Football Information
2020
Regular
English
CITY
OF HOUSTON, STATE OF FLORIDA,
FT.
LAUDERDALE’S SAINT THOMAS AQUINAS HIGH SCHOOL
PRODUCE
MOST NFL PLAYERS ON KICKOFF WEEKEND ROSTERS
The City of Houston has started another pipeline.
With 24 players on Kickoff Weekend rosters, Houston led all cities in
NFL hometowns. More 2020 NFL players graduated from high school there than any
other community.
That’s no surprise to OTARO ALAKA of the Baltimore Ravens, who
travel to play the Houston Texans Sunday (4:25 PM ET, CBS). A graduate of
Houston’s Cypress Falls High School, Alaka knows what brought his hometown to
the top of the list.
“When you come from Houston,” Alaka said, “there’s a lot of competition
amongst the 5A and the 6A schools. Everyone from Houston knows that it’s
stacked, and you take great pride in it. That Texas high school football in
Houston – it’s just a hotbed for talent, and there’s going to continue to be a
lot of talent that comes out of there every year.”
That talent helped Houston dethrone Miami, which finished second with
19, for the NFL’s top hometown.
HOMETOWNS
WITH MOST NFL PLAYERS
Hometown | NFL Players | Hometown | NFL Players |
Houston | 24 | New Orleans | 12 |
Miami | 19 | Atlanta | 11 |
Fort
Lauderdale, FL | 14 | Philadelphia | 11 |
Tampa, FL | 14 | St. Louis | 10 |
Detroit | 12 | | |
While Houston edged Miami for the most NFL hometowns, Florida continued
to lead the league in home states. More NFL players (194) graduated from high
schools in Florida than any other state, according to 2020 NFL Kickoff Weekend
rosters. Texas (192) finished a close second.
STATES WITH MOST NFL PLAYERS
State | NFL Players | State | NFL Players |
Florida | 194 | North Carolina | 59 |
Texas | 192 | New Jersey | 57 |
California | 170 | Illinois | 53 |
Georgia | 134 | Tennessee | 45 |
Ohio | 71 | Michigan | 44 |
Alabama | 60 | Virginia | 44 |
Pennsylvania | 60 | South Carolina | 39 |
Louisiana | 59 | Maryland | 39 |
Specifically, the South Florida region continues to produce a plethora
of NFL talent. Individuals who played high school football in Miami (19) and
Fort Lauderdale (14) combined to fill 33 slots on NFL rosters last weekend.
Another South Florida community, Deerfield Beach, contributed an additional six
NFL players.
Fort Lauderdale’s Saint Thomas Aquinas High School, with 11 individuals,
again tops the list of high schools with the most NFL players. The school,
which also produced Pro Football Hall of Famer MICHAEL IRVIN, has led
the nation in players on NFL Kickoff rosters for eight of the past nine seasons
(2012, 2014-20). It tied for the lead in 2013.
