Every year, NFL teams choose which college football players to add to their rosters through the draft. The draft, which began in 1936 due to Stan Kostka's bidding war, became a great way to add new talents to teams' rosters.
During the draft, 32 teams select one player per round, while the event has a total of seven rounds; thus, a team can get seven new talents after the event, plus compensatory selections of free agents. The teams with the worst record usually pick first, the Super Bowl champions pick last in each round and the runners-up at the Super Bowl select next to last.
The draft was originally intended to create more competitive balance between the teams because the worst club should ideally be able to select the best player available. Players in the early draft years were selected on the basis of hearsay, newspaper articles, etc.
Some teams started using full-time scouts in the 1940s and eventually other teams were forced to hire scouts as a result of these teams' subsequent success.
Most NFL Draft Picks in History
Notre Dame has the most NFL draft picks in history with 525.
In the 2022 NFL Draft, Notre Dame only had two players selected; nevertheless, the year before that was a record-breaking one, when Liam Eichenberg, Aaron Banks, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, Tommy Tremble, Ian Book, Daelin Hayes, Adetokunbo Ogundeji, and Ben Skowronek were the nine Irish players who were sent to the professional ranks in 2021.
Over the last 10 years, Notre Dame has produced at least six draft picks six times. The Buffalo Bills selected defensive end Walt Patulski first overall in 1972, the most recent of their five No. 1 overall selections.
| Rank | School | All-time NFL Draft Picks |
| 1 | Notre Dame | 525 |
| 2 | USC | 523 |
| 3 | Ohio State | 485 |
| 4 | Oklahoma | 414 |
| 5 | Alabama | 401 |
| 5 | Michigan | 401 |
| 7 | Penn State | 381 |
| 8 | LSU | 375 |
| 9 | Florida | 372 |
| 10 | Georgia | 371 |
| 11 | Nebraska | 368 |
| 12 | Tennessee | 360 |
| 13 | Miami | 358 |
| 14 | Texas | 357 |
| 15 | UCLA | 337 |
| 16 | Michigan State | 322 |
| 17 | Washington | 315 |
| 18 | Texas A&M | 302 |
| 19 | Pittsburgh | 297 |
| 19 | Wisconsin | 297 |
| 21 | Auburn | 295 |
| 22 | Purdue | 292 |
| 23 | Minnesota | 280 |
| 24 | Arkansas | 279 |
| 25 | Florida State | 278 |
| 25 | Stanford | 278 |
FAQ's On Colleges with the Most NFL Draft Picks in History
A. Notre Dame has the most NFL draft picks in history with 525.
A. The NFL draft has seven rounds, with 32 teams selecting one player per round.
A. The Buffalo Bills made the most recent selection from Notre Dame, choosing Walt Patulski as the No. 1 overall pick in 1972.
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. Alabama has the most first-round NFL draft picks, leading with 46.
A. The Los Angeles Rams and the Indianapolis Colts have selected seven players overall, which is a record for most number-one overall picks.
