What if? Big XII vs. SEC

We'd like to introduce a new feature here on Raiderhorn called "What if?" In the spirit of SportsCenter -- which has gone from being an hour of highlights to an hour of rampant speculation -- we're going to look into our crystal ball, perhaps even into an alternate universe (ooOOoohh!!), and predict what might have been or what could be. How's that for a cryptic intro? Our first installment tackles the age-old question of conference strength. With a look at what would happen if the SEC and Big XII collided, here's Mattradamus...

For years there hasn’t been much debate as to which conference in college football is far and away above the rest of the pack -- the SEC. This year, however, with 10 returning starting QBs in the Big XII, including potential Heisman front runners Graham Harrell and Chase Daniel, that gap may have closed. There is no doubt in my mind the top two conferences are the SEC and Big XII -- but who is better? I think the only way to judge which conference is best is to look at the most equally matched teams between the two leagues and place them in head-to-head battles and see which conference wins more games. (side note: Unfortunately, the only Big XII/SEC match up scheduled for this year is when Arkansas visits Texas in week 3. This should be a fantastic game -- since the teams are old Southwest Conference rivals -- however, Arkansas shouldn't exactly be used as a measuring stick for the entire SEC, should they?)

NCAA basketball does this with the ACC vs Big 10 Challenge each year (ACC dominates yearly), so why can’t we dream about a Big XII vs SEC game to start the season each and every year for all of our teams? Since this doesn’t happen, I have taken it upon myself to decide the champion between the two conferences.

Based on Sports Illustrated's preseason rankings, I have paired up the highest ranked Big XII vs highest ranked SEC school, all the way down to the likes of Baylor vs Vanderbilt. All matchups will be analyzed as if they took place at a neutral venue, to eliminate home field advantage. Here we go:

#83 Baylor vs #75 Vanderbilt:

This game would show you the major difference between the two conferences. Baylor is looked at as the second bye week for a Big XII team where Vanderbilt is now looked at as a major hiccup waiting to happen. Baylor poses absolutely no threat to the upper echelon of the Big 12 and minimal threat to the average and below. Vanderbilt plays hard and rarely gets blown out. Teams in the SEC know that when you play Vandy, you must watch out. My point was proven last night because "#75" Vanderbilt beat a ranked SEC team in #24 South Carolina. The Commodores can't be overlooked by anyone, even those in the SEC.

Winner: Vanderbilt

#76 Iowa St. vs #72 Kentucky:

These are two schools who appear to be headed in different directions. Iowa St was a serious threat to anyone back in the Seneca Wallace or Troy Davis days, but now they are just barely above Baylor for the bottom dweller of the Big 12. Kentucky, who used to be awful, has now played in bowl games for 4 consecutive years, and like Vanderbilt, can give anyone in the conference a game any week...just ask LSU last year. Kentucky is coming off a big win against rival Louisville, which is considered one of the top 3 teams in the Big East.

Winner: Kentucky

#58 Kansas State vs #69 Arkansas:

Arkansas lost everything that made them successful the past couple years -- to the NFL draft and to the Rebels of Ole Miss (Houston Nutt). Bobby Petrino will make this team great in 3 years, but as for right now he is playing with Nutt’s recruits that were recruited for a system that is a 180 from what he likes to run. K-State has some young talent that seems to be hit or miss. Josh Freeman is a big time QB, but lacks consistency. I think this is a game that K-State would either dominate or get dominated, no real in between. I view Arkansas as that team that will give some big time teams a legit challenge this year and at other times you will see the final score and think they must have meant Arkansas St.

Winner: K-State

#51 Texas A&M vs #60 Ole Miss:

Ole Miss is an up and comer in the SEC and the TAMU is average at best in the Big 12. A&M consistently has the recruits, but seemingly never does anything with them. Mississippi is now keeping much of the local talent and is also stealing recruits from Louisiana, Alabama and Florida -- guys that could sign to play at the LSUs, 'Bamas and Floridas of the world, but have the opportunity to play immediately in Oxford. Lou Holtz has Ole Miss as the darkhorse to win the SEC this year. It sounds crazy, but you just never know. Home team would win if they played at one place or another, but at a neutral site, I give the edge to Ole Miss.

Winner: Ole Miss

#45 Nebraska vs #40 South Carolina:

South Carolina with consistent QB play has a shot of winning the SEC title and are just coming off destroying a formidable ACC opponent in NC State. Nebraska has a solid running game, but lack experience at most other key positions. They vaunted “Black Shirt” defense has been more like “Throw in the white towel” defense in the past few years. Another storied program (see Texas A&M) that just seems to be on a dreadful decline.

