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Which State Produces the Most NFL Players?

by Docsports.com - 8/1/2025

A new report by Doc's Sports examines NFL talent production across all U.S. states and college programs, analyzing the data of 24,517 NFL players over 50 years. We also provide insights into current 2025-2026 season patterns and projections.

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Key Takeaways

  • Despite representing only 16% of the U.S. population, Southern states accounted for 6 of the top 10 per capita NFL producers historically.
  • Alabama is leading at 14.73 players per 100,000 population - nearly 3x the national average.
  • The top 5 college programs (Ohio State, Alabama, Georgia, LSU, and Michigan) have collectively produced 1,847 NFL players, representing 7.5% of all players from just 0.1% of U.S. colleges.

All-Time NFL Players

Geographic Distribution by State

  • California leads with 1,379 total NFL players historically
  • Texas follows closely with 1,325 players
  • Traditional football states (Florida, Ohio, Alabama) maintain strong representation

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Total Historical NFL Players by State (Top 10)

  1. California: 1,379 players
  2. Texas: 1,325 players
  3. Florida: 1,022 players
  4. Ohio: 755 players
  5. Alabama: 740 players
  6. Pennsylvania: 721 players
  7. Michigan: 716 players
  8. Indiana: 714 players
  9. Louisiana: 659 players
  10. North Carolina: 644 players

Per Capita Analysis

  • The top per capita states produce NFL talent at rates 4-5x higher than large population states
  • Mississippi leads dramatically with 15.36 NFL players per 100k population
  • Alabama second with 14.73 per 100k, followed by Louisiana with 14.15 per 100k.

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NFL Players per 100,000 Population (Historical - Top 20)

  1. Mississippi: 15.36 per 100k (455 total players)
  2. Alabama: 14.73 per 100k (740 total players)
  3. Louisiana: 14.15 per 100k (659 total players)
  4. Nebraska: 14.07 per 100k (276 total players)
  5. Oklahoma: 12.50 per 100k (495 total players)
  6. West Virginia: 11.99 per 100k (215 total players)
  7. Iowa: 11.94 per 100k (381 total players)
  8. Wyoming: 11.61 per 100k (67 total players)
  9. Indiana: 10.52 per 100k (714 total players)
  10. Utah: 10.48 per 100k (343 total players)
     

College Program 

  • Ohio State leads with 385 total NFL players historically
  • Notre Dame second with 360 players, followed by USC with 354 players.
  • Traditional powerhouses (Penn State, Michigan, LSU, Alabama) dominate top 10
  • Top 25 programs account for significant portion of NFL talent pipeline

Top 15 Colleges by Total Historical NFL Players

  1. Ohio State: 385 players
  2. Notre Dame: 360 players
  3.  USC: 354 players
  4.  Penn State: 352 players 
  5. Michigan: 352 players 
  6.  LSU: 338 players
  7.  Alabama: 321 players 
  8.  Florida: 320 players 
  9.  Miami: 319 players 
  10.  Georgia: 302 players 
  11.  Florida State: 280 players
  12.  Nebraska: 276 players
  13.  Oklahoma: 271 players 
  14.  Tennessee: 270 players
  15.  Texas: 265 players

Data By College

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2025-2026 Upcoming Season Analysis

  • The most significant shift is Texas overtaking California as the #1 producer of current NFL talent (119 vs 108 players).
  • Despite ranking 3rd in total players, Alabama leads dramatically in efficiency at 1.79 players per 100k population.

