Having said… I’ve thought about this a ton and it’s possible the small-school inefficiency is actually related to the salary cap implications of these players having a (perceived?) longer adjustment period when they get to the NFL. Even the best small school players (Garcon, VJax, Clay, etc) often take 3-4 years to make an impact and virtually none of them are day one starters.

Whether that’s yet another inefficiency or reflects something real is an open question though.

My mother went to Northern Colorado (which is called UNC here, confusing out-of-staters) and makes fun of my school (Colorado) for being “a football school.” For half of life, I have responded by saying, “Hey, your school has the best football player of either of our schools in the NFL while mine has produced the most astronauts of any non-military school!” referencing Aaron Smith for a while and then eventually Vincent Jackson.

If the argument continues, I just say, “Robert Redford” and metaphorically drop the mic. Luckily, she cannot remember Rae Carruth’s name.