Why the Big Ten can't compete with the SEC and Big 12...yet

Look, it's not Rocket Science that the SEC and Big 12 are the two best conferences in the country, but what is a little more confusing is WHY that is the case. After all, Pennsylvania and Ohio are two of the biggest recruiting pipelines in the country. Why does it seem like the SEC and Big 12 keep on beating up on the "slow" Big ten? I'm going to answer this question with some Fact vs. Fiction statements. Read on...

Fact: The SEC and Big 12 have recruited better all-around athletes in the last 5-8 years.
Fiction: The Big Ten is slow.
Reasoning: Look, the Big Ten is NOT slow. You don't have success like the Big Ten has had (regardless of the National Championships) without having speed. Whoever started this ridiculous rumor should be fired...and anyone continuing to spread this rumor should be fired and then hidden from the public.

That said, there is a difference between the conferences, but it is not as simple as speed vs. no-speed...It is overall athleticism. A talented athlete has more than just speed and the SEC and Big 12 have had better success recruiting this kind of talent.

Fact: The Big Ten has as many NFL prospects as the SEC and Big 12
Fiction: The Big Ten has just as much talent as the SEC and Big 12
Reasoning: Sure, the Big Ten has a ton of NFL prospects, sometimes more than the SEC and Big 12 in the last few years, but it is because the Big Ten has up until recently been recruiting "position" players. These types of players fulfill their role perfectly, but can't necessarily make big things happen on their own. In college, big-play type players can directly affect the outcome of a game, hence the success of the SEC and Big 12 (Tim Tebow and Vince Young, anyone?). In the NFL, however, things change.

In the NFL, your position is your job and because everyone's doing their job well, you have to too. It is the reason players like Graham Harrell are projected higher than Tim Tebow going to the NFL and why Vince Young has struggled mightily at the next level. Everyone in College football would rather have Tebow than Harrell because of his big-play ability, but in the NFL, that's simply not enough.

Bottomline: If I'm an NFL scout, I go to just as many Big Ten games as the SEC and Big 12, but when it comes to building a football team at the NCAA level, I am on the recruiting trail looking for athletes with big-play ability. The Big Ten is starting to figure out what the SEC and Big 12 already knew, but it's going to be a couple of years before the results begin to show. Terelle Pryor is definitely a step in the right direction.