NFL Draft: Florida high schools finish with the most first-round selections

Sunshine State tops first-day totals for sixth time in last 10 years with six picks.

Thumbnail image of this articles writer: Zack Poff

By Zack Poff

Apr 28, 2023, 2:00pm

State by State look at 1st Round NFL Draft picks ft. Bryce Young, C.J. Stroud, Anthony Richardson, Calijah Kancey, and Nolan Smith

State-by-State Look at 1st Round NFL Draft Picks 0:53

For the first time since 2019, the state of Florida finished with the most first-round selections during the opening day of the 2023 NFL Draft. Anthony Richardson of Eastside (Gainesville) was the first of six picks who played high school football in the Sunshine state when the Indianapolis Colts selected him fourth overall.

Devon Witherspoon (Seahawks), Jalen Carter (Eagles), Calijah Kancey (Buccaneers), Zay Flowers (Ravens) and Nolan Smith (Eagles) join Richardson as first-round picks. It was the third straight draft IMG Academy (Bradenton) had someone selected in the first round after the Eagles took Smith 30th overall. Kancey became the fifth player from Northwestern (Miami) to be selected in first round since 2014.

It was the sixth time over the last 10 years the Sunshine State had the most picks in draft's opening round.

For the first time in 54 years, California high schools owned the top-two picks of the draft. The Carolina Panthers selected former Cathedral (Los Angeles) and Mater Dei (Santa Ana) standout Bryce Young with the No. 1 pick. C.J. Stroud of Rancho Cucamonga was selected second overall by the Houston Texans.

The only other time that happened was in 1969 when O.J. Simpson and George Kunz were the top-two picks. Simpson played at Galileo (San Francisco) while Kunz attended Loyola (Los Angeles). Texas was the last state to accomplish this feat when Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III were the top two picks in the 2012 NFL Draft.

Georgia and Texas tied for the second-most selections with four apiece.

Will Anderson (Texans), Jahmyr Gibbs (Lions), Broderick Jones (Steelers) and Myles Murphy (Bengals) all played high school football in the Peach State. Tyree Wilson (Raiders), Christian Gonzalez (Patriots), Jaxon Smith-Njigba (Seahawks) and Quentin Johnston (Chargers) represent the Lone Star State.

Maryland had the fourth-most players selected in the first round with three. The Minnesota Vikings selected Jordan Addison with the 23rd selection and the New York Giants took Deonte Banks with the following pick. Former Damascus standout Bryan Bresee was taken 29th overall by the New Orleans Saints.