2022 NFL Draft picks ranked by college football program, conference: SEC still the king

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2022 NFL Draft picks ranked by college football program, conference: SEC still the king
2022 NFL Draft picks ranked by college football program, conference: SEC still the king /

Another NFL Draft is in the books and once again the SEC is king of college football.

And this time it was Georgia that led the way for the league and nationally.

Georgia set a record in the common draft era (1967) for the most players taken from a single school, as former Bulldogs made up 15 of the 262 players taken, or almost 6 percent of the entire 2022 draft class.

The record-setting number broke the previous best of 14 players taken from both Ohio State in the 2004 NFL Draft and from LSU in the 2020 event.

Georgia's efforts led the way for what remains the most talented conference in college football. SEC teams produced 65 future NFLers this year, or 25 percent of this year's class, with the Big Ten coming in second with 48 players taken (18%).

The other Power 5 conferences — ACC, Pac-12, and Big 12 — combined to produce 71 total NFL Draft picks. ACC and Pac-12 schools produced four picks each in the first round (Georgia had five on its own) and the Big 12 didn't have a single first-rounder.

One school on the downswing was Texas, which didn't have any players taken for the first time since 2014 and the second time since 1938.

One big winner was Cincinnati, which made history by becoming the first non Power 5 school to make the College Football Playoff last season. NFL teams were after the Bearcats' talent as a result: 9 former UC players went in the 2022 NFL Draft.

That's the most for a non Power 5 school since Houston in 1990 (7).

Let's get into the actual numbers from the schools and conferences at the NFL Draft this year.

2022 NFL Draft picks by college football program, conference

1. SEC — 65

2. Big Ten — 48

3. Pac-12  25

T-3. Big 12  25

5. ACC — 21

6. AAC — 19

  • Cincinnati — 9
  • Houston — 3
  • Tulsa — 2
  • Memphis — 2
  • SMU — 2
  • UCF — 1

7. Mountain West — 11

  • San Diego State — 4
  • Nevada — 2
  • Colorado State — 1
  • Wyoming — 1
  • Air Force — 1
  • Fresno State — 1
  • Boise State — 1

8. MAC — 6

  • Central Michigan — 2
  • Toledo — 2
  • Western Michigan — 1
  • Miami (Ohio) —1

T-8. Conference USA — 6

  • UTSA — 2
  • Western Kentucky — 2
  • UAB — 1
  • Marshall — 1

T-8. Sun Belt — 6

  • Louisiana — 2
  • Coastal Carolina — 2
  • South Alabama — 1
  • Appalachian State — 1

Everybody else

  • Notre Dame — 2 (Independent)
  • BYU — 1 (Independent)
  • Liberty — 1 (Independent)
  • UConn — 1 (Independent)
  • Northern Iowa — 1 (FCS Missouri Valley)
  • North Dakota State — 1 (FCS Missouri Valley)
  • Missouri State — 1 (FCS Missouri Valley)
  • North Dakota — 1 (FCS Missouri Valley)
  • South Dakota State — 1 (FCS Missouri Valley)
  • Youngstown State — 1 (FCS Missouri Valley)
  • Montana State — 2 (FCS Big Sky)
  • Southern Utah — 1 (FCS Big Sky)
  • Chattanooga — 1 (FCS Southern Conference)
  • Southern University — 1 (FCS SWAC)
  • Jackson State — 1 (FCS SWAC)
  • Fordham — 1 (FCS Patriot League)
  • Villanova — 1 (FCS Colonial)
  • Samford — 1 (FCS Southern)
  • Sam Houston State — 1 (FCS Southland Conference)
  • South Carolina State — 1 (FCS MEAC)
  • Yale — 1 (FCS Ivy League)
  • Fayetteville State — 1 (DII CIAA)
  • Northwest Missouri State — 1 (Division II MIAA)
  • Ouachita Baptist — 1 (Division II GAC)
  • Valdosta State — 1 (Division II Gulf South)
  • Lenoir-Rhyne — 1 (Division II South Atlantic)

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James Parks
JAMES PARKS

James Parks is the founder and publisher of College Football HQ. He previously covered football for 247Sports and CBS Interactive. College Football HQ joined the Sports Illustrated Fannation Network in 2022.