Saint Thomas Aquinas High School (Fort Lauderdale, Florida), with 10 players, tops the list of high schools with the most players on 2014 NFL Kickoff Weekend rosters, USA Football announced today.

“It was an honor to play for a school with such rich history and tradition,” says Jaguars tackle SAM YOUNG, who is among the players on NFL rosters who attended St. Thomas Aquinas. “We had an incredible coaching staff that took a lot of pride in preparing their players for the next level and above, and I think that shows in the program's longstanding success. It was great to be a part of building the winning culture and I'm sure it will continue on for many years.”

NFL players hail from 1,376high schools in 48 states and the District of Columbia, six countries and two U.S. territories (American Samoa and U.S. Virgin Islands).

The totals are based on the 1,696 men on Kickoff Weekend rosters.

High schools with most NFL players

High School, City, State

Number

NFL Players

Saint Thomas Aquinas, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.

 

10

Geno Atkins, CIN; Giovani Bernard, CIN; Jeremy Cain, CHI; Marcus Gilbert, PIT; Brandon Linder, JAX; Marcus Roberson, STL; Dezmen Southward, ATL; James White, NE; Major Wright, TB; Sam Young, JAX

Glades Central High School, Belle Glade, Fla.

 

5

Kelvin Benjamin, CAR; Travis Benjamin, CLE; Santonio Holmes, CHI; Ray McDonald, SF; Deonte Thompson, BAL

Glenville High School, Cleveland, Ohio

 

5

Davon Coleman, DAL; Jay Elliott, GB; Ted Ginn, AZ, Jonathan Newsome, IND; Donte Whitner, CLE

Pahokee High School, Pahokee, Fla.

 

5

Dwight Bentley, DET; Anquan Boldin, SF; Janoris Jenkins, STL; Pernell McPhee, BAL; Antone Smith, ATL

Fourteen high schools have four players each in the NFL this year. Forty-three schools boast three NFLers, while 165 have two players apiece:

 

High School, City, State	NFL Players	High School, City, State	NFL Players
De La Salle Catholic, Concord, Calif.	4	Miami Central, Miami, Fla.	4
DeMatha Catholic, Hyattsville, Md.	4	Norco, Norco, Calif.	4
DeSoto, Desoto, Texas	4	North Miami Beach Senior, Miami, Fla.	4
Elder, Cincinnati, Ohio	4	O. Perry Walker, New Orleans, La.	4
Hahnville, Boutte, La.	4	Oaks Christian, Westlake Village, Calif.	4
Helix, La Mesa, Calif.	4	Piscataway, Piscataway, N.J.	4
Long Beach Polytechnic, Long Beach, CA	4	Servite, Anaheim, CA	4

Number of high schools with 3 NFL players: 43

Number of high schools with 2 NFL players: 165

Number of high schools with 1 NFL player: 1,156

HOME STATES:  California tops the list of states with the most NFL players (213), followed by Florida (200) and Texas (172):

 

States with the most NFL players

 

State	NFL Players	State	NFL Players
California	213	Pennsylvania	55
Florida	200	Virginia	55
Texas	172	New Jersey	55
Georgia	97	Alabama	52
Ohio	79	North Carolina	51
Louisiana	59	Michigan	44
South Carolina	55	Illinois	40

HOMETOWNS:  Miami heads the list of hometowns with the most players (25), followed by Fort Lauderdale (16), Houston (16) and New Orleans (16):

HOMETOWNS WITH MOST NFL PLAYERS

Hometown	NFL Players	Hometown	NFL Players
Miami	25	Cincinnati	12
Fort Lauderdale	16	Cleveland	12
Houston	16	Chicago	11
New Orleans	16	Dallas	10
Jacksonville	12	Philadelphia	10
Los Angeles	12	Pittsburgh	10
Detroit	12

NFL PLAYERS PER CAPITA:  Louisiana, with one NFL player for every 76,837 residents, leads the list of NFL players per capita. South Carolina (1 in 84,098) and the District of Columbia (1 in 85,960) round out the top three. The national average is one NFL player per 184,326 U.S. residents.

STATES WITH MOST NFL PLAYERS PER CAPITA

State	Population	NFL Players		NFL Players Per Capita
Louisiana	4,533,372	59		1 NFL playerper 76,837 people
South Carolina	4,625,364	55		1 NFL playerper 84,098 people
District of Columbia	601,723	7		1 NFL playerper 85,960 people
Mississippi	2,967,297	34		1 NFL player per 87,273 people
Alabama	4,779,736	52		1 NFL player per 91,918 people
Florida	18,801,310	200		1 NFL player per 94,007 people
Montana	989,415	10		1 NFL playerper 98,942 people
Georgia	9,687,653	97		1 NFL playerper 99,873 people
Virginia	8,001,024	55		1 NFL playerper 145,473 people
Ohio	11,536,504	79		1 NFL playerper 146,032 people
United States	308,745,538	1,675		1 NFL player per 184,326 people
* Based on most recent published U.S. Census Data (2010).

AMERICAN SAMOA: The United States territory of American Samoa has two NFL players: Cincinnati DT Domata Peko and Atlanta DT Paul Soliai.

NOTE:  To obtain a complete list of NFL players’ high schools, states and hometowns, log on to www.nflmedia.com.

About USA Football: Indianapolis-based USA Football (www.usafootball.com) is the sport’s national governing body, leading the game’s development for youth, high school and other amateur players. The independent nonprofit partners with leaders in medicine, child advocacy and sport to establish important standards rooted in education. USA Football advances coaching education and player skill development for safer play and a positive football experience.