We gathered data on every player to ever appear on an active NFL roster and determined the most NFL players by college.
Did you know that 25,000+ players have played in an NFL game?
Here are the 2023 most NFL players by college as of NFL Week One 53-man rosters. For the seventh season in a row, the University of Alabama has the most players in the league.
NFL Players By College – 2023
| SCHOOL | PLAYERS |
|---|---|
| Alabama | 57 |
| Ohio State | 47 |
| Georgia | 46 |
| LSU | 43 |
| Michigan | 38 |
| Notre Dame | 39 |
| Clemson | 37 |
| Florida | 34 |
| Penn State | 33 |
| Oklahoma | 32 |
| Texas | 30 |
| Iowa | 29 |
| Auburn | 28 |
| USC | 26 |
| Oregon | 25 |
| Stanford | 25 |
| Washington | 25 |
| Mississippi | 24 |
| Texas A&M | 23 |
| Wisconsin | 23 |
| Miami The U | 22 |
| UCLA | 22 |
| Tennessee | 21 |
| TCU | 21 |
(Related: List of All NFL Teams | NBA Players By College)
NFL Players By College – 2022 (As of NFL Week 1)
For the sixth consecutive season, Alabama had the most or tied for the most players (58) on active NFL Kickoff Weekend roster. The Crimson Tide also placed the most active NFL players on season-opening rosters in 2018 (44), 2019 (56), 2020 (53) and 2021 (54), and shared the league lead in 2017 (39).
| SCHOOL | PLAYERS |
|---|---|
| Alabama | 58 |
| LSU | 52 |
| Ohio State | 52 |
| Georgia | 44 |
| Notre Dame | 37 |
| Penn State | 35 |
| Florida | 33 |
| Michigan | 33 |
| Oklahoma | 32 |
| Iowa | 31 |
| Clemson | 29 |
| Texas | 26 |
| Washington | 26 |
| Wisconsin | 26 |
| Auburn | 24 |
| Miami The U | 24 |
| UCLA | 24 |
| South Carolina | 23 |
| Stanford | 23 |
| Tennessee | 23 |
| Texas A&M | 23 |
NFL Players By College – 2021
| FBS SCHOOL | PLAYERS |
|---|---|
| Alabama | 53 |
| Ohio State | 47 |
| LSU | 43 |
| Georgia | 35 |
| Notre Dame | 34 |
| Clemson | 33 |
| Iowa | 33 |
| Florida | 32 |
| Michigan | 32 |
| Oklahoma | 31 |
| Penn State | 31 |
| Texas | 26 |
| Miami (Fla.) | 25 |
| UCLA | 24 |
| Washington | 24 |
| Florida State | 23 |
| Texas A&M | 23 |
| USC | 23 |
| Stanford | 22 |
| South Carolina | 21 |
| Wisconsin | 21 |
| Auburn | 20 |
| Mississippi State | 19 |
| Oregon | 19 |
| NC State | 18 |
| Temple | 18 |
| Utah | 18 |
| Missouri | 17 |
| Nebraska | 17 |
| Tennessee | 17 |
| Pittsburgh | 16 |
| Virginia Tech | 16 |
| Arkansas | 15 |
| Boston College | 15 |
| Oklahoma State | 15 |
| Kentucky | 14 |
| TCU | 14 |
| Baylor | 13 |
| North Carolina | 13 |
| Ole Miss | 12 |
| Rutgers | 12 |
| Texas Tech | 12 |
| California | 11 |
| Colorado | 11 |
| Duke | 11 |
| Houston | 11 |
| Illinois | 11 |
| Maryland | 11 |
| Memphis | 11 |
| Oregon State | 11 |
| Purdue | 11 |
| Vanderbilt | 11 |
| West Virginia | 11 |
| Boise State | 10 |
| Louisville | 10 |
| Michigan State | 10 |
| Minnesota | 10 |
| UCF | 10 |
| Virginia | 10 |
| Kansas State | 9 |
| SMU | 9 |
| Western Michigan | 9 |
| Arizona State | 8 |
| BYU | 8 |
| Cincinnati | 8 |
| Indiana | 8 |
| Northwestern | 8 |
| Utah State | 8 |
| Arizona | 7 |
| Central Michigan | 7 |
| Florida Atlantic | 7 |
| Fresno State | 7 |
| Louisiana Tech | 7 |
