re: Top 5 teams I've ever seen in my life

I'd say that Pac 10 was the best conference then. That was back when even mediocre to bad teams like UCLA, Oregon, and Stanford had NFL QBs and skill players such Maurice Drew (MJD), Kellen Clemens, and Trent Edwards, and USC was the championship game for every team.

The Big 12 was extremely good before then back when OU, Neb, Col, KState, Tex, A&M etc all played NFL quality defense, but that mid 2000s range was when the Big 12 started becoming the joke that it is today with its spread offenses letting laughable teams like Texas Tech and Oklahoma State compete.