Texas supplied more players to 2026 NFL Kickoff Weekend rosters than any other state, placing 192 players on the league’s 1,735-man opening-weekend roster pool. Florida followed with 185, while California had 159 and Georgia produced 148.
Kickoff Weekend pipeline
- Texas finished first among states represented on NFL Kickoff Weekend rosters with 192 players.
- Florida ranked second at 185 players, ahead of California’s 159 and Georgia’s 148.
- Bradenton, Florida, led all cities after 22 players from its high schools made opening-weekend NFL rosters.
- Miami had 21 such players, Atlanta had 17, and Detroit and Las Vegas each had 14.
- IMG Academy in Bradenton produced the largest number of NFL players among high schools represented on 2026 Kickoff Weekend rosters. The three leading high schools all came from South Florida.
The opening-weekend group included players from high schools in 45 states and the District of Columbia. Their backgrounds also spanned Australia, Canada, Nigeria, the United States and American Samoa.
Georgia leads per-capita list
Georgia remained the most productive state on a population-adjusted basis, with one NFL player for every 72,378 residents using the latest available 2020 U.S. Census data. Louisiana was next at one player per 77,629 people, followed by Alabama at one per 85,157. Nationally, the rate was one NFL player for every 193,265 residents.
Participation rises across the game
The NFL also highlighted increased participation from youth football through the college level, pointing to coordinated work among the league, its 32 clubs and football development partners.
Terry Fontenot, the NFL’s vice president of football development, said cooperation across youth, high school and college programs is helping reinforce and expand the sport.
Youth tackle football
- Youth tackle football participation exceeded 3.47 million in 2025.
- Players classified as CORE participants, meaning they played at least 26 times during the year, rose 3.9% to more than 2.2 million.
- Among players ages 13 through 17, CORE participation climbed 7.3% from the prior year to more than 1.46 million.
- Data covering the 12 months ending in June 2026 showed total tackle-football participation up 4.1% year over year.
Sports & Fitness Industry Association president and CEO Todd Smith said the figures showed continued strength in regular youth participation, particularly among teenagers, and called the first-half 2026 increase an encouraging base for future growth.
High school football
Eleven-player football reached 1,043,716 high school participants, making it the most-played high school sport for either boys or girls. Participation is up 7.1% from the first survey conducted after the pandemic in 2021-22 and has reached its highest level since 2016-17.
High school football also continues to draw the largest fan base among high school sports. Roughly 7,000 games are played on a typical Friday night, with weekly attendance estimated between 7 million and 10 million fans.
National Federation of State High School Associations executive director Davis Whitfield said participation has added about 70,000 players since the return from the pandemic. He credited coaches, school administrators, parents and local supporters for maintaining football’s Friday-night importance in communities across the country.
College programs continue to expand
- There are now 778 colleges and universities offering football when NCAA, NAIA and independent programs, including planned additions, are counted.
- Ten institutions are starting or restoring football programs in 2026, the largest single-year total since 2013.
- Seven additional schools have announced plans to begin playing in future seasons.
- Since NCAA attendance tracking began in 1978, the number of NCAA football schools has risen from 484 to 678, an increase of 194.
- Across NCAA, NAIA and independent institutions, 62 football programs have been added during the past decade.
National Football Foundation chairman Archie Manning said the new and planned programs will create hundreds of opportunities for students to earn a college education while continuing their football careers. He said every added program can provide student-athletes with the relationships, lessons and opportunities associated with college football.
