Clash of Conferences

SEC Versus Big 10

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Former SEC running back Derrick Henry kisses his Heisman Trophy at the award ceremony (image courtesy of AL.com.

Justin Artz, Staff Writer

The Big 10 and the SEC are arguably the two most popular conferences in college football. However, there are many mixed feelings about the teams in each division.

“I love the SEC, my unbiased opinion is that they are definitely better because of all of the football legends that have come out of the SEC. Take Peyton Manning for example, he’s a legend and is a former Tennessee Volunteers player,” said freshman Brack Staton.

While the SEC has produced a lot of stars, so has the Big 10.

“The Big 10 has produced the most stars. They had 14 first round draft picks last year, yet they have always had good players,” said freshman Bryce Asher.

The SEC has more draft picks in the NFL. Although Tennessee has more picks, they are very close. Last year, Ohio State alone had 12 players drafted, and OSU has 6 Heisman trophy-winning players. According to Bleacher Report, 6 Heisman winners is the 3rd most of any school. The SEC has 29 national championships compared to the 39 in the Big 10. The Big 10 seems more popular in this area because of the amount of OSU and Michigan fans.

“The Big 10 is definitely the best. The Big 10 has an elite schedule with so many elite teams being in the conference. The Big 10 teams have a much rougher road to the national championship,” said freshman Mason Hayden.

The Big 10 and the SEC are both known for the NFL players that come out of each of their conferences. In 2016, there was 92 total NFL selections between the SEC and Big 10.