Winner: South Carolina

#43 Oklahoma St. vs #30 Mississippi St:

The Cowboys are very underrated considering everything that they have coming back this year on the offensive side of the ball. Defensively they have issues, but they can score a ton so unless they are playing the upper tier of the SEC, I don’t think it would matter. Mississippi St. had a great year last year by their standards, but in my opinion didn’t deserve to be ranked this high going into the season. They proved this with a loss to Louisiana Tech last week. Too much fire power for OSU and not enough for Mississippi St. The best way to beat OSU is score on them because they will put points on the board and I can’t see MSU doing that.

Winner: Oklahoma St.

#36 Colorado vs #29 Alabama:

If I had written this prior to seeing Alabama destroy Clemson, I would have given Colorado the nod, but since I did see Alabama destroy Clemson, I have to lean towards the Tide. They have one of the best coaches in the game, a battle tested, experienced leader in John Parker Wilson and a ton of talent throughout the team. While I think Dan Hawkins is going to do some great things with Colorado down the road, I don’t think they could get it done right now. In a rematch of last year's Independence Bowl, Alabama comes out on top again.

Winner: Alabama

#15 Kansas vs #12 Tennessee:

If this game were played in Knoxville, KU would have no shot. On a neutral field, this will be a close one. Kansas had a miracle season last year and it was the first good season they have had in several years (over 10). Tennessee reached the SEC title game last year but stumbled out the gates this year in a loss at UCLA. This game is all about timing and I mentioned earlier it would be the first game of the season, so with that said….

Winner: Kansas

#13 Texas vs #9 LSU:

I can honestly see this game happening come Cotton Bowl time, so maybe it can be decided then. As for now, I think UT has a lot of question marks as to who is going to produce the big plays when they need them. We all know Colt McCoy is a good QB, but what about the rest of the team? Also, the last couple years, despite sending players to the NFL, their defense has been suspect. LSU has just one question mark, QB, but it appears that they have a good enough running game and defense that they won’t need to rely on the QBs to win games. I think having the ability to run and stop opposing offenses will get you wins against everybody outside the top 10. To get victories against the top 10, you must have a QB who can make some plays. Texas isn’t in the top 10.

Winner: LSU

#8 Texas Tech vs #7 Auburn:

A game from three years ago helped me make up my mind on this game. Texas Tech is the best passing team in the nation and seemingly can put up yards and points against anyone in America. Their defense is good enough to help them win games if need be, but they don’t have to really on that too often. Auburn is that physical, big, strong, fast team from the SEC who plays smash mouth football and plays man coverage on WR and TE -- very similar to the Alabama team that beat Tech in the Cotton Bowl a few years back...and that is all I need to see, that similar comparison between those two teams.

Winner: Auburn

#6 Oklahoma vs #5 Florida:

This would be a fascinating game to watch and it is a potential National Championship game this season. OU has all sorts of fire power on the offensive side of the ball but has a very young defense. Florida is very much in the same boat. Between the 44 starters on both teams (offense and defense), half of these guys will be in the NFL at some point in time. Speed and size versus speed and size. This is another game that if played on the campus of either university, I would lean towards the home team. But on a neutral field, I have to lean towards the team that hasn’t just stunk up their last big time games on neutral fields (bowl games).

Winner: Florida

And last but not least...

#4 Mizzou vs #1 Georgia:

Let me start off by saying that if Georgia can get through their schedule and win the SEC Title game with 2 losses or less, they deserve a chance to play for the National Title. This game pits the best college football QB (Daniel) against the best pro prospect (Stafford) and includes the most electrifying WR/KO Returner/Punt Returner (Maclin) and the best RB in the nation (Moreno). This would be a FUN game to watch. I don’t think it would be the high scoring affair that Mizzou would like, but they would be able to move the ball with their speed; although they would be bullied around a little bit by Georgia’s strength. I think Georgia would be surprised by the Mizzou fire power and would need to put points on the board, which I think they would be able to. I could see this game being one of those where each team would trade a TD then go a couple possessions without moving the ball at all. Offensively I give the edge to Mizzou. Defensively I give the edge to Georgia. Special Teams I give the edge to Mizzou. I think Georgia’s defense would actually limit the Mizzou offense so they almost wash each other out. Would Maclin and the Mizzou special teams be able to come up with the big play on special teams to win this game? I don’t think so! The ‘Dawgs beat the Tigers.

Winner: Georgia

At the end of the day I believe that the SEC would flex its muscle and, in a landslide, show it is the most dominant conference.
SEC – 9 wins
Big 12 – 3 wins