NFL Draft: How Power Five leagues rank in producing first-rounders

With the NFL Draft starting on April 28, we are looking back in recent history to see trends. In our NFL Draft series, we’ll look at a few different aspects of the first round starting with Power Five and how many first-rounders they have produced recently. Since 2011, it’s no surprise that the SEC dominates this list, but some of the other numbers might surprise.

Since 2011, Alabama, Texas A&M, Florida and LSU are four of the top five schools in the country when it comes to producing first round draft picks since 2011. 53 overall first round draft picks in the last five years, including 10 top-five picks, definitely puts the SEC as the king of the mountain in producing high-level NFL talent. This includes Cam Newton at No. 1 in 2011, Jadeveon Clowney at No. 1 in 2014 and Luke Joeckel at No. 2 in 2013.

Farrell’s take: Shocking huh? For those conspiracy theorists who think Rivals overranks the Southeast, it’s clear the NFL thinks the Southeast is king of the hill. This year, the SEC will be well-represented as usual with players like Laremy Tunsil, Vernon Hargreaves III, Reggie Ragland, A’Shawn Robinson, Leonard Floyd and others will represent the conference, but next year's draft might not be as dominant as the previous years.

While the gap from first to second was pretty extensive, the battle between second and third was pretty close. The ACC grabs the nod with 32 first-round picks since 2011. However, despite the impressive total, only seven of those picks have actually come in the top 10. Leading the way is Jameis Winston at No. 1 in in 2015, in a draft that also saw Vic Beasley and Ereck Flowers get picked in the top 10. Aside from 2015, other top picks from the ACC since 2011 include Sammy Watkins at No. 4 in 2014 and Luke Kuechly at No. 9 in 2012.

Farrell’s take: The ACC is gaining on the SEC a bit thanks to Florida State and Clemson. Miami’s down numbers really hurt the conference as as the ‘Canes used to put numerous players in round one each year. Jalen Ramsey, Shaq Lawson and Sheldon Rankins are the big names this year, but others like Kevin Dodd, Mackensie Alexander and Artie Burns could also land in round one.

Sliding into third place is the Pac-12, which has totaled 26 first-round draft picks since 2011. Like the ACC, the Pac-12 only managed seven top 10 picks during this time. Leading the way for the conference are two Oregon players, Marcus Mariota at No. 2 in 2015 and Dion Jordan at No. 3 in 2013. Other top Pac-12 draft picks since 2011 include Matt Kalil at No. 4 in 2012, Leonard Williams at No. 6 in 2015 and Anthony Barr at No. 9 in 2014.

Farrell’s take: The Pac-12 is rising as well, at least for top 10 picks, and this year they will be helped by Myles Jack, DeForest Buckner and of course Jared Goff, who could go No. 1 overall. All three players could be top 10 prospects, but after that there is a big falloff. That’s mainly because of the sanctions against USC, which hurt the depth of talent and recruiting for a few years.

The Big Ten has produced a rather disappointing 19 first-round draft picks since 2011. This is sure to change with quick re-emergence of Ohio State and the influx of top-level talent at Michigan after the arrival of Jim Harbaugh. For now, the Big Ten languishes behind the SEC, ACC and Pac-12. As further proof of the Big Ten’s recent decline, the conference has only developed one top 10 selection since 2011, that being Brandon Scherff at No. 5 in 2015.

Farrell’s take: Ohio State is taking charge here and is going to change these numbers in a big way. The Buckeyes could put five or six players in round one alone this year with Joey Bosa, Ezekiel Elliott, Eli Apple, Taylor Decker, Darron Lee, Vonn Bell and Michael Thomas leading the charge. Jack Conklin at Michigan State should add to this number and Jason Spriggs from Indiana could also jump into round one.

While the Big 12 did finish last out of the Power 5 conferences on this list, their ability to develop top-end NFL draft picks is very impressive. Of the 14 total first-round picks since 2011, an amazing 10 have been selected in the top 10. This including Von Miller at No. 2 in 2011 (Texas A&M was still in the Big 12), Robert Griffin at No 2 in 2012, Lane Johnson at No. 4 in 2013 and Justin Blackmon at No. 5 in 2012.

Farrell’s take: Many fan bases, especially Texas and Oklahoma, have complained about the lack of five- and high four-stars from the Lone Star State in recent years, but this draft data proves what I’ve been saying -– the talent has been down or leaving the conference. This year won’t help the numbers that much barring a few surprises. Players like Josh Doctson, Corey Coleman, Emmanuel Ogbah, Andrew Billings, Cody Whitehair, Karl Joseph and Hassan Ridgeway are a few Big 12 prospects that have been mentioned in the first round, but each are considered late first-rounders and many could fall to round two.