| Syracuse | 7 |
| Toledo | 7 |
| Wyoming | 7 |
| Appalachian State | 6 |
| Colorado State | 6 |
| Georgia Southern | 6 |
| Georgia Tech | 6 |
| Old Dominion | 6 |
| San Jose State | 6 |
| Tulane | 6 |
| Connecticut | 5 |
| Marshall | 5 |
| San Diego State | 5 |
| South Florida | 5 |
| Southern Mississippi | 5 |
| Wake Forest | 5 |
| Washington State | 5 |
| Western Kentucky | 5 |
| Buffalo | 4 |
| Kansas | 4 |
| Northern Illinois | 4 |
| Rice | 4 |
| East Carolina | 3 |
| Eastern Michigan | 3 |
| Iowa State | 3 |
| Massachusetts | 3 |
| Miami (Ohio) | 3 |
| Middle Tennessee State | 3 |
| Nevada | 3 |
| North Texas | 3 |
| UTEP | 3 |
| Arkansas State | 2 |
| Army | 2 |
| Ball State | 2 |
| Florida International | 2 |
| Georgia State | 2 |
| Louisiana | 2 |
| Ohio | 2 |
| Troy | 2 |
| Tulsa | 2 |
| UAB | 2 |
| Akron | 1 |
| Bowling Green | 1 |
| Coastal Carolina | 1 |
| Hawaii | 1 |
| Kent State | 1 |
| Navy | 1 |
| New Mexico | 1 |
| South Alabama | 1 |
| Texas State | 1 |
| UNLV | 1 |
| UTSA | 1 |
For 2020 updated as of Week One and based on the 53-man roster, here are the top 10 colleges that have produced the most NFL players:
| Alabama | 56 |
| Ohio State | 50 |
| LSU | 41 |
| Florida | 39 |
| Georgia | 32 |
| Penn State | 32 |
| Oklahoma | 29 |
| Clemson | 29 |
| Notre Dame | 29 |
| Iowa, Florida State, Washington | 28 |
| Stanford, Texas A&M | 27 |
This study includes data points and insights for every franchise, as well as the league as a whole. Here are some takeaways:
– Notre Dame has produced more NFL players than any other college, with 520 athletes going on to play in the NFL.
– Notre Dame, USC, Ohio State, and Oklahoma are the schools with the most NFL players in history and the only colleges who have produced 400+ NFL players.
– Alabama lead 2019 rosters with 56 players. As for end of season 2018 rosters, Alabama also led the way with 53 players making it to the NFL.
– In terms of players by decade, the NFL relied heavily on schools from the Midwest such as Notre Dame and Minnesota in the 50s and 60s. The focus shifted 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.
NFL Players By College – Overall Top 10 All-Time
(As of 8/22/23)
1. Notre Dame – 520
2. USC – 516
3. Ohio State – 473
4. Oklahoma – 402
5. Michigan – 387
6. Alabama – 384
7. Penn State – 367
8. Florida – 364
9. Nebraska – 363
10. LSU – 359
What College Has The Most NFL Players – 2019
- Alabama – 53
- LSU – 51
- Ohio State – 46
- USC – 44
- Miami – 43
- Florida – 43
- Florida State – 42
- Clemson – 37
- Tied – Penn State, Oklahoma, Auburn – 33
Finally, GCU broke out every player by position and school to find which schools have produced the most players at specific positions for every NFL team.
Using traditional offensive and defensive formations as the guide, they were able to create a unique starting lineup of college football teams, using their logos as stand-ins.
Here is another area where Notre Dame’s influence is readily apparent, as they are the top school at seven of the 24 positions evaluated, including key positions such as quarterback and running back.