SEC East vs. West: Let an NFL fantasy draft decide

Which is  better — the SEC East or the SEC West?

Ask that question in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky or Missouri and you’re liable to get a different answer than you’ll get if you ask it in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas or Texas.

There are a few ways to gauge this annual debate. The conference championship game settles who’s best between the best each division has to offer.

Overall won-lost records and head-to-head inter-divisional games can give an indication of who’s better from top to bottom.

The NFL draft tells us what NFL personnel people think of the relative potential of players from each division who are entering the league.

And there’s plenty of talent from SEC schools to help fantasy football team owners fill rosters in drafts leading up to the start of the NFL season in early September.

In fact, if you’re so inclined, you can even build a team exclusively from players who played at schools in either of the SEC divisions.

So that leads to the question, which would be better — a team built from SEC East alumni or one built from SEC West alumni?

Let’s take a look at the position-by-position potential presented by each division:

Quarterbacks

East

Matthew Stafford (Lions) — Georgia

Jay Cutler (Dolphins) — Vanderbilt

West

Cam Newton (Panthers) — Auburn

Dak Prescott (Cowboys) — Mississippi State

Eli Manning (Giants) — Ole Miss

Advantage: West

The East has one stud in Stafford, but Cutler was in retirement when training camp began. He’s only with the Dolphins because a knee injury sidelined Miami’s starter — SEC West product Ryan Tannehill of Texas A&M. The West, on the other hand, has three studs who figure to find a home in just about any fantasy league.

Running backs

East

Todd Gurley (Rams) — Georgia

Mike Gillislee (Patriots) — Florida

Alvin Kamara (Saints) — Tennessee

Arian Foster (Dolphins) — Tennessee

West

Leonard Fournette (Jaguars) — LSU

Mark Ingram (Saints) — LSU

Spencer Ware (Chiefs) — LSU

Jeremy Hill (Bengals) — LSU

Eddie Lacy (Seahawks) — Alabama

Derrick Henry (Titans) — Alabama

T.J. Yeldon (Jaguars) — Alabama

Trent Richardson (Ravens) — Alabama

Jonathan Williams (Bills) — Arkansas

Darren McFadden (Cowboys) — Arkansas

Advantage: West

Even if you fudge things and give Browns running back Isaiah Crowell, who started his college career at Georgia and finished it at Alabama State, to the East, the West obviously is much deeper than the East. If you’re an LSU, Alabama or Arkansas fan you could try to fill your backfield exclusively with players from your favorite school.

Wide receivers

East

A.J. Green (Bengals) — Georgia

Alshon Jeffery (Eagles) — South Carolina

Randall Cobb (Packers) — Kentucky

Jeremy Maclin (Ravens) — Missouri

Jordan Matthews (Bills) — Vanderbilt

West

Odell Beckham Jr. (Giants) — LSU

Julio Jones (Falcons) — Alabama

Mike Evans (Buccaneers) — Texas A&M

Amari Cooper (Raiders) — Alabama

Jarvis Landry (Dolphins) — LSU

Donte Moncrief (Colts) — Ole Miss

Mike Wallace (Ravens) — Ole Miss

Laquon Treadwell (Vikings) — Ole Miss

Advantage: West

The SEC has more star power at wide receiver than any other fantasy position with Beckham, Jones, Green and Evans leading the way. Once again the West has superior depth. If you’re a Kentucky, Missouri or Vanderbilt fan, this is a rare chance to grab a player from your school. If you’re an Ole Miss fan it’s a unique opportunity to load up on Rebels.

Tight ends

East

Jordan Reed (Redskins) — Florida

Jason Witten (Cowboys) — Tennessee

Jared Cook (Raiders) — South Carolina

Benjamin Watson (Ravens) — Georgia

Jacob Tamme (Falcons) — Kentucky

West

Martellus Bennett (Packers) — Texas A&M

Hunter Henry (Chargers) — Arkansas

Evan Engram (Giants) — Ole Miss

Advantage: East

Finally, here’s a position where the East has more impact players and more players overall than the West.

Kickers

East

Caleb Sturgis (Eagles) — Florida

Blair Walsh (Seahawks) — Georgia

Ryan Succup (Titans) — South Carolina

West

Randy Bullock (Bengals) — Texas A&M

Zach Hocker (Buccaneers) — Arkansas

Advantage: East

The SEC hasn’t turned out NFL kickers at the same rate it has turned out NFL runners, passers and receivers, but the East has been slightly better at it than the West.

Defense

East

George Edwards (Vikings) — Florida/Georgia

Marquand Manuel (Falcons) — Florida

Ted Monachino (Colts) — Missouri

Dom Capers (Packers) — Tennessee

Robert Saleh (49ers) — Georgia

Kacy Rodgers (Jets) — Tennessee/Arkansas

West

Dennis Allen (Saints) — Texas A&M/Georgia

Advantage: East

OK, this is tricky because you’re drafting an entire unit instead of individuals, but if you’re looking for SEC connections, the defensive coordinators above have played and/or coached in the conference. Manuel played at Florida, Monachino played at Missouri and Rodgers played at Tennessee. The rest of the SEC references are assistant coaching gigs.

Overall, the East has the edge in three areas — tight ends, kickers and defense — and the West has the edge in three others — quarterbacks, running backs and wide receivers. So the West comes out ahead because its superior positions are the ones that produce the most fantasy points.

Let the debate begin.

Les East

Les East is a New Orleans-based football writer who covers LSU for SaturdayDownSouth.com. Follow him on Twitter @Les_East.