NFL First Round Draft Picks Over the Last Decade (1998-2007)

When you look at the bowl records for the BCS conferences over the last decade, it's pretty obvious which conference reigns supreme. Yet, there are still fans of other conferences - particularly the Big 10 - that believe they have a claim to superiority. When accosted by one of these people - and you have no choice but to engage the conversation - here's another point to bring up... No conference is even close to churning out 1st round draft picks like the SEC.

Over the last decade the SEC has had 70 players drafted in the first round of the NFL draft. The Big 10 is second with 55. That's a difference of 1.5 picks per draft. The SEC has produced 21 Top 10 picks over the last 10 years. The ACC is 2nd with 18. The SEC has produced 4 #1 overall picks. No other conference has produced more than 1.


Over that same time period, every school in the conference except for Mississippi State has produced at least 1 first round pick. All 11 schools that have produced first round picks have also produced at least 1 Top 11 pick.