Year in and year out, California and Florida continue to be perennial high school football powers. So it should come as no surprise that two schools on the opposite coasts -- Dillard in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., and Tustin in Tustin, Calif., -- top the list with the most 2008 NFL players with six each.
These totals are based on the 1,693-man 2008 NFL Kickoff Weekend rosters (September 4, 7-8).
"Dillard just prepared me for life," said Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive tackle Jovan Haye, who graduated from Dillard and then went on to play college ball at Vanderbilt. "It also gave me a good football education. You played against some of the best the state has to offer, and there is no better football than football in Florida, especially in the South Florida region."
It may not get any better than South Florida to Haye, but NFL players from Kickoff rosters certainly come from all over. This year, they hail from 1,393 high schools in 48 states and the District of Columbia, four foreign countries and one U.S. territory (American Samoa).
But some states fare better than others when it comes to seeing production from former high school players in the NFL. California holds its own - and the No. 1 spot - with the most NFL players with 214. Florida ranks second with 185 players, and Texas rounds out the top three with 170. Keeping pace with the most star-studded states, Miami and Houston top the list of hometowns with the most NFL players with 34 and 27, respectively.
Atlanta Falcons tackle Sam Baker, who got his start at one of this year's most productive schools, has fond memories of his high school days.
"Tustin means a lot to me," Baker said. "It's where I got started, and it's where I first played football. Coach (Myron) Miller, who is still there, told me to get in the weight room because that's where everything I was going to accomplish was going to start."
Baker can also look back on his days at Tustin and appreciate the way his high school football program was run.
"It was all about work, and I was fortunate that there were a lot of guys around my same age that were top-caliber athletes," he said. "A lot of those guys are in the NFL today. DeShaun Foster started the trend and a lot of us followed in his footsteps."
HIGH SCHOOLS WITH MOST NFL PLAYERS
High School, City, State | Number | NFL Players |
| Dillard, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida | 6 | Isaac Bruce, SF; Chris Gamble, CAR; Jovan Haye, TB; Stanley McClover, HOU; Josh Shaw, DEN; Pat Sims, CIN. |
| Tustin, Tustin, California | 6 | Sam Baker, ATL; Beau Bell, CLV; Chris Chester, BLT; DeShaun Foster, SF; Matt McCoy, TB; Frostee Rucker, CIN. |
Four high schools have five players each:
High School, City, State | Number | NFL Players |
| Catholic, Baton Rouge, Louisiana | 5 | Warrick Dunn, TB; Brandon Harrison, HOU; Donnie Jones, STL; Travis Minor, STL; Chris Williams, CHI. |
| De La Salle, Concord, California | 5 | Maurice Jones-Drew, JAX; Derek Landri, JAX; Amani Toomer, NYG; Demetrius Williams, BLT; D.J. Williams, DEN. |
| Evangel Christian, Shreveport, Louisiana | 5 | Brock Berlin, STL; John David Booty, MIN; Keyunta Dawson, IND; Jacob Hester, SD; Jonathan Wade, STL. |
| Glenville, Cleveland, Ohio | 5 | Ted Ginn, MIA; Antwaun Molden, HOU; Troy Smith, BLT; Donte Whitner, BUF; Pierre Woods, NE. |
Thirteen high schools have four players each in the NFL this year. Thirty-two schools boast three NFLers, while 167 have two players apiece:
High School, City, State | NFL Players | High School, City, State | NFL Players |
Aplington-Parkersburg, Parkersburg, IA | 4 | Long Beach Polytechnic, Long Beach, CA | 4 |
Booker T. Washington, Tulsa, OK | 4 | Los Alamitos, Los Alamitos, CA | 4 |
Carol City, Miami, FL | 4 | Lower Richland, Hopkins, SC | 4 |
Deep Creek, Chesapeake, VA | 4 | Miami, Miami, FL | 4 |
DeMatha Catholic, Hyattsville, MD | 4 | Norland, Miami, FL | 4 |
Glades Central, Belle Glade, FL | 4 | Provine, Jackson, MI | 4 |
Lake Highlands, Dallas, TX | 4 | ||
Number of high schools with 3 NFL players: 32 | |||
Number of high schools with 2 NFL players: 167 | |||
Number of high schools with 1 NFL player: 1,175 | |||
HOME STATES: California topped the list of states with most NFL players (214), followed by Florida (185) and Texas (170):
STATES WITH MOST NFL PLAYERS
State | NFL Players | State | NFL Players | ||
California | 214 | Michigan | 57 | ||
Florida | 185 | South Carolina | 51 | ||
Texas | 170 | Alabama | 48 | ||
Ohio | 90 | Pennsylvania | 47 | ||
Georgia | 83 | North Carolina | 41 | ||
Louisiana | 73 | Mississippi | 39 | ||
Virginia | 61 | Illinois | 38 | ||
HOMETOWNS: Miami heads the list of hometowns with the most players (34), followed by Houston (27) and Detroit (16):
HOMETOWNS WITH MOST NFL PLAYERS
Hometown | NFL Players | Hometown | NFL Players | |
Miami | 34 | Los Angeles | 11 | |
Houston | 27 | Baton Rouge | 10 | |
Detroit | 16 | Chicago | 10 | |
Atlanta | 12 | Cincinnati | 10 | |
Ft. Lauderdale | 12 | Jacksonville | 10 | |
San Diego | 12 | New Orleans | 9 | |
Cleveland | 11 | Dallas | 8 | |
AMERICAN SAMOA: The United States territory of American Samoa has five NFL players, including two with the Cincinnati Bengals -- DE Jonathan Fanene and DT Domata Peko. Chicago has DT Matt Toeaina, Miami DT Paul Soliai and San Francisco DT Isaac Sopoaga.
FOREIGN COUNTRIES: Canada (10) led the Kickoff Weekend list of foreign countries with NFL players who attended high schools in the country, followed by Australia (3), Great Britain (1) and Panama (1):
NFL PLAYERS IN FOREIGN HIGH SCHOOLS
Country | Total | NFL Players |
Canada | 10 | Oshiomogho Atogwe, STL; Mitch Berger, PIT; J.P. Darche, KC; Daniel Federkeil, IND; Israel Idonije, CHI; Nick Kaczur, NE; L.P. Ladouceur, DAL; Rob Meier, JAX; Brett Romberg, STL; Shaun Suisham, WAS. |
Australia | 3 | Ben Graham, NYJ; Mat McBriar, DAL; Saverio Rocca, PHI. |
Great Britain | 1 | Rhys Lloyd, CAR. |
Panama | 1 | Frank Davis, CIN. |