This is a project I have been working on for a while. A spreadsheet I made which contains every player in New Orleans Saints history, who I could find, and what college they went to. In total, there were 289 different schools where players have come from. It’s fascinating to see the different walks that players took to get to a similar spot.
This piece will highlight the top 10 colleges that produced the most players to play for New Orleans.
1. LSU- 42 players
This shouldn’t come as a surprise. The school that has produced the most Saints players is the powerhouse that is an hour down the road: LSU. This Louisiana connection has led to many natives playing for their home team.
Notable Players from LSU: Tyrann Mathieu, Kwon Alexander, Devery Henderson, Jarvis Landry, and Foster Moreau.
2. Ohio State- 35 players
Notable Players from Ohio State: Marshon Lattimore, Chris Olave, Michael Thomas, Malcolm Jenkins, Vonn Bell, Ted Ginn Jr, and Pete Werner.
T3. Notre Dame & Tennessee- 27 players
Notable Players from Notre Dame: John Carney, Isaiah Foskey, Manti Te’o, Blake Grupe, and Ian Book.
Notable Players from Tennessee: Alvin Kamara, Alontae Taylor, Jabari Greer, Robert Meacham, and Donte’ Stallworth.
T5. USC & Nebraska- 25 players
Notable Players from USC: Reggie Bush and Sammy Knight.
Notable Players from Nebraska: Brett Maher and Devine Ozigbo.
7. Penn State- 24 players
Notable Players from Penn State: Blake Gilikan and Chuck Crist.
8. Texas- 23 players
Notable Players from Texas: Earl Campbell, Malcolm Roach, Ricky Williams and Kenny Vaccaro.
T9. Florida, Georgia, Oregon, & Washington- 21 players
Notable Players from Florida: CJ Gardner Johnson, Alex Anzalone and Marcus Maye.
Notable Players from Georgia: Charles Grant, Jon Stinchcomb, and Benjamin Watson.
Notable Players from Oregon: Juwan Johnson, Kiko Alonso, Jarius Byrd, and Ugo Amadi.
Notable Players from Washington: Mark Brunell, Senio Kelemente, Dwayne Washington.
