It's been a rough couple of years on the field for Purdue football. When it comes to the Boilermakers' success in the NFL, however, things are not bad at all.
According to the data group at BestTickets.com, Purdue alumni in the league lead the way in terms of average annual salary at $4.43 million for the 2014 season. That's just ahead of Pittsburgh, Texas, Georgia Tech and Ole Miss.
That figure is naturally boosted by New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees, who has a reported salary of just north of $20 million a year. Throw in Super Bowl champion Cliff Avril's $6.5 million check and it's a rosy picture for the Boilermakers. The site also adds that only four of the 13 players in the NFL from the school make less than a million per year.
Some other interesting data on colleges and the NFL:
» Miami (Fla.) produced the most active Pro Bowlers, followed closely by USC, Texas and Tennessee.
» USC takes the crown when it comes to active Super Bowl winners with six players having rings. Oregon, Georgia and Boston College are next with five. Of course, Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll used to hold the same position at USC and coached or recruited all six.
» Win the Heisman, cash in later. The average salary of a Heisman winner -- and there are seven still playing or drawing checks -- is $3.21 million more than the NFL average.
» It's no surprise that roughly a third of NFL players come from either California, Florida or Texas. The Golden State reigns supreme with 224 NFL players born inside California making it to the league. Louisiana, however, produces the most players per capita. Six of the top states in that measurement are located inside the SEC footprint, by the way.
If you look at opening-week rosters, per NFL data, LSU produced the most number of NFL players in 2014. USC, Alabama, Georgia, Florida and Florida State were next on the list.
You can follow Bryan Fischer on Twitter at @BryanDFischer.