In early April, the NCAA decided to strike down satellite camps for high school students.
Satellite camps in college football, for those of you who may not be aware, allow coaches from across the country to set up clinics for football players to come learn tips and tricks of the trade as well as get their name out to universities. These camps especially helped student athletes who had trouble coming up with the funds to travel to various camps to stay close to home and have other coaches come to their territory. Locally in Michigan, The Sound Mind Sound Body Camp is an annual event that draws hundreds of coaches, players, and families together. Jim Harbaugh, coach of the University of Michigan football program began to host camps down in Alabama and other southern locations, irritating the coaches of the Southeastern Conference. The SEC did not appreciate Harbaugh setting up shop in their home territory. After some back and forth drama between the Big 10, SEC, and the NCAA, the governing body decided to shut down these camps. Ultimately, the decision was made in haste and impacted high school players in their quest to learn more about football and promote their name.
Today, the NCAA removed their hasty decision to ban camps and will allow satellites to resume. The organization also plans on evaluating how to handle these camps in the future. Allowing camps to continue only helps kids learn and grow through the game of football. Yes, of course there is a large element of college football coaches setting up camps to recruit kids for themselves. However, the amount of recruits coaches pull from camps pales in comparison to the benefit that the entire community receives from the outside. I hope this decision continues to be upheld, for the good of the game.