These College Football Programs Have the Most No. 1 Overall NFL Draft Picks All Time

The biggest date on the offseason football calendar is upon us as the 2026 NFL Draft is ready to kick off from Pittsburgh as the league gathers to take its pick from the best talent the college football factories have to offer and select the next generation of stars.

Ever since the first NFL Draft back in 1936, also the year the AP introduced its first college football rankings, an elite coterie of schools have done most of the work producing the most talent taken at the coveted No. 1 overall position.

Ranking college football teams with most No. 1 NFL Draft picks

T-10. Alabama

College football teams with most No. 1 overall NFL Draft picks — Butch Dill-Imagn Images

No. 1 NFL Draft picks: 2

Most recent: Bryce Young, 2023 NFL Draft

Harry Gilmer was the first Alabama alum to earn the No. 1 overall designation at an NFL Draft, going to the Washington Redskins in 1948, before Bryce Young landed in Carolina with the top pick in 2023 and coming off a career year last fall.

T-10. Tennessee

No. 1 NFL Draft picks: 2

Most recent: Peyton Manning, 1998 NFL Draft

A half century after George Cafego went No. 1 to the Chicago Cardinals, Peyton Manning came out of Rocky Top to help define the quarterback position in the 21st century, winning two Super Bowls, earning five NFL MVP honors, 14 Pro Bowl nominations, and election to the Hall of Fame.

T-10. Michigan

No. 1 NFL Draft picks: 2

Most recent: Jake Long, 2008 NFL Draft

Wolverines halfback Tom Harmon won the Heisman Trophy in 1940 before going on to become Michigan's first-ever No. 1 NFL Draft pick, and offensive lineman Jake Long went to four Pro Bowls with the Miami Dolphins in his NFL career.

T-10. Nebraska

No. 1 NFL Draft picks: 2

Most recent: Irving Fryar, 1984 NFL Draft

Sam Francis was the Cornhuskers' first No. 1 pick, in the second-ever draft (1937), playing with four teams before serving in World War II. Fryar went to five Pro Bowls with four teams. Overall, Nebraska is ninth among college football programs with 363 draft picks.

T-10. Penn State

No. 1 NFL Draft picks: 2

Most recent: Courtney Brown, 2000 NFL Draft

Penn State is seventh all-time with 367 draft picks, including six in 2021, and put out a pair of top selections: running back Ki-Jana Carter (1995) and Brown, a defensive end who remains one of the Cleveland Browns' biggest draft busts.

T-10. South Carolina

No. 1 NFL Draft picks: 2

Most recent: Jadeveon Clowney, 2014 NFL Draft

George Rogers was the first Gamecocks product to go No. 1 overall, adding two Pro Bowls and a Super Bowl ring to his career plaudits, which include a Heisman Trophy during the 1980 season. Clowney went to three Pro Bowls with the Houston Texans.

T-7. Miami

No. 1 NFL Draft picks: 3

Most recent: Cam Ward, 2025 NFL Draft

Miami dominated college football and the NFL Draft boards in the late 80s and early 90s, with two top picks in a few years, including Russell Maryland, a former defensive tackle who won three Super Bowls in his NFL career, and quarterback Vinny Testaverde, a two-time Pro Bowl selection.

T-7. Texas

No. 1 NFL Draft picks: 3

Most recent: Kenneth Sims, 1982 NFL Draft

Texas linebacker Tommy Nobis and running back Earl Campbell went on to earn 10 combined Pro Bowl nominations in their NFL careers, and Campbell is regarded as one of the best running backs in NFL history.

T-7. Ohio State

No. 1 NFL Draft picks: 3

Most recent: Orlando Pace, 1997 NFL Draft

Pace went on to seven Pro Bowl selections in his NFL career, in addition to a win in Super Bowl XXXIV with St. Louis, and was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2016. Defensive tackle Dan Wilkinson, one of the Buckeyes' stars during the 90s, played a 12-year pro career.

T-7. LSU

No. 1 NFL Draft picks: 3

Most recent: Joe Burrow, 2020 NFL Draft

Burrow and halfback Billy Cannon both played for national championship teams at LSU and both were Heisman Trophy winners, and while former Tigers quarterback JaMarcus Russell went No. 1 to the Raiders in 2007, he famously failed to live up to those lofty expectations.

T-5. Stanford

No. 1 NFL Draft picks: 4

Most recent: Andrew Luck, 2012 NFL Draft

All of Stanford's top draft picks have been quarterbacks, starting with Bobby Garrett in 1954, Jim Plunkett in 1971, John Elway in 1983, and Andrew Luck in 2012. Plunkett won a Super Bowl, Elway won two more, and Luck could have if he didn't retire early due to injuries.

T-5. Auburn

No. 1 NFL Draft picks: 4

Most recent: Cam Newton, 2011 NFL Draft

One of the SEC schools with the most top overall selections, former Auburn players on this list include quarterback Cam Newton and legendary running back Bo Jackson in 1986, one of the best players in college football history at any position.

T-2. Notre Dame

No. 1 NFL Draft picks: 5

Most recent: Walt Patulski, 1972 NFL Draft

Notre Dame is also responsible for producing the most NFL Draft picks in total, but it's been a while since the Irish climbed to the top of this ladder, with most of its run of elite talent production coming from the 1940s through 1960s.

T-2. Oklahoma

No. 1 NFL Draft picks: 5

Most recent: Kyler Murray, 2019 NFL Draft

OU has emerged as a QB factory in the 21st century, producing a trio of signal callers that went No. 1 since 2010, including Sam Bradford, Baker Mayfield, and Kyler Murray. All three also won the Heisman Trophy. Billy Sims (1980) and Oee Roy Selmon (1976).

T-2. Georgia

No. 1 NFL Draft picks: 5

Most recent: Travon Walker, 2022 NFL Draft

Matthew Stafford naturally comes to mind when you think of Georgia's top draft picks, but don't forget Frank Sinkwich, the halfback who also landed with Detroit and was NFL MVP in 1944. Edge rusher Travon Walker was the Bulldogs' most recent top pick, going No. 1 to the Jaguars in 2022.

1. USC

No. 1 NFL Draft picks: 6

Most recent: Caleb Williams, 2024 NFL Draft

Long one of the biggest pipelines into the NFL, Southern Cal is also responsible for producing the second-most NFL Draft picks all-time. Heisman Trophy winners O.J. Simpson and quarterbacks Carson Palmer and most recently Caleb Williams highlight the Trojans' No. 1 selections.

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