You'll never guess which college program has the most players in this year's Super Bowl

Here's a trivia question you won't get correct on the first … second … 10th try. Which college football program has the most players on the Super Bowl rosters of this year's teams, New England and Atlanta?

January 25, 2017 at 9:45PM
(The Minnesota Star Tribune)
(The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Here's a trivia question that I would expect 0.0001 percent of people in Minnesota (and maybe anywhere) to get correct on the first … second … 10th try.

Which college football program has the most players on the Super Bowl rosters of this year's teams, New England and Atlanta?

You would probably churn through guesses like Alabama, Florida State, LSU, USC, and those guesses would be fine. Just wrong.

Next, I would try to help you and tell you that it's a Big Ten school.

Ah, OK that narrows it down. It's probably Ohio State or Michigan.

Nope.

Fine then, it's someone like Penn State, Nebraska, Wisconsin or Michigan State.

Nope, nope, nope, nope.

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Ah, you're being tricky. It has to be Iowa.

It is not.

Come on, who else could it be? Northwestern? Purdue? Hey, the Gophers have two guys on the Falcons. Is it Minnesota?

Still wrong on all counts.

Seriously? Who is even left? Illinois? Indiana? Maryland?

Wrong, wrong, wrong.

The Scarlet Knights have five players on Super Bowl rosters — four for the Patriots and one for the Falcons.

Because of the program's recent nosedive coinciding with its entry into the Big Ten, I'm guessing quite a few people forget Rutgers had a pretty decent run from 2005-2012, almost all of it under former coach Greg Schiano. The Scarlet Knights went to seven bowl games in those eight seasons, and won at least eight games in each of those bowl season (with a high of 11 in 2006).

Still, it's surprising to learn that's the school with the most players in the Super Bowl. Now you know and can impress all your friends.

about the writer

about the writer

Michael Rand

Columnist / Reporter

Michael Rand is the Minnesota Star Tribune's Digital Sports Senior Writer and host/creator of the Daily Delivery podcast. In 25 years covering Minnesota sports at the Minnesota Star Tribune, he has seen just about everything (except, of course, a Vikings Super Bowl).

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