SEC vs. Big Ten: College representation for 2023 NFL season
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (BVM) – Data from the NFL can help provide answers to the debate about whether the SEC or the Big Ten is college football’s most dominant conference.
According to the 2023 NFL team roster, the SEC conference currently leads for having the most of its former players in the NFL, and the Big Ten follows with the second most. In fact, the SEC has 91 more of its former players in the NFL compared to the Big Ten. This data is based on all active, reserve and practice squad players as of Sept. 6. It also only accounts for the last college football program that the player attended.
The SEC’s Alabama currently has 69 of its former players in the NFL and the Big Ten’s Ohio State follows in second with 57 players.
The five college football programs with the most representation for the 2023-24 NFL season are:
Alabama – 69
Ohio State – 57
Georgia – 54
LSU – 52
Michigan – 47
Below is a breakdown of how many former SEC and Big Ten athletes are NFL players for the 2023-24 season:
SEC – 459
Alabama – 69
Georgia – 54
LSU – 52
Florida – 43
Auburn – 35
Mississippi – 30
Tennessee – 29
Texas A&M – 26
South Carolina – 26
Arkansas – 23
Mississippi State – 22
Kentucky – 21
Missouri – 16
Vanderbilt – 13
Big Ten – 368
Ohio State – 57
Michigan – 47
Penn State – 39
Iowa – 38
Wisconsin – 29
Nebraska – 21
Illinois – 21
Michigan State – 21
Maryland – 19
Purdue – 18
Minnesota – 17
Rutgers – 14
Northwestern – 14
Indiana – 13
