SEC On Verge Of Banning 7-On-7 On-Campus Events

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According to Marc Weiszer of The Athens Banner-Herald, the SEC is on the verge of banning 7-on-7 camps from its campuses.  These 7-on-7 events have recently drawn comparisons to AAU tournaments in basketball — and that’s not a good thing.

“I think that’s going to pass,” Florida AD Jeremy Foley said of the 7-on-7 ban.  “I certainly saw a lot of support for that rule in the last couple of days.”

Dave Hart, the executive director of athletics at Alabama, agrees.  “I think everybody agrees that’s not a path we want to go down.  This past year it was allowed.  I don’t think you’ll see that in the future.”

Third parties in the recruiting process have become quite the bugaboo in college football over the past few months.  From so-called street agents to actual agents to recruiting services to the folks that run 7-on-7 camps, coaches and administrators are concerned that too many outside influences are corrupting the school-recruit relationship.

“I think we’ve always tried very hard to keep the recruiting process between the student-athlete, their families and their high school coaches,” Mark Richt told The Banner-Herald. 

Gene Chizik understands the dangers of certain third parties as well: “The 7-on-7s can potentially get out of control in terms of who’s organizing it, who’s running it, what’s happening to get the young men into the 7-on-7 leagues.”

This is not a surprise move.  Third parties — including 7-on-7 event organizers — were expected to come under serious scrutiny at this week’s meetings.