The End Of Satellite Camps Is Bad For FSU Football, Other Programs

Now that the NCAA has stopped the practice of satellite camps, FSU football and other schools have lost out on a big way to get more recruits.

Ever since Jim Harbaugh took over as the head coach of the Michigan Wolverines in January of 2015, he has been ruffling the feathers of college football programs and coaches across the country. His main target has been in the southeast, where Michigan has held part of spring practice in the Sunshine State and been part of satellite camps throughout the region.

These camps allowed coaches from across the country a chance to get their name and face in with recruits from different parts of the country. It also gave these players a chance to get their name out to schools that may not be big name like Michigan, Notre Dame and FSU football, but would still give them a chance to play football and get a free college education.

Schools in the south, particularly in the always whiny Southeastern Conference, weren’t too happy to that Harbaugh and others were planning to come into their “turf” and got other major power conferences (sadly, including the ACC) to agree with them and vote to eliminate these camps.

When asked about these camps and Michigan’s week at the Bradenton, Florida based IMG Academy, FSU football head coach Jimbo Fisher applauded Harbaugh and others for thinking outside the box and not just doing the bare minimum (though he was upset the NCAA wouldn’t let him speak at the school while approving the Wolverines’ week).

The decision to eliminate these camps hurts the high school players who, as we said earlier, were going to get looked at by schools ranging from FSU to Oregon State in some cases, allowing them the chance go to college. In the case of a program run by Michigan State, students at some camps were taught not just football, but also school and life lessons from study skills to tying a tie for an interview.

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On the field, it gave schools like FSU football a chance to recruit out of their region and continue to be a nationwide brand. Sure, winning a national title in 2013 and being back near the top of the polls helps, but so does seeing coaches actually seeing players from Wisconsin or Oregon, for example, that can help the program stay on top.

It also gave another win to the SEC and continued to have them think they are the most important thing in college football. The league and many of its members (as well as commissioner Greg Sankey) have been crying like babies about everything Harbaugh and other coaches have been done…in part because they have a sense of entitlement that makes them hated by those who don’t root for the 14 members schools.

Will the NCAA ever use their brains and realize that satellite camps were more than just a chance for schools to recruit, but a chance for players to further their academics and have a better life? For a group that talks about “student” athletes, this was a program that was about so much more than just FSU football and schools across the country.

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