College Programs and Conferences With Most NFL Draft Picks
The NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) upholds all that involves the success of up-and-coming sports student-athletes. They provide many amenities such as offering student-athletes remuneration, academic bursaries, training, equipment and so much more. The NCAA is made up of 3 divisions with each having its requirements for being enlisted.
Getting into the 1st division football area known as FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) is probably the most difficult since there are plenty of requirements. It’s well known that only 1 in 100 students are chosen to get a scholarship with a cap of 85 per year. All matches in this division are also televised, with host stadiums having capacities of about 20,000-115,000.
This is no surprise since many students from this division as well as the sub-division known as FCS (Football Championship Subdivision) have a high chance of being drafted into the NFL. That doesn’t mean that the other divisions do not hold weight. The NCAA facilitates many kinds of student-athletes.
They aim to open a wide variety of career doors in sports for those that are willing to work hard for it. The NCAA focuses on balance, which means that all programs should not hinder the educational side of the student-athletes lifestyle. They provide coaching, medical staff, operational staff, a training area, and all that is needed to become successful.
What Are the Conferences?
For the sake of this article, we will be focusing on teams selected within the FBS, 1st division. There are currently 129 teams divided and managed by 11 conferences. These names are:
American Athletic Conference
Founded in 2013 and is currently managed by commissioner Mike Aresco. The AAC has produced some of the finest players the sporting world has seen. The conference consists of 12 reputable universities and is committed to offering the best support for student-athletes.
Atlantic Coast Conference
The ACC has gone through multiple changes, mainly due to changing times and ideals. Today, the conference’s stance is mainly aimed at enriching different kinds of scholarships with their students. The headquarters is currently situated in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Big 12 Conference
Originally known as the Big 6 when it was first founded. The organization got its name from the universities affiliated with them. This number has changed over the years and even though the conference currently stands at 10 institutions, they have kept the name Big 12 since it is the most recognizable one.
Big 10 Conference
Created in 1896, the Big 10 conference is established as one of the oldest in sporting history. In the past, the Big 10 kept strict traditions to bring out only the very best in their group. Even though much has changed especially with the recent expansion to the east and west, the conference still upholds these very ideals.
Conference USA
Since its inception in 1995, Conference USA has displayed pride in its work when assisting student-athletes (they are currently in their 28th season). While having more than 120 bowl appearances under their belt, Conference USA also takes care of students wanting to reach their college degrees.
FBS Independent
In 1978, 33 independents existed. Since then, many have formed and have become part of either an existing or new conference. FBS Independent currently stands at 6 with Notre Dame still at the wing as one of the longest-standing independents. This is also because many of their games are televised.
Mid-American Conference
The Mid-American Conference, also known as MAC, houses a variety of different sports for students. This includes football, track & field, golf, tennis, basketball, soccer, and many more. The conference currently manages 12 schools for football and 22 affiliate schools for other sports.
Mountain West Conference
Currently, in its 23rd year, this conference has a reputation for bringing out excellence in its student-athletes. Founded in 1999, the Mountain West Conference has contributed to many successes including the well-known fact of winning 3 in 4 BCS (Bowl Championship Series) games.
Pacific-12 Conference
As the name suggests, the conference manages 12 schools and is divided up by the north and the south. Pacific-12 or Pac-12 for short supports and facilitates a total of 24 different sports including football. Getting information can be tricky as much of their content is run on a national channel called the Pac-12 Network.
Southeastern Conference
Greg Sankey is currently the commissioner of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) and manages all expectations therein. The conference has had a long history of facilitating and grooming top players, existing for more than 80 years. In its time, SEC has participated in a total of 258 National Championships across all sports.
Sun Belt Conference
The conference currently sponsors 14 schools across the United States. While it facilitates 18 sports in total, 2001 marked the year for the conference to take on football once again. Having a host of success stories, the conference is known for winning 5 NCAA championships (two in football).
College Programs With the Most NFL Draft Picks 2022
Prospective coaches see the potential for greatness in these players and have had a good look at what they have accomplished in all games played, academic strengths as well as physical stats. The average number of recruitments comes to 4 when counting the schools that were chosen.
These are the top 10 schools that have produced enough talent to earn many draft opportunities for 2022.
- University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA): 6
- University of Mississippi (Ole Miss): 6
- The Ohio State University (OSU): 6
- Baylor University, Texas (BU): 6
- Oklahoma State University (OSU): 7
- The University of Alabama (UA): 7
- Pennsylvania State University (Penn State): 8
- University of Cincinnati (UC): 9
- Louisiana State University (LSU): 10
- The University of Georgia (UGA): 15
How Do Conferences Play Out?
In the regular season, schools play a large number of their matches against other members of their conference. The amount of matches varies between 7 – 9 and all schools participating in these games aim to be in the top 4. At the end of each season, a conference winner will be declared.
The winning team is known as the BCS (Bowl Championship Series) victors and this usually marks the end of the season. Teams that want another chance at glory face off in several other bowl games that are backed by big companies. The main requirement is that they would need to be in the top 25 to qualify. There is also the Sugar Bowl which pits the winning teams of the Big 12 and SEC conference.
How Are Players Ranked?
Players are currently ranked by using a voting panel and a computer algorithm. While this may seem controversial for some, it also plays towards the kind of match-ups the spectators really want to see.
It is a well-known fact that the majority of NFL players all started off in college football. This is one of the big reasons why fans of the sport follow all the latest updates by keeping up with the conferences. If you have some favorites in mind, you might see them appear down the line by visiting the NFL draft website.
Conclusion
The NFL sports scene is a broad industry that branches into many sub-categories. Fans that are faithful to the game show their support in many ways. Good examples of this are following the latest news, keeping track of college football odds, and by watching national televised games.
College conferences are often the moment when players gain clarity on their football future. Sports careers can be tough and getting accepted into a division is easier said than done. As a player, if you show your worth well enough, there’s a high possibility of gaining a fanbase that will support you all the way.
