Where every Super Bowl starting QB played high school football

When Brock Purdy of Perry High School goes under center for the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LVIII, it will be the first time a former Arizona high school quarterback will start in football’s crown jewel. Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes of Whitehouse will be playing in his fifth Super Bowl in Las Vegas on Sunday. He’s one of five former high schoolers from Texas to play in one of the 58 Super Bowls.

Related: Video of Mahomes and Purdy during their senior seasons

Mahomes and Purdy are QB starters No. 115 and No. 116 since Bart Starr and the Green Bay Packers beat Len Dawson and the Chiefs in Super Bowl I in Los Angeles on January 15, 1967. Since the Chiefs and Packers took centerstage at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, former high school quarterbacks from 23 different states have been represented under center at the start of the game.

Tom Brady of Serra (San Mateo) High School has made the most Super Bowl starts at quarterback. Brady and twleve other former California high school quarterbacks have combined to make 28 Super Bowl starts, the most of any state in the nation.

Former California High School QB’s to start in a Super Bowl

• Super Bowl II – Daryle Lamonica, Clovis High School
• Super Bowl III – Joe Kapp, Hart High School
• Super Bowls V & XII – Craig Morton, Campbell High School
• Super Bowl VII – Billy Kilmer, Citrus Union
• Super Bowl XIV – Vince Ferragamo, Banning High School (Wilmington)
• Super Bowls XV and XVIII – Jim Plunkett, Overfelt High School
• Super Bowl XX – Tony Eason, Delta High School
• Super Bowls XXI, XXII, XXIV, XXXII and XXXIII – John Elway, Granada Hills High School
• Super Bowl XXXV – Trent Dilfer, Aptos High School
• Super Bowls XXXVI, XXXVIII, XXXIX, XLII, XLVI, XLIX, LI, LII, LIII and LV – Tom Brady, Serra High School (San Mateo)
• Super Bowl XLV – Aaron Rodgers, Pleasant Valley High School
• Super Bowl XLVII – Colin Kaepernick, Pitman High School
• Super Bowl LIII – Jared Goff, Marin Catholic High School

Coming in behind California is Pennsylvania with 15 starts from former Keystone State quarterbacks. Joe Montana of Ringgold and Jim Kelly of East Brady each have started four Super Bowls.

There have been two Super Bowls featuring an All-PA matchup at QB. Montana started Super Bowl 19 for the 49ers when they beat the Miami Dolphins and Dan Marino, who played scholastically at Pittsburgh Central Catholic. Six years later, Jeff Hostetler of Conemaugh Township led the New York Giants by Kelly and the Buffalo Bills.

After Pennsylvania, Louisiana has had 14 quarterback starts, followed by Ohio with nine and Texas with eight.

States with Former HS Quarterbacks to start in a Super Bowl

• California – 28 starts between 13 quarterbacks
• Pennsylvania – 15 starts between 9 quarterbacks
• Louisiana – 14 starts between 7 quarterbacks
• Ohio – 9 starts between 4 quarterbacks
• Texas – 8 starts between 5 quarterbacks
• Georgia, Indiana, New Jersey – each state has four starts
• Alabama, Illinois, Iowa, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Washington – each state has 3 starts
• New York, Virginia – each state has 2 starts
• Arizona, Connecticut, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, North Carolina, Utah – each state has 1 start

Thanks to the Manning brothers, Peyton and Eli, Isidore Newman High School from Louisiana has had six starts. Peyton was in four Super Bowls with one championship. Eli won both of his Super Bowl appearances.

Westlake High School in Austin, Texas joins Isidore Newman as the only school to have two different former players start a Super Bowl at quarterback. Drew Brees led the New Orleans Saints to a championship in Super Bowl 44. Nick Foles led the Philadelphia Eagles by Brady and the New England Patriots in Super Bowl 52.

Below are the starters and their high schools in every Super Bowl.

Super Bowl Starting QBs

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