The most prestigious Football League, the National Football League NFL’s 2022 season, begins at SoFi Stadium on Thursday, September 8th. The NFL 2022 championship game (Super Bowl) will occur on Sunday, February 13, 2023.
Being one of the most popular football leagues, getting into the NFL is pretty hard. Football players have to go through numerous stages before being picked for the NFL, such as high school football, NCAA football, and, ultimately, the NFL.
But have you ever wondered what percentage of College Players make it to the NFL each year? Continue reading our guide to find out how many out of the 71,060 NCAA football players in the United States get drafted by the NFL.
The Chances Of Making It To The NFL
The fact that out of 1,093,234 college football players, only 1.6% are drafted into the National Football League is pretty sad. These players ought to be lucky to be selected for one of the famous American football leagues.
The massive drop in the number of college football players in the NFL is simply because there is not enough space to place every one of these players in the NFL. A total of 32 NFL teams are to select and draft members into their teams.
With such less number of teams comes a lesser variety of options. This means only the best out there get the chance to go pro.
The Top 10 College Players That Make It To NFL
NFL is full of talented and hardworking players from large and small colleges. Some of the NCAA programs are always speeding up players that constantly produce top-quality players who make it to the pros.
This is why we recommend you keep working harder to get where you dreamt of. At the same time, most colleges are striving to bring millionaires and CEOs of top companies.
There are top 11 colleges that are known for producing some of the best football players in the NFL.
Let’s see What Percentage of College Players Make it to the NFL, Below is a chart of the top 10 colleges and players that make it to the NFL:
Player |
College |
NFL Team |
Year Drafted |
| Xavier Rhodes | Florida State University | Minnesota Vikings | 2013 |
| Sheldon Richardson | University of Missouri | New York Jets | 2013 |
| Ezekiel Ansah | Brigham Young University | Detroit Lions | 2013 |
| Eric Fisher | Central Michigan University | San Francisco 49ers | 2013 |
| Taylor Lewan | Central Michigan University | Tennessee Titans | 2014 |
| Matt Barkley | UFC | Buffalo Bills, Chicago Bears, Arizona Cardinals, San Francisco 49ers, Cincinnati Bengals, Tennessee Titans, and Carolina Panthers. | 2013 |
| Jonathan Banks | Mississippi State University | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 2013 |
| Jonathan Cooper | University of North Carolina | Arizona Cardinals | 2013 |
| Geno Smith | West Virginia | Seattle Seahawks | 2013 |
| Anthony Barr | UCLA | Dallas Cowboys | 2013 |
| Dion Jordan | Oregon | Miami Dolphins | 2013 |
| Bjoern Werner | Florida States | Indianapolis Colts | 2013 |
| Alec Ogletree | University of Georgia | St. Louis Rams | 2013 |
| Dee Milliner | University of Alabama | New York Jets | 2013 |
| Keenan Allen | University of California | Los Angeles Chargers | 2013 |
| Jake Matthews | University of Texas A&M | Atlanta Falcons | 2014 |
| Barkevious Mingo | Louisiana State University | Cleveland Browns | 2014 |
| Chance Warmack | University of Alabama | Tennessee Titans | 2013 |
| Luke Joeckel | University of Texas A&M | Jacksonville Jaguars | 2014 |
| Manti Te’o | Notre Dame | San Diego Charger | 2014 |
What Percentage Of College Football Players Go Pro?
The NFL draft begins in May and is one of the most anticipated off-season sports events as teams look to bolster their rosters ahead of the new season.
But, in addition to raising anticipation for the next game, the draft reminds us of how difficult it is to make it to and stay in the NFL.
Have you ever considered what percentage of College Players make it to the NFL or Go Pro?
The NFL is one of the most challenging sports to get into. The overall probability of high school players going on to compete in college football is projected to be 7.3 percent (73,712 NCAA participants) out of 1,006,013 high schoolers.
Those who made the cut for college football had a 1.6 percent probability of moving to a major pro league. It is underscored that just 16,380 players were eligible for the draft out of 73,712 college football players, with only 254 expected to be selected.
Only 1.2% of college-level players will be selected in the NFL draft, making the drop-off between college and the pros even more pronounced. Even then, becoming a successful professional athlete is always challenging.
According to the NFL Players Association, the odds of eventual success are much lower, with some estimating a 0.2 percent chance for any player to make it to the NFL.
Why Are The Odds Of NFL Stardom So Low?
Getting to the top as an athlete in any sport is a rocky journey. You might get tired of trying or find it hard to balance life with all the hard-core training and practices with your education.
Getting into the American football team is challenging and requires consistency and hard work.
Balancing your classes and game is all about sacrifices and enormous demands. You will have to stretch yourself from one end to the other, keeping up with your dietary requirements and missing out on your friends and family.
However, these sacrifices are not just limited to the children. The coaches who stay up late and are always there for the players are affected as they are. They put in as much effort as the players to develop a worthy outcome.
Football is not only about time and effort. Money plays a huge role in everything, and also in sports. To be a good player, you need to work harder, get extra coaching, get training types of equipment, academic tutors to help you cope with your studies, and much more.
All these are the odds to make it to the NFL draft, however, if you are strong-headed, fit, and focused on getting to the top, nothing can stop you. You must make your way through the line and fight for your position; otherwise, you could be left on the shelf forever.
1. Location
According to the study, your location plays an important role when it comes to playing in the National League. If you are from Chicago, Houston, and Los Angles, you have a golden chance of being one of the lucky ones to be selected.
Even if these three, Chicago stands on top to have the most opportunities. Other than that, college students from Miami and New Orleans may also have the odds; however, some of our promising players also belong to San Francisco, Columbus, and Memphis.
2. NCAA and NFL
Suppose you are a college football player and have always wanted to go beyond and make it to the NFL. Then you must learn what you are going to face in your journey. NFL is the top football league in the United States of America, but it is challenging to get into.
According to recent studies and statistical knowledge, only 1.6% of applicants make it to the NFL rosters. But if you are an NCAA athlete and also want to get your college degree, the rate of you being successful just gets better.
If you are passionate about football and want to focus on your goal of getting into the NFL, then keep reading to know all about it. Only 6.5% of college players make it to the NCAA, and out of which, only 1.6% are drafted for NFL.
3. Salary
One thing is true: it is not easy to make up to America’s top football league, NFL. But that should not discourage you or make you lose hope. If you are a skillful player and trust your abilities to get what you want, we highly recommend you take the chance.
Once you excel in college football and get drafted by the NFL, you start earning a basic NFL salary. You will be lucky if you get to secure a place in the top 3 NFL teams. However, you must know that a minimum NFL salary will not be enough to rely upon your whole life.
However, on the other hand, a college degree might provide your family with a lifetime after football is over. It will be wise of you not to let go of your academics for something that will not be there tomorrow.
Faqs – What Percentage Of College Players Make It To The Nfl
What happens to the college football athletes who did not make the NFL?
If the athletes are too passionate about it, it might cause them a life of homelessness or sadness as they cannot make a living in the one thing they are invested in.
They do low-end jobs like working at fast food restaurants or freelancing on small levels. They get disheartened, which results in a trashy life they get to live after their rejection.
Do all players get to play in the NFL?
There are thousands of college football players if we add all 3 divisions, plus NAIA and junior college players. There are almost 11k players in 1 division.
At the same time, there are practically 1664 players in the NFL, which are known as the active rosters of the NFL, and extra 8 players are on each practice squad.
Only north of 250 players is drafted annually. Many tough decisions are made to draft them. Less than 2% of college players get to play in the pro football league (NFL).
What are the top colleges to produce most NFL players?
The top 10 colleges in America have produced the best and the most NFL players over the years:
- Pennsylvania State University
- University of Oklahoma
- University of Florida
- University of Michigan
- Clemson University
- University of Iowa
- University of Notre Dame
- University of Georgia
- Louisiana State University
- Ohio State University
Conclusion
The question is what percentage of College Players make it to the NFL; every year, there are ten thousand college athletes who dream of playing in the pro football league NFL.
There are 3 divisions, each containing more than 11k players, 250 of which are then selected in the final selections.
These players dream of playing on a large scale for their whole life, and most of them get disappointed by the results and end up having a sad life with inappropriate part-time jobs.
They should always keep a second option for themselves, as everyone knows less than 2 % of the college players get to play in the NFL. They should never forget that if they do not get a part in what they are good at, they should always have a plan B for their lives.
