Is the SEC the Best Conference in College Football?

There have been many discussions about what conference is the best in football. Sometimes it is clear and simple, like 1971, when the Big 8 finished 1, 2, 3 in the final poll, or 1961, when the SEC finished 1, 2, 4.

In other years, like 2008, there is no consensus on whether the Big 12 is better than the SEC or, if the Big Ten and Pac-10 are as strong as either.

Certainly, we can point to the top of the leagues and discuss the relative strengths of Texas–Alabama–Penn St. and Southern California. We can throw in other league heavyweights like Ohio State, Texas Tech, Oklahoma, Florida, LSU, and Georgia to make the point.

But what if we look deeper? Let's take the highly touted 12-team Southeastern Conference and match it up against the better teams of all other conferences.

Will the SEC be considered the best conference if, from top to bottom, the teams would be favored against a select group from other leagues?

We look forward to comments concerning this situation, sometimes a highly charged issue of reputation and regional supremacy. There is also the matter of historical pride.

To many, the SEC stars of past and present stand out among the all–time greats (see three time All–American Tommy Casanova pictured above) in the BCS era or the 20th Century.

According to ancient Southern lore, the athletic ability of the SEC player gives him the advantage over players of other conferences. Hence, the superiority of the conference.

To start off the debate, here is a hypothetical matchup of eight of the 12 SEC teams versus a variety of stout teams from other BCS conferences.

In order to be fair, we have tried to match teams of equal strength, if not record, and are limited to eight choices by the confines of the poll itself. We therefore will not use the four SEC schools playing below .500 presently.

Teams from the remaining five BCS conferences have been chosen to keep the playing field level. Every effort has been made to avoid mismatches like the unbeaten Texas Tech and Oklahoma State versus lower level SEC squads. 

Please vote for your school based upon performance on the field this season. The poll will reveal the ongoing totals as we go along.