sports. The 2022 season has seen 58 active players from the Alabama lineage. We limited this data to schools who have had at least five players make the all-time roster to weed out one-off outlier players. A winning tradition brings recruits from all over the country, and Ohio States all-time winning percentage of .754 ranks first among Power 5 programs. 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. 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. Woodson has a Super Bowl ring, 71 career interceptions, 11 Pro Bowls and six All-Pro honors. Before making life miserable for NFL defenses, they were doing the same to opponents in college. The only thing missing from Washingtons NFL alumni is a successful wide receiver. Texas has produced more active NFL players than any other U.S. state. (You can find them here.). They both were middle linebackers and played for rival franchises in the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers, respectively. 3 is Georgia (one in 78,761). And in 2018 and 2019, one out of four quarterbacks who started Week 1 hailed from the Lone Star State. California has been strong in its quarterback production in every decade, leading the way in the 1970s, '80s and '90s (based on the final year of high school for each QB). California is more than just Tom Brady, and the great state of Texas hasn't been so great when it comes to producing NFL QBs, according to our formula, which counts a player's home state as the one in which he finished his high school career. Copyright 2023 Action Network Inc, All Rights Reserved.Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | AdChoices. 64 overall) of the San Diego Chargers in the 1973 NFL draft. Weve looked at the top states for producing NFL players, but how about the most successful schools within those states? 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. Bledsoe, the No. That is about 9% of the current active players in the league. 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. By clicking submit, you agree to share your email address with Mississippi Today.