1986 NFL Draft broken down by the college programs that produced each pick — first-rounders, conference totals, and the full board.
FantasyHQ
College Football
NFL Draft History by college program
1986 NFL Draft broken down by the college programs that produced each pick — first-rounders, conference totals, and the full board.
- Draft picks
- 12,927
- Colleges
- 446
- First-rounders
- 1,427
- Hall of Famers
- 102
- Pro Bowlers
- 1,326
- Drafts covered
- 47
Showing WR Day 3 picks from the 1986 draft · reset
Schools that produce the most NFL draft picks
Ranked by total picks within the current filters. Open a program for its full draft board.
- 1 Cal State Fullerton 2picks Cal State Fullerton team hub
-
2
Purdue
Big Ten
2picks
Purdue team hub
-
3
BYU
Big 12
1picks
BYU team hub
Draft pick explorer
Showing 1–29 of 29 picks · filtered.
| Pick | Player | College | Pos | NFL team | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Bill Brooks |
Boston College
ACC
|
WR | IND Indianapolis Colts | 169 games · 10 yrs as starter 57 career AV |
| 1986 | Kelvin Edwards |
Liberty
Conference USA
|
WR | NO New Orleans Saints | 35 games · 1 yrs as starter 7 career AV |
| 1986 | Chas Fox |
Furman
Southern Conference
|
WR | KC Kansas City Chiefs | 4 games |
| 1986 | James Pruitt | Cal State Fullerton | WR | MIA Miami Dolphins | 67 games 10 career AV |
| 1986 | Hassan Jones |
Florida State
ACC
|
WR | MIN Minnesota Vikings | 108 games · 3 yrs as starter 32 career AV |
| 1986 | Vince Warren |
San Diego State
Mountain West
|
WR | NYG New York Giants | 4 games |
| 1986 | Lew Barnes |
Oregon
Big Ten
|
WR | CHI Chicago Bears | 31 games 1 career AV |
| 1986 | Ron Brown |
Colorado College
|
WR | NYG New York Giants | 3 games |
| 1986 | Bob Thompson |
Youngstown State
MVFC
|
WR | NO New Orleans Saints | 2 games |
| 1986 | Floyd Dixon |
Stephen F. Austin
Southland
|
WR | ATL Atlanta Falcons | 91 games · 3 yrs as starter 18 career AV |
| 1986 | Curt Pardridge |
Northern Illinois
MAC
|
WR | LAC San Diego Chargers | 3 games 2 career AV |
| 1986 | Solomon Miller |
Utah State
Mountain West
|
WR | NYG New York Giants | 24 games 3 career AV |
| 1986 | Keith Williams |
Missouri State
Conference USA
|
WR | ATL Atlanta Falcons | 12 games 1 career AV |
| 1986 | Mark Jackson |
Purdue
Big Ten
|
WR | DEN Denver Broncos | 130 games · 6 yrs as starter 44 career AV |
| 1986 | Corn Redick | Cal State Fullerton | WR | PHI Philadelphia Eagles | 1 games |
| 1986 | Eric Swanson |
Tennessee
SEC
|
WR | ARI St. Louis Cardinals | 9 games |
| 1986 | Ray McDonald |
Florida
SEC
|
WR | NE New England Patriots | No regular-season snaps |
| 1986 | Allyn Griffin |
Wyoming
Mountain West
|
WR | DET Detroit Lions | No regular-season snaps |
| 1986 | Reggie Bynum |
Oregon State
Pac-12
|
WR | BUF Buffalo Bills | 1 games |
| 1986 | Joe Thomas |
Mississippi Valley State
SWAC
|
WR | DEN Denver Broncos | 1 games |
| 1986 | Wes Smith | Texas A&M-Commerce | WR | ARI St. Louis Cardinals | 1 games |
| 1986 | Elliston Stinson |
Rice
American
|
WR | SF San Francisco 49ers | No regular-season snaps |
| 1986 | Leland Melvin |
Richmond
Patriot League
|
WR | DET Detroit Lions | No regular-season snaps |
| 1986 | Gene Thomas | Pacific | WR | NE New England Patriots | No regular-season snaps |
| 1986 | Glen Kozlowski |
BYU
Big 12
|
WR | CHI Chicago Bears | 66 games 5 career AV |
| 1986 | Steve Griffin |
Purdue
Big Ten
|
WR | ATL Atlanta Falcons | 2 games |
| 1986 | Sebastian Brown |
Bethune-Cookman
SWAC
|
WR | NO New Orleans Saints | No regular-season snaps |
| 1986 | Eric Yarber |
Idaho
Big Sky
|
WR | WAS Washington Commanders | 14 games |
| 1986 | Larry Shepherd |
Houston
Big 12
|
WR | LV Los Angeles Raiders | No regular-season snaps |
Browse by draft class
Every year from 1980 to 2026 — school counts, conference splits, and the full first round.
NFL draft history guide
Last updated Aug 24, 2026
What this page tracks
NFL Draft History by College ranks every program by the NFL players it has produced since 1980. Browse 12,927 picks across 446 schools — first-rounders, Pro Bowl alumni, Hall of Famers, and recent draft classes — then open any school or year for the full board.
By the numbers
- 12,927 drafted players from 446 colleges, 1980–2026.
- 1,427 first-round selections across 47 drafts.
- 1,326 of those picks made at least one Pro Bowl; 102 reached the Hall of Fame.
- Most picks all-time: Cal State Fullerton — 2
- Most picks since 2017: Alabama — 95
- Top conference: SEC — 2,760 picks
- Most-drafted first-round position: DB — 181 picks
How to read the board
- Start with the school leaderboard — sort by total picks, first-rounders, Pro Bowls, or the last ten drafts.
- Use the round, conference, and position chips to isolate a pipeline, like SEC defensive backs in Round 1.
- Open a program for its full draft board, or a year for the complete class in pick order.
First round vs. career outcomes
Volume and quality are different signals. A program can lead in raw picks while another turns fewer selections into more Pro Bowlers. The Pro Bowler rate next to each school shows how often its picks became long-term NFL contributors, so read it alongside the Round 1 column rather than instead of it.
Frequently asked questions
Which college has produced the most NFL draft picks?
Cal State Fullerton leads FantasyHQ’s archive with 2 NFL draft picks since 1980. Compare every program at https://fantasyhq.co/cfb-hq/draft-history.
How far back does FantasyHQ’s NFL draft history go?
The archive covers every NFL draft from 1980 through 2026 — 12,927 picks across 446 college programs. Open a school page or a draft class year for the full pick list.
Can I see first-round NFL draft picks by college?
Yes. Filter the board to Round 1, or sort schools by first-rounders. FantasyHQ lists 1,427 first-round selections since 1980. Start at https://fantasyhq.co/cfb-hq/draft-history.
Does the page show NFL career outcomes for drafted players?
Where available, each pick includes Pro Bowls, All-Pro selections, Hall of Fame status, games played, and Approximate Value. The archive currently tracks 1,326 Pro Bowl alumni and 102 Hall of Famers.
How is this different from a fantasy football mock draft?
This page is the real NFL draft pipeline — college programs to NFL clubs — not a fantasy league draft board. For fantasy mock drafts and rankings, use FantasyHQ’s fantasy tools. Draft history lives at https://fantasyhq.co/cfb-hq/draft-history.
How often is the draft history page updated?
New draft classes land when the board is published each spring. Career outcomes refresh as seasons complete. This page was last labeled Aug 24, 2026.