With the college football season three days away, ESPN.com Big 12 blogger Tim Griffin was nice enough to catch up with the Conference Chatter blog.

Griffin has covered the Big 12 since its inception in 1996 and started his career with ESPN.com in February 2008.

Eric Sorrentino: Tim, thanks for joining us today. Let’s get right to it. OK, so we know the Big 12 is good. I hear the SEC is pretty good, too. How does the Big 12 stack up against the SEC?

Tim Griffin: I think it’s probably right there, especially one through five, and with five teams (No. 4 Oklahoma, No. 6 Missouri, No. 11 Texas, No. 12 Texas Tech, No. 14 Kansas) in the top 14, the Big 12 is as good as anyone in the country. I’m still hesitant to say the Big 12 is as good as the SEC in spots eight, nine, 10 and 11. I think they have trouble matching those teams deep in the SEC like South Carolina, maybe a team like Arkansas. Those teams are pretty solid, but that will be the point to see if the Big 12 – teams like Kansas State, maybe Texas A&M – will reach that level.

ES: You recently posted your Big 12 predictions on your blog. You have Oklahoma winning the South, Missouri winning North and the Tigers defeating the Sooners in the Big 12 Championship game in Kansas City, Mo. What was the reason behind your predictions?

TG: I think Oklahoma’s not going to be quite as good as they were last year. I’m concerned with their depth at linebacker and I don’t know if Ryan Reynolds can make it through the season without being hurt.

(Gerald) McCoy has been good, but (DeMarcus) Granger has struggled with injuries. I think they’ll miss guys like Reggie Smith and Curtis Lofton. They were all-conference playmakers.I think Missouri will be a tad better. They’re hungry from last year and I think the defense will be better with 10 guys back. If (Missouri and Oklahoma) do have to play this year, it won’t be until the end of the season at Arrowhead Stadium, which I consider to be home field advantage for Missouri. I think Missouri’s special teams are also a tad better. That might end up being the difference between the two teams.

ES: The Big 12 has a ton of playmakers. Who do you think is the most NFL-ready player?

TG: I hate to sound like (Kansas State coach) Ron Prince, but you can’t coach 6-6 and 245 (Wildcats junior quarterback Josh Freeman) … I think Freeman might be the guy that may end up being the best at the next level. He’s probably better situated than any of the quarterbacks. Other guys like (Missouri’s Chase) Daniel, (Texas’ Colt) McCoy, (Kansas’ Todd) Reesing. They may not be as sturdy and durable when they get to the pro game.

In terms of others, maybe a guy like Phil Loadholt. I think Brandon Pettigrew, if he’s featured in the right offense, can be a guy like Tony Gonzalez.

I like the Kansas linebackers as well. They’re not just products of the system. I think there’s a lot of talent there.

ES: What impresses you most about the KU linebackers?

TG: I think that’s probably the best linebackers corps in the Big 12. Just in watching them play and develop. I was always impressed with what Bill Young did. Mike Rivera gives them senior leadership, and with Joe Mortensen, they’re both run stuffers and both good in pass coverage as well. People tend to forget about James Holt, too. On other teams, he might be a playmaker or star, but he’s overshadowed by those two guys. As group, they’re as good as anyone in the Big 12, and arguably as good as anyone in the country.

ES: What do you expect from the Jayhawks this year?

TG: I think they might have difficulties this year with their schedule. They might have trouble hanging onto second in the Big 12 North, playing teams like Texas, Texas Tech and Oklahoma, even though two will be at home. And I know Kansas is tough at home. Then, there’s Missouri and they also go up to Nebraska, where they haven’t won since 1968. I’d say a realistic goal would be 9-3. I could see them going 8-4 or 9-3.

ES: In your 12 years of covering the Big 12, do you have a favorite KU athlete that you’ve enjoyed following?

TG: I still think Aqib Talib is as good a player as I’ve seen. I picked him on my all-time Big 12 team. A lot of K-State fans thought I should have put Terence Newman on there. Aqib blossomed out of nowhere, and ended up being a great player for Kansas.

I also liked Jon Cornish. I thought he was a running back that give them a lot of durability, and did things for them when they didn’t have a lot of offensive weapons.

ES: Mizzou vs. Illinois this Saturday – who ya got?

TG: I think I’ll go with Missouri. For Missouri and KU, it says a lot about the kind of job Gary Pinkel and Mark Mangino have done, really hitting on marginal recruits that people missed out on in the state of Texas. With Talib, Todd Reesing and Chase Daniel, who bigger schools thought couldn’t play. Kansas, you look at Dezmon Briscoe as well. I think that’s indicative that they recruit well, but once the players get on campus, they learn with the coaching they receive. That should be a huge selling point with Missouri and Kansas, with the run they’ve had these past few years.