Here's where a B1G fantasy football lineup stacks up against other conferences

It’s that time of year to gear up for your fantasy football draft and show your buddies, co-workers or family just how smart you are.

But today, here’s a different exercise. What if you could draft an NFL fantasy team using college conferences? Which league would be the best? Which would leave something to be desired? Below, we’ll take a look at the Big Ten’s lineup and examine the possibilities at each position.

On another note, this shows you where some of the top NFL talent (at least at the skill positions) is coming from, though it’s certainly not the end-all in terms of conference supremacy. And it’s also fun to look back and remember where some of these guys came from. Some were household names in college, like Saquon and Zeke. But others really rose to prominence in the NFL. Would your average person remember Alvin Kamara at Tennessee (and Bama!) or Le’Veon Bell at Michigan State? Maybe, maybe not.

Anyway, here’s my B1G lineup, along with how it stacks up against other conferences:

QB: Drew Brees (Purdue)

This is arguably the B1G’s worst position. The league boasts two of the greatest quarterbacks ever in Brees and Tom Brady (Michigan), but in terms of fantasy football in 2019, that’s pretty weak. Brees is more of a fringe starter in fantasy this year. Not that you can blame him, he’s 40! And while many will start Brady because he’s Brady, he’s more of a bye-week fill-in this year. You could make the argument to go with Russell Wilson (Wisconsin) in this slot over Brees, but I get nervous trusting a quarterback in such a run-heavy offense.

Each of the other major conferences has a better option. The Big 12 is looking good here with Patrick Mahomes (Texas Tech), while the Pac 12 has either Aaron Rodgers (Cal) or Andrew Luck (Stanford). The ACC boasts DeShaun Watson (Clemson) or Matt Ryan (Boston College) and the SEC has Cam Newton (Auburn).

RB: Saquon Barkley (Penn State) and Ezekiel Elliott (Ohio State)

This is the B1G’s top position, by far. Barkley is the No. 1 player in fantasy this season, not that anyone who saw him at Penn State is surprised. And Elliott, as long as he reports to camp at some point, is 1B. And then you add in Le’Veon Bell (Michigan State) and Melvin Gordon (Wisconsin), who are also both top-10 options (as long as the latter reports to camp).

The only league that can rival the B1G’s running back combo is the SEC, with Alvin Kamara (Tennessee) and Todd Gurley (Georgia). It has great depth with Sony Michel (Georgia), Leonard Fournette (LSU), Kerryon Johnson (Auburn) and all those Alabama backs, but the B1G’s talent at the top gives it the slight edge.

WR: Michael Thomas (Ohio State), Stefon Diggs (Maryland) and Chris Godwin (Penn State)

Thomas is a legit stud to anchor a lineup, but there isn’t much depth here for the B1G as Diggs and Godwin are nice players but in terms of this exercise, not enough to compete with the SEC (Julio Jones, Odell Beckham and Mike Evans) or maybe even the Pac 12 (JuJu Smith-Schuster, Keenan Allen and Brandin Cooks). I guess we need Rondale Moore in the NFL ASAP. Also, how about this MAC lineup of Antonio Brown, Julian Edelman and Kenny Golladay?

TE: George Kittle (Iowa)

The conference is in great shape here as most believe there are three elite tight ends, and Kittle — from TightEndU — is one of them. Even without his starting quarterback, the 2017 fifth-round pick had a huge season in 2018. The SEC is behind in this regard with either O.J. Howard (Alabama) or Hunter Henry (Arkansas).

FLEX: LeVeon Bell (Michigan State)

This is where the B1G’s depth at running back pays off with one of the top running backs of the last five years. It’s TBD as to how he’ll look after a season off, but my bet is he’ll be fresh and motivated. On another note, what’s up with all the B1G running backs holding out? I guess they’re either a bunch of divas for putting themselves before their team or they’re smart to know their value.

K: Robbie Gould (Penn State)

Putting this list together, it’s amazing how many of the top kickers didn’t go to Power Five schools. It’s always the one position Alabama can’t seem to recruit. But anyway, the B1G has a good one here in Gould, who has been as good as gold in his 14-year career. Brett Maher (Nebraska) is also an option. Ryan Succop (South Carolina) is probably the SEC’s best option.

We’re going to skip the defense part of the lineup because it doesn’t really fit with what we’re doing.

Bench: Melvin Gordon (Wisconsin), James White (Wisconsin), Tevin Coleman (Indiana), DJ Moore (Maryland), Russell Wilson (Wisconsin)

This is a solid bench, though it could certainly use some running back depth. The SEC’s bench is really good with the aforementioned backup running backs and Amari Cooper.

The verdict

So where does the B1G rank in terms of fantasy lineups? I think I’d rank the SEC’s first because it is strong at every position, followed by the Big Ten at No. 2, then the Pac 12, ACC and Big 12.

Now back to your regularly scheduled fantasy draft.