The National Football League (NFL) conducts a seven-round collegiate player draft annually in April, with 32 teams getting one pick per round, since 1936. The draft selection began due to a bidding war for Stan Kostka in the early 1930s.
Since then, there have been several rule changes and additions to ensure the smooth running of the drafts, while maintaining competitive parity among the teams. However, the basic idea never changed.
The players can be traded among teams for future draft selections, but not the ones already selected. Though each team can only select once per round, there are compensatory selections for free agents between the third and seventh rounds (at the end of these rounds), in which one to four players can be selected.
Most College NFL Draft Picks in a Single Year
Georgia has had the most college picks in the draft—15 players in 2022—in a single year.
The NFL Draft was changed to a seven-round event in 1994. Prior to it, there were eight in 1993, 12 in 1977–1992 and 17 in 1967–1976 at the start of the Super Bowl era. Thus, the most players picked in a single class can be seen in a few different ways.
But ideally, the Georgia Bulldogs officially set a new record in the seven-round period when tight end John FitzPatrick, taken 213th overall by the Falcons, became the first player selected in a single round.
The previous record was a tie between Ohio State in 2004 and LSU in the 2020 NFL Draft, with 14 players each and Alabama comes next, with 12 players selected in 2018.
The full breakdown of the colleges that selected the most players in the NFL Draft is given below:
| No. of Players | School | Year | First Rounders | Highest Player (OVR) |
| 15 | Georgia | 2022 | 5 | DE Travon Walker (1) |
| 14 | Ohio State | 2004 | 3 | DE Will Smith (18) |
| 14 | LSU | 2020 | 5 | QB Joe Burrow (1) |
| 12 | Alabama | 2018 | 4 | S Minkah Fitzpatrick (11) |
| 12 | Ohio State | 2016 | 5 | DE Joey Bosa (3) |
| 11 | Miami | 2002 | 5 | OT Bryant McKinnie (7) |
| 11 | Oklahoma | 2005 | 2 | OT Jammal Brown (13) |
| 11 | Southern California | 2006 | 2 | RB Reggie Bush (2) |
| 11 | Southern California | 2009 | 3 | QB Mark Sanchez (5) |
| 11 | Florida State | 2013 | 3 | QB EJ Manuel (16) |
| 11 | Florida State | 2015 | 2 | QB Jameis Winston (1) |
| 11 | Michigan | 2017 | 2 | S Jabril Peppers (25) |
| 10 | Notre Dame | 1994 | 3 | DT Bryant Young (7) |
| 10 | Colorado | 1995 | 2 | WR Michael Westbrook (4) |
| 10 | Florida State | 1995 | 3 | DE Derrick Alexander (11) |
| 10 | Penn State | 1996 | 2 | G Jeff Hartings (23) |
| 10 | Washington | 1998 | 0 | WR Jerome Pathon (32) |
| 10 | Tennessee | 2002 | 3 | DT John Henderson (9) |
| 10 | Southern California | 2008 | 4 | DT Sedrick Ellis (7) |
| 10 | Louisville | 2015 | 1 | WR Devante Parker (14) |
| 10 | Alabama | 2017 | 4 | DE Jonathan Allen (17) |
| 10 | Ohio State | 2020 | 3 | DE Chase Young (2) |
| 10 | Michigan | 2020 | 1 | C Cesar Ruiz (24) |
| 10 | Alabama | 2021 | 6 | WR Jaylen Waddle (6) |
| 10 | Ohio State | 2021 | 1 | QB Justin Fields (11) |
| 10 | Alabama | 2023 | 3 | QB Bryce Young (1) |
| 10 | Georgia | 2023 | 3 | DL Jalen Carter (9) |
FAQ's On Colleges with the Most NFL Draft Picks in a Single Year
A. There have been five No. 1 overall draft selections from the Oklahoma Sooners, USC Trojans, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, and Georgia Bulldogs.
A. The most players in the NFL of any college is the Alabama Crimson Tide, with 57 players playing professionally.
A. Georgia has the record for most players drafted with 15. Followed by LSU and Ohio State, with each having 14 players drafted in one year.
A. The Indianapolis Colts and Los Angeles Rams have the most first overall picks in NFL history, with seven each.