State Distribution

NFL Players by State (2025-2026 Season - Top 15)

  1. Texas: 119 players
  2. California: 108 players
  3. Alabama: 90 players
  4. Ohio: 71 players
  5. Florida: 70 players
  6. Michigan: 69 players
  7. Pennsylvania: 66 players
  8. North Carolina: 64 players
  9. Louisiana: 61 players
  10. Georgia: 59 players
  11. Indiana: 50 players
  12. South Carolina: 44 players
  13. Oklahoma: 42 players
  14. Kentucky: 41 players
  15. Iowa: 40 players

Per Capita Rates

Current NFL Players per 100,000 Population (2025-2026 - Top 15)

  1. Alabama: 1.79 per 100k (90 players)
  2. Wyoming: 1.56 per 100k (9 players)
  3. Louisiana: 1.31 per 100k (61 players)
  4. North Dakota: 1.28 per 100k (10 players)
  5. Mississippi: 1.28 per 100k (38 players)
  6. Iowa: 1.25 per 100k (40 players)
  7. South Dakota: 1.13 per 100k (10 players)
  8. Oklahoma: 1.06 per 100k (42 players)
  9. Kentucky: 0.91 per 100k (41 players)
  10. Utah: 0.89 per 100k (29 players)
  11. Oregon: 0.87 per 100k (37 players)
  12. South Carolina: 0.85 per 100k (44 players)
  13. West Virginia: 0.84 per 100k (15 players)
  14. Idaho: 0.82 per 100k (15 players)
  15. Indiana: 0.74 per 100k (50 players)

Conclusions

This analysis confirms several key patterns in NFL talent production:

  • Geographic Concentration: Southeastern states maintain overwhelming advantages in per capita NFL talent production
  • Institutional Consistency: Traditional powerhouse programs continue to dominate professional placement across decades
  • Population vs. Culture: Football culture and infrastructure matter more than raw population for per capita production
  • Sustained Excellence: Top-producing states and colleges show remarkable consistency across different eras
  • Current Trends: 2025-2026 data suggests these patterns will continue, with some evolution in total numbers but consistent per capita leaders

Data by State

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Data Sources and Methodology

Primary Data Sources

Historical NFL Player Data

  • Source: NFLverse Data Repository (https://github.com/nflverse/nflverse-data)
  • Dataset: Complete historical NFL player database
  • Coverage: This analysis use a filtered subset of historical NFL player data from the NFLverse repository (24,517 of ~27,956 available players) spanning the period 1974-2025
  • Fields: Player names, positions, college affiliations, career spans, physical attributes, draft information

Current 2025-2026 Season Data

  • Source: Lineups.com NFL Players Database (https://www.lineups.com/nfl/players)
  • Dataset: Active NFL roster data for 2025-2026 season
  • Coverage: 2,132 current NFL players across all 32 teams
  • Fields: Player names, positions, jersey numbers, team affiliations, college information, performance ratings

Population Data

  • Source: U.S. Census Bureau (2023 estimates)
  • Coverage: All 50 U.S. states
  • Purpose: Per capita calculations (players per 100,000 population)

Data Transformation Process:

  • Historical Data Processing:
    • Loaded 24,517 historical NFL players from NFLverse database
    • Cleaned and standardized college names (e.g., "University of Alabama" → "Alabama")
    • Created comprehensive college-to-state mapping for 200+ institutions
    • Filtered to 17,987 players with complete state attribution
    • Calculated historical totals and per capita rates by state and college
  • Current Season Data Processing:
    • Extracted 2,132 current NFL players from Lineups.com
    • Applied same college name standardization and state mapping
    • Achieved 1,526 players with complete state attribution
    • Generated current season statistics for comparison with historical patterns
  • Statistical Calculations:
    • Per capita rates calculated as (players / state population) × 100,000
    • Used 2023 U.S. Census population estimates for consistency
    • Created comparative rankings for both historical and current data
    • Generated insights on talent pipeline sustainability and trends
  • Quality Assurance:
    • Cross-validated college mappings against multiple sources
    • Verified realistic roster sizes for current season data
    • Ensured mathematical accuracy in per capita calculations
    • Documented data completeness rates and limitations

Limitations and Considerations

  • Some players lack complete college information in source databases
  • Transfer portal effects may complicate college attribution for recent players
  • International players and those from non-traditional football programs excluded from state analysis
  • Our current college player counts may not be fully exhaustive and may vary from other sources
  • Historical data may have varying completeness across different eras

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