All-American teams have been around since 1947 with a number of media outlets making their selections of the top high school football talent in the country. However, a school that has fielded teams for a little over a decade has already zoomed toward the top of the list of schools with the most All-Americans.
, which has only fielded teams since 2012, already has 23 players who have earned All-America first team honors. The only school ahead of the Ascenders is
Archbishop Moeller (Cincinnati, Ohio), which has landed 25 players on All-American teams since its rise to prominence in the early 1970s.
It all began in 1947 when Mose Sims, a businessman from
Oklahoma, decided to select All-American teams in December in order to
promote a high school all-star football game to be played during the
summer. Through the charitable organization known as the Wigwam
Wiseman, Sims selected seven teams (only offensive players were
selected) of about 14 players each with hundreds of honorable mention picks.
Sims continued to select the Wigwam Wiseman
All-American teams until his death in the early 1960s. Coach and Athlete
took over naming standouts after Sims' passing but they were
no longer called Wigwam Wiseman All-Americans. Coach and Athlete
discontinued the practice in the 1980s.
Scholastic Coach Magazine
began choosing All-American teams in 1952 and continued to do so into
the 1980s. Parade Magazine, which had started picking basketball
All-American teams in the mid-1950s, began picking football
teams in 1963 and did so through 2013.
USA Today began selecting
All-American football teams in 1982 and has continued to pick teams up
through the 2022 season. MaxPreps joined the All-American selection
process in 2007 and has also continued to do so through 2022.
Over
the years, a variety of media outlets have selected All-American teams
(but have since discontinued the process), including Teen Magazine,
SuperPrep Magazine, Kick-off Magazine, Rivals, Student Sports, and ESPN.
Two other recent teams to climb toward the top of the list are rivals
Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) and
St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.). The Southern California programs have dominated play in the Southern Section for the past decade and have reaped 21 and 17 All-Americans, respectively, as a result.
Long Beach Poly (Long Beach, Calif.), which has sent more players to the NFL than any other high school, is in fourth place ahead of St. John Bosco with 19 All-Americans while
Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.), another powerhouse from the past decade, has 16.
The list below includes first team All-American players chosen by Wigwam Wiseman, Parade, USA Today and MaxPreps. Players were not chosen from Scholastic Coach or Coach and Athlete since the format for those teams included as many as 75 to 100 selections. Other outlets weren't represented because they only chose All-American teams for a short amount of time. The list below attempted to focus only on those players who were selected first team All-American.
Additionally, players who were chosen All-American in two different seasons, such as Bryce Young of Mater Dei, were counted twice. Players who were selected on multiple All-American teams in the same season were only counted once.
Taking the field here in last season's Division I playoffs in Ohio, Archbishop Moeller has won a state title in six straight decades. (Photo: Jenny Walters)
High school programs with the most first team All-Americans.
Archbishop Moeller (Cincinnati, Ohio), 25
Vada Murray, Jesse Hayes, Michael Muñoz, Paul Barry, Scott Schaffner, Mark Kamphaus, DJuan Francisco, Byron Larkin, Shane Bullough, Hiawatha Francisco, John Askin, Mike Larkin, Doug Williams, Mark Brooks, Joe Apke, Rick Naylor, Tony Hunter, Joe Lukin, Bob Crable, Tim Koegel, Jim Brown, Jay Case, Harry Woebkenberg, Steve Sylvester, Jack Harpring.
IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.), 23
Drake Davis, Saivion Smith, O.J. Burroughs, Joshua Kaindoh, Xavier Thomas, Taron Vincent, Nolan Smith (twice), Rahshaun Smith, Dylan Moses, Shea Patterson, Trey Sanders, Isaac Nauta, Xavier Thomas, Brendan Radley-Hiles, Trey Sanders, Evan Neal, Elias Ricks, J.C. Latham, Tyler Booker, Daylen Everette, Francis Mauigoa, Desmond Ricks,
Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.), 21
Matt Grootegoed; Eli Ricks; Brad Williams; Solomon Tuliaupupu; Myles Murao; Matt Barkley; J. T. Daniels; Bryce Young (twice); Mike McNair; Thomas Duarte; Amon-Ra St. Brown; Bru McCoy; Kody Epps; Tommy Brown; Raleek Brown; David Bailey; Chris Ward; Matt Leinart; Kennedy Pola; Larry Williams.
Long Beach Poly (Calif.), 19
Jurrell
Casey, Damell Bing, Marcedes Lewis, Winston Justice, Ken-yon Rambo,
Marvin Simmons, Darrell Rideaux, Chris Lewis, Mark Green, Mark Carrier,
Darrell Rideaux, Donovan Warren, Kirk Jones, Iuta Tepa, Desean Jackson,
Iman Marshall, Joseph Wicker, Reggie Ward, Artie Hargrove.
St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.), 17
Chris Steele, Josh Rosen, DJ Uiagalelei (twice), Sean McGrew, Nico Falah, Damien Mama, Wyatt Davis, Jaiden Woodbey, Drake Metcalf, Earnest Greene III, Matayo Uiagalelei, Chandler Leniu, Bryce Tregg, Paul Mociler, Fred Ford, DeAndre Moore.
Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.), 16
Bubba Bolden, Ryan Reynolds, Palaie Gaoteote, Tate Martell (twice), Xavier Grimble, Alizé Jones, Brevin Jordan, Micah Alejado, Palaie Gaoteote, Jeremiah Hughes, Haskell Garrett, Shaquille Powell, Xavier Grimble, Blake Ezor, Trech Kekahuna.
DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.), 13
Chase Young, Terrance Davis, David DeArmas, DeMarcco Hellams, Cyrus Kouandjio, John Taliaferro, Karlos Jackson, Garland Hawkins, Ricky Gray, Shane Simmons, Ryan Gillis, Jason Moore, Steve Smith.
St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), 12
Major Wright, Lamarcus Joyner, Cody Riggs, Sterling Palmer, Joey Bosa, Nik Bonitto, Derek Wingo, Sam Young, Marcus Dumervil, Dallas Turner, Ja'Den McBurrows, Greg Cox.
Cretin-Derham Hall (St. Paul, Minn.), 12
Chris Weinke, Ryan Harris, Seantrel Henderson (twice), Joe Mauer, Michael Floyd (twice), Matt Carufel, Tim Rosga, Carl McCullough, Chris Walsh, Jashon Cornell.
De La Salle (Concord, Calif.), 11
D. J. Williams, Kevin Simon, Michael Hutchings, Henry To'oTo'o, Aaron Taylor, Derek Landri, Amani Toomer, Michael Barton, Willie Glasper Jr., Maurice Drew, Leon Callen.
Carter (Dallas, Texas), 11
Clifford Jefferson, Jesse Warren, Jesse Armstead, Darren Lewis, Ahndre Patterson, Damian Hill, Sherrod Wyatt, Cliff Abraham, Derric Evans, Terrance Brooks, Phillip Boren.
