"Big Three" high school football states combine to produce nearly one-third of players in the league.
California, Florida and Texas are high school football hotbeds ripe with future NFL talent. Headlined by superstars like Patrick Mahomes of
Whitehouse (Texas), Derrick Henry of
Yulee (Fla.) and Tom Brady of
Serra (San Mateo, Calif.), the "Big Three" combine to represent nearly one-third of the 1,695 active NFL players.
Using roster data from NFL.com, we mapped out where every one of those players went to high school at the end of August when the teams cut rosters down to 53. While transfers cloud things a bit, we connected players to the high school where they finished their prep career.
Texas led the way with 199 former players in the league while 177 played their high school ball in Florida and 159 in California. The only other state to hit triple digits was Georgia with 144 players.
Ohio (74), Louisiana (71), Alabama (61), Pennsylvania (57), North Carolina (55) and Illinois (53) all had at least 50.
In total, 47 states are represented with a player on a NFL roster along with Washington D.C. See the map for a full breakdown below.
Texas on topLone Star State leads the way in terms of producing NFL players heading into the 2022 season.
1. Texas — 199
2. Florida — 177
3. California — 159
4. Georgia — 144
5. Ohio — 74
6. Louisiana — 71
7. Alabama — 61
8. Pennsylvania — 57
9. North Carolina — 55
10. Illinois — 53
11. New Jersey — 48
12. Michigan — 47
13. Maryland — 45
14. Virginia — 41
15. South Carolina — 36
16. Tennessee — 35
17. Mississippi — 31
18. Missouri — 28
T20. Arizona — 22
T20. Minnesota — 22
T22. Utah — 21
T22. Wisconsin — 21
24. Washington — 20
25. Oregon — 19
26. Iowa — 17
27. Colorado — 16
28. Oklahoma — 15
29. New York — 14
30. Nevada — 12
31. Kentucky — 11
T32. Connecticut — 9
T32. Kansas — 9
T35. Delaware — 8
T35. Hawaii — 8
T35. Nebraska — 8
38. Arkansas — 6
39. South Dakota — 5
T40. Idaho — 4
T40. North Dakota — 4
T40. Wyoming — 4
43. Montana — 3
44. Washington D.C. — 2
45. New Hampshire — 1
46. New Mexico — 1
47. Rhode Island — 1
48. West Virginia — 1