HIGH
SCHOOLS WITH THE MOST NFL PLAYERS
High School, City, State | Number | NFL Players |
Saint Thomas Aquinas High School; Ft. Lauderdale, FL | 11 | Damon Arnette, LV; Geno Atkins, CIN; Giovani Bernard,
CIN; Joey Bosa, LAC; Nick Bosa, SF; Phillip Dorsett, SEA; Bobby Hart, CIN;
Lamarcus Joyner, LV; Brandon Linder, JAX; James White, NE; Sam Young, LV |
Allen High School; Allen, TX | 6 | Bobby Evans, LAR; Jalen Guyton, LAC; Greg Little, CAR;
Kyler Murray, ARI; Cedric Ogbuehi, SEA; Jonathan Williams, DET |
Deerfield Beach High School; Deefield Beach, FL | 6 | Jerry Jeudy, DEN; James Pierre, PIT; Jason Pierre-Paul,
TB; Brandon Powell, ATL; Riley Ridley, CHI; Jason Strowbridge, MIA |
Cass Technical High School; Detroit, MI | 5 | Delano Hill, SEA; Jourdan Lewis, DAL; Michael Onwenu,
NE; Donovan Peoples-Jones, CLE; Del’Shawn Phillips, BUF |
Dematha Catholic High School; Hyattsville, MD | 5 | Ja’Whaun Bentley, NE; John Lovett, GB; Anthony
McFarland, PIT; Rodney McLeod, PHI; Chase Young, WAS |
IMG Academy; Bradenton, FL | 5 | Hjalte Froholdt, NE; K.J. Hamler, DEN; K.J. Osborn, MIN;
Cesar Ruiz, NO; Tyree St. Louis, LAC |
Lakewood High School; St. Petersburg, FL | 5 | Dante Fowler, ATL; Shaquill Griffin, SEA; Austin Reiter,
KC; Marquez Valdes-Scantling, GB; Isaiah Wynn, NE |
Long Beach Polytechnic High School; Long Beach, CA | 5 | Jayon Brown, TEN; Jurrell Casey, DEN; DeSean Jackson,
PHI; Marcedes Lewis, GB; JuJu Smith-Schuster, PIT |
North Shore High School; Houston, TX | 5 | Dorance Armstrong, DAL; K’Lavon Chaisson, JAX; Emeke
Egbule, LAC; Trey Hopkins, CIN; Jamal Perry, MIA |
Stephenson High School; Stone Mountain, GA | 5 | Mike Davis, CAR; Bruce Irvin, SEA; Preston Smith, GB;
Montez Sweat, WAS; D.J. Wonnum, MIN |
Thirteen high schools had four players each on NFL Kickoff Weekend
rosters this year:
High School; City, State | NFL Players | High School; City, State | NFL Players |
Desoto
High School; Desoto, TX | 4 | Peachtree
Ridge High School; Suwanee, GA | 4 |
Glenville
High School; Cleveland | 4 | Pickerington
High School; Pickerington, OH | 4 |
Grant
High School; Sacramento | 4 | Saint
Louis High School; Honolulu | 4 |
Immokalee
High School; Immokalee, FL | 4 | Tucker
High School; Tucker, GA | 4 |
Lawrence
Elkins High School; Sugar Land, TX | 4 | Westlake
High School; Austin, TX | 4 |
Norcross
High School; Norcross, GA | 4 | West
Monroe High School; Monroe, LA | 4 |
Norland
High School; Miami | 4 | | |
Overall, NFL players hail from high schools in 46 states and the
District of Columbia, seven countries – Australia, Belgium, Canada, England,
Estonia, Germany and the United States – and a U.S. territory (American Samoa).
The totals are based on the 1,730 players on Kickoff Weekend rosters.
NFL PLAYERS PER CAPITA: Georgia,
with one NFL player for every 73,952 residents, leads the list of NFL players
per capita. Louisiana (one in 78,162) and Alabama (one in 82,409) round out the
top three. The national average is one NFL player per 180,447 U.S. residents.
STATES WITH MOST
NFL PLAYERS PER CAPITA
State | Population * | NFL Players | NFL
Players Per Capita |
Georgia | 9,687,653 | 134 | 1 NFL player
per 72,296 people |
Louisiana | 4,533,372 | 59 | 1 NFL player
per 76,837 people |
Alabama | 4,779,736 | 60 | 1 NFL player
per 79,662 people |
Mississippi | 2,967,297 | 35 | 1 NFL player
per 84,780 people |
Florida | 18,801,310 | 194 | 1 NFL player per
96,914 people |
District
of Columbia | 601,723 | 6 | 1 NFL player
per 100,287 people |
Delaware | 897,934 | 8 | 1 NFL player
per 112,242 people |
South
Carolina | 4,625,364 | 39 | 1 NFL player
per 118,599 people |
Hawaii | 1,360,301 | 11 | 1 NFL player
per 123,664 people |
Texas | 25,145,561 | 192 | 1 NFL player
per 130,966 people |
Utah | 2,763,885 | 20 | 1 NFL player per 138,194 people |
Tennessee | 6,346,105 | 45 | 1 NFL player
per 141,025 people |
United
States | 308,745,538 | 1,711 | 1 NFL
player per 180,447 people |
*Based on most recent published
U.S. Census Data (2010)
