30 NFL Draft picks from Georgia is record; ranks #2 in U.S.
The 30 former Georgia high school players taken in the NFL Draft is a record - a whopping 10 more than the previous best of 20 in 2013.
The 30 also ranked ahead of California (27) and Texas (27) and behind only Florida (39) nationwide, according to research by Barton Simmons of 247Sports. Georgia ranked No. 4 in NFL players on opening-day 2014 rosters with 106. California led with 222.
The 30 in the 2015 draft is part of a trend for Georgia. In the 1990s, an average of 11.6 Georgia players were taken in the NFL Draft, according to research by the Georgia High School Football Historians Association. That jumped to 13.5 from 2000 to 2009.
Over the last six drafts, the number has gone to 19.3.
Four Georgia players were taken in the first round (see below) led by Clemson LB/DE Vic Beasley, who played in high school at Adairsville. Beasley went to the Falcons at No. 8 overall. He is the highest pick among Georgia players since Eric Berry went No. 5 overall to the Chiefs in 2011.
The four first-round picks from Georgia is the second-most in history. Five were taken in 2005.
Three Georgia schools had a pair of draft picks. They were North Gwinnett, Norcross and Stephenson.
Eight Stephenson players have been drafted in the past 10 years. No other Georgia school has had that many even if you go back 25 years. The former Jaguars picked this year were LB/DE Preston Smith to the Redskins and RB Mike Davis to the 49ers.
The most common position of the 30 Georgia players is wide receivers (8). There have been 52 Georgia wide receivers drafted (most of any position) since 1988 from Sterling Sharpe to Hines Ward to Calvin Johnson.
Here are the 30 Georgia players drafted in 2015:
| RD | Overall | NAME | Pos. | HIGH SCHOOL | COLLEGE | NFL TEAM |
| 1 | 8 | Vic Beasley | LB/DE | Adairsville | Clemson | Falcons |
| 1 | 19 | Cameron Erving | OL | Colquitt County | Florida State | Browns |
| 1 | 22 | Bud Dupree | LB/DE | Wilkinson County | Kentucky | Steelers |
| 1 | 26 | Breshad Perriman | WR | Arabia Mountain | Central Florida | Ravens |
| 2 | 28 | Preston Smith | LB/DE | Stephenson | Mississippi State | Redskins |
| 3 | 76 | Chris Conley | WR | North Paulding | Georgia | Chiefs |
| 3 | 82 | Lorenzo Mauldin | LB/DE | Maynard Jackson | Louisville | Jets |
| 3 | 93 | Henry Anderson | DE | Woodward Academy | Stanford | Colts |
| 3 | 98 | Steven Nelson | CB | Northside-W.Robins | Oregon State | Chiefs |
| 4 | 111 | Tre' Jackson | G | Wayne County | Florida State | Patriots |
| 4 | 113 | Gabe Wright | DT | Carver Columbus | Auburn | Lions |
| 4 | 126 | Mike Davis | RB | Stephenson | South Carolina | 49ers |
| 4 | 132 | DeAndre Smelter | WR | Tattnall Square | Georgia Tech | 49ers |
| 4 | 133 | Max Garcia | C | Norcross | Florida | Broncos |
| 5 | 137 | Grady Jarrett | DT | Rockdale County | Clemson | Falcons |
| 5 | 157 | C.J. Uzomah | TE | North Gwinnett | Auburn | Bengals |
| 5 | 161 | Neiron Ball | LB | Jackson | Florida | Raiders |
| 5 | 167 | Damien Swann | DB | Grady | Georgia | Saints |
| 5 | 175 | Keith Mumphrey | WR | Dooly County | Michigan State | Texans |
| 6 | 186 | Geremy Davis | WR | Norcross | Connecticut | Giants |
| 6 | 204 | Darren Waller | WR | North Cobb | Georgia Tech | Ravens |
| 6 | 207 | Amarlo Herrara | LB | North Clayton | Georgia | Colts |
| 6 | 211 | Reshard Cliett | LB | Thomas Co. Central | South Florida | Texans |
| 6 | 213 | Kennard Backman | TE | Whitefield Academy | UAB | Packers |
| 7 | 228 | Austin Shepherd | OT | North Gwinnett | Alabama | Vikings |
| 7 | 238 | Mario Alford | WR | Greenville | West Virginia | Bengals |
| 7 | 244 | Trenton Brown | OT | Westover | Florida | 49ers |
| 7 | 244 | Tre McBride | WR | Ola | William & Mary | Titans |
| 7 | 253 | Xzavier Dickson | DE | Griffin | Alabama | Patriots |
| 7 | 254 | Rory Anderson | TE | McEachern | South Carolina | 49ers |
