The Big 10 Stands Supreme On The College Football Landscape.

The title speaks for itself, and Alex Scantlebury dares you to argue with him. Hint: don’t do it in person.

Going into week two of the NCAA football season, there is one unequivocal fact; the Big 10 is the best conference in college football. Anyone who thinks otherwise knows absolutely nothing about the sport.

After week two, the AP Top 25 poll has four Big 10 teams in the top ten, more than any other power five conference: Penn State (5), Michigan (7) Ohio State (8), and Wisconsin (10).

Alabama (1) is the only team representing the SEC. Clemson (3) the defending national champion, is representing the ACC. USC (4) and Washington (6) are standing strong for the Pac 12, and rounding out the top 10 are Oklahoma (2) and Oklahoma State (9) in an increasingly top heavy Big 12 conference. Rankings are only worth what people think they are, but they are — at the very least — least a strong starting indicator for where the real football is being played this season.

The college football landscape has changed over the last three years. While the SEC and the ACC reigned for the better part of a decade, they have both been surpassed by the Big 10 in the conference hierarchy.

I think it all comes down to coaching, recruiting, and the culture that those two aspects bring to a program. Urban Myer at Ohio State and Jim Harbough at Michigan have helped to restructure the culture in the Big 10, and it is likely going to stay that way for the foreseeable future.

The Big 10 has now become a breeding ground for All-Pro NFL talent at every position. Virtually every team in the league boasts at least one player who either played their college ball in the conference or played for a school that has recently been accepted into the Big 10.

Here is my take on the All-Big 10 team made of current NFL rosters. Disclaimer: I have included players from Nebraska, Rutgers, and Maryland because they now represent the Big 10, even if they weren’t there when listed players were in college.

Offense:

QB — Tom Brady — New England — Michigan Wolverines

QB2 — Drew Brees — New Orleans — Purdue Boilermakers

QB3 — Russel Wilson — Seattle — Wisconsin Badgers

RB — Ezekiel Elliot — Dallas — Ohio State Buckeyes

RB2 — Le’veon Bell — Pittsburgh — Michigan State Spartans

RB3 — Jordan Howard — Chicago — Michigan State Spartans

I have not included a fullback because the position has become virtually obsolete.

WR — Terelle Pryor — Washington — Ohio State Buckeyes

WR2 — Allen Robinson — Jacksonville — Penn State Nittany Lions

WR3 — Eric Decker — Tennessee — Minnesota Golden Gophers

TE — Vernon Davis — Washington — Maryland Terrapins

TE2 — CJ Fiedorowicz — Houston — Iowa Hawkeyes

T — Joe Thomas — Cleveland — Wisconsin Badgers

G — Marshall Yanda — Baltimore — Iowa Hawkeyes

C — Travis Frederick — Dallas — Wisconsin Badgers

G — Brandon Scherff — Washington — Iowa Hawkeyes

T — Taylor Lewan — Tennessee — Michigan Wolverines

The offensive line is absolutely ridiculous. Only Brandon Scherff could be considered a stretch for this year’s Pro Bowl. Imagine an offence where this kind of All-Pro is talent protecting Tom Brady or opening holes for Elliot and Bell. You find them wishing for stronger talent at wide receiver, but with Brady throwing the ball, you could have two guys from your local beer league (read: me) looking like gods.

Defense:

DL — JJ Watt — Houston — Wisconsin Badgers

DL — Ndamukong Suh — Miami — Nebraska Cornhuskers

DL — Cameron Wake — Miami — Penn State Nittany Lions

DL — Cliff Avril — Seattle — Purdue Boilermakers

LB — Sean Lee — Dallas — Penn State Nittany Lions

LB — Ryan Shazier — Pittsburgh — Ohio State Buckeyes

LB — NaVorro Bowman — San Francisco — Penn State Nittany Lions

CB — Prince Amukamara — Chicago — Nebraska Cornhuskers

CB — Devin McCourty — New England — Rutgers Scarlet Knights

S — Malcolm Jenkins — Philadelphia — Ohio State Buckeyes

S — Micah Hyde — Buffalo — Iowa Hawkeyes

Much like the offensive line, the D-line on the all-Big 10 team is outrageously stacked, except there are no leaks on this line. Even if the running backs actually manage to get to the second level, they will be met by a meat grinder sitting in the linebacker positions. The Big 10 is not known for producing great talent in the secondary, but with Malik Hooker and Jabrill Peppers getting drafted this past year that is likely to change.

Bottom line, I wasn’t kidding when I said every position.

I would be willing to stack this team up against the any All-Star team representing any of the Power Five conferences, knowing that the war would be quick and brutal, ending as the Big 10 stands supreme.

Alex Scantlebury is a multi-sport contributor for TheOcho.ca. Aaron and Riley would like to thank him for giving them an extra hour each week to spend on Bleacher Report while he was teaching. Follow Alex on Twitter at @pen_ink_page.