Why the Overturn of the Satellite Camp Ban Is Great for the SEC

In the end, sanity prevailed.

Instead of instating the outright ban on satellite camps that was approved by the NCAA's Division I Council earlier this month—which would have prevented college coaches from guest-coaching at the other schools' camps—the NCAA's Division I board of directors directed the council to conduct a broad assessment of the FBS recruiting environment.

Board of directors chair and University of South Carolina president Harris Pastides commented on the news in a release from the NCAA:

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The Board of Directors is interested in a holistic review of the football recruiting environment, and camps are a piece of that puzzle. We share the Council’s interest in improving the camp environment, and we support the Council’s efforts to create a model that emphasizes the scholastic environment as an appropriate place for recruiting future student-athletes.

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That means that not only can Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh, Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer and every other FBS head coach who planned guest-coaching trips scheduled in fertile Southern recruiting grounds keep those plans intact, but the SEC's head coaches will be free to do the same.

Bleacher Report confirmed what was initially reported in March, that without a national ban in place, the conference's ban that prevents its coaches from participating in camps outside of their own state borders and a 50-mile radius from campus will be lifted on May 29.

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SEC commissioner Greg Sankey issued a statement on the national ban being rescinded in an emailed statement from the conference.

"While we are disappointed with the NCAA governance process result, we respect the board of directors’ decision and are confident SEC football programs will continue to be highly effective in their recruiting efforts," he said.

The summer of SEC satellite camps is around the corner, and that's a good thing.

While the 14 head coaches and athletic directors presented a unified front in order to defend their home turf, the truth is that many SEC programs—if not all of them—will benefit from the ability to guest-coach at satellite camps.

Arkansas head coach Bret Bielema—a coach whose program relies heavily on recruiting in other states, including Texas and Florida—told the SEC Network's Paul Finebaum earlier this month that he had tentative plans to head north.

Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said that, while he'd prefer kids to come to his campus in Athens, he had a plan to go on the road as well, according to Jason Butt of Macon.com.

"Ultimately, every SEC school wants these kids on their campus," Smart said. "I don’t want to have to go to them. But if it gives somebody a competitive advantage to go to them then we may want to do the same thing. We’ve looked into it as a staff. We have a plan ready to kick in if it happens. We’ll be prepared for it."

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Different schools will undoubtedly have different plans.

The schools that depend on Texas—Missouri and Arkansas being two of the bigger ones—would likely love to make the trip to the Lone Star State. Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops has made a point of recruiting heavily in Ohio and could make an even bigger mark in a state that the Big Ten typically dominates.

For the bigger programs such as Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Auburn, LSU and Texas A&M, it's a chance to go national.

The Crimson Tide plucked 5-star quarterback Blake Barnett from Corona, California, two recruiting cycles ago. Now, instead of Barnett using his own existing relationships to chat with high schoolers out West, head coach Nick Saban and offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin can do it themselves.

The ability to guest-coach outside of a coach's own state borders will add fuel to the fire of white-hot rivalries, as well.

Now Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn can head to Smart's back yard in metro Atlanta and guest-coach in a lush recruiting ground that Georgia depends on. That will add a little more fun to the Deep South's Oldest Rivalry. Will Saban be mad if Butch Jones and the Tennessee staff head to Hoover High School outside of Birmingham to conduct a camp? You bet.

The lifting of the ban is great for the SEC because now its coaches are playing by the same rules as other coaches from around the country, and it will spice up existing rivalries within the conference.

Get your popcorn ready. Things are about to get fun around the South during the dog days of summer.

Quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Statistics courtesy of CFBStats.com unless otherwise noted. Recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports.

Barrett Sallee is the lead SEC college football writer and national college football video analyst for Bleacher Report, as well as a host on Bleacher Report Radio on SiriusXM 83. Follow Barrett on Twitter @BarrettSallee.