Last week the NCAA announced that college football satellite camps would be shut down immediately. The ban was approved on a 10-5 vote with the SEC, ACC, Pac-12, Big 12, Sun Belt and the Mountain West reportedly voting for the ban while the Big 10, MAC, CUSA and American Conference voted against it. The math doesn’t add up because the power conferences get two votes a piece in case you are wondering.

This is a blow to the University of Wyoming as the football program had satellite camps this summer planned for Oklahoma, Illinois and California. The Cowboys started their satellite camp last summer in Oklahoma City and this exposure help land three commits from the Sooner state as the football staff made Oklahoