Current NFL star Christian Kirk
It has been over one month since the Super Bowl, the Philadelphia Eagles satisfied nearly the entire football fanbase (save some Taylor Swift fans) by absolutely creaming the Kansas City Chiefs. But lest one thinks that we will receive extended rest from the football season, that rest is officially over. Free agency has started with a few big signings and teams realigning, and next month begins what is essentially Christmas morning for football fans: the NFL draft.
Included in the draft choices are studs from blue chip schools; usually a handful of colleges will offer up a handful of their best to the NFL this year. And typically when one thinks of NFL feeder schools, one’s mind of course typically goes to colleges. Schools such as Georgia and Ohio State have recently been known to produce plenty of football players who end up playing on Sundays in the NFL. But one local high school is making itself known as a feeder school in its own right with its shocking degree of gridiron success.
Four current NFL players are from Saguaro, including players drafted in each of the last two years. Last year’s draftee Kelee Ringo is even a Super Bowl champion, having had the good fortune of being drafted by this year’s championship Philadelphia Eagles team.
Our Arizona Cardinals have shown a propensity to recognize home-grown talent, but lest anyone think that there is a particular home town bias here, both players (Christian Kirk and Byron Murphy) have gone on to have successful NFL careers, both lasting at least six years in a league that is known to chew up and spit out less talented and driven players.
So why such a surprising concentration of NFL talent in one high school? Perhaps it’s a function of the significant amount of future NFL talent that played across the Valley. Successful NFL players such as Brock Purdy, Bijan Robinson, and Chris Olave amongst many others have also come out of the Valley, and there is almost certainly an “iron sharpens iron” dynamic at play, as the best players extract the best out of their counterparts across the line of scrimmage. Also, considering that some of the Saguaro players had transferred in from elsewhere, the reputation of the school almost certainly has a demand pull, as be it previous success, strong coaching, or significant talent all around them, Saguaro has become a destination for great players.
Will any Saguaro players get drafted next month? Probably not, as the school’s 2024 standouts were generally not seniors. But if the past is any indicator, players such as Jaedon Matthews, Mason Whitaker, and Jack Elrod will stand a strong chance of hearing their name being called in the draft over the next few years.