Talent Discrepancies

[studbucket]

So I'm re-watching the 2005 Capital One Bowl between the Iowa Hawkeyes and LSU Tigers where Iowa wins on the last second pass to Warren Holloway. Even though Iowa won at the last moment, they were in control much of the game until the 4th quarter, when Jamarcus Russell came in and LSU started playing better.

What I really noticed was the difference in NFL-caliber talent. All of the players in that game are either in the NFL or doing something else. Take a look at the difference in the best players on each team:

These are people who saw playing time, not just guys who were on the roster.

Iowa
Matt Roth, DE
Chad Greenway, LB
Abdul Hodge, DE
Jonathan Babineaux, DT
Marcus Paschal, SS
Sean Considine, FS
Drew Tate, QB
Scott Chandler, TE
Ed Hinkel, WR

LSU
Jamarcus Russell, QB
Joseph Addai, HB
Jacob Hester, FB
Dwayne Bowe, WR
Craig Davis, WR
Marcus Spears, DE
Claude Wroten, DT
Cameron Vaughn, LB
Corey Webster, CB
LaRon Landry, S

Sure, that was a decent Iowa team, but really, LSU completely outclasses Iowa in the pure talent department, just look at the difference in NFL production and draft position.

Now the SEC is the best conference in college football and the Big-10 is struggling. Looking at the rosters, it's not surprising to see how it's become that way, the SEC is getting the talent. Iowa might have 1 or 2 drafted players this year, while LSU could get 5+, which is true for many SEC teams.

So why is the difference so pronounced? Are the coaches that much better in the SEC, is it easier to get kids to go to school there? Do the boosters give better benefits to recruits? Does the Big-10 cheat less? Do the kids want to stay close to home?

I imagine it's a mix of all of the above but I thought some of you guys who follow it closer might be able to give me some answers.

[jhns]

It is a combination of things. First off, a lot rides on location. Schools in places that are near a beach or something tend to get a lot of good recruits. Or schools close to the good players home. They still have to have some history though, as we can see all the talent isn't on the coast. The other huge factor is who is winning at the moment and how much the school has won in the past. I think the talented kids go to the schools doing good now over ones with history but the historically good schools still usually pull a lot of good players every year.

I think those are the biggest things. Winning and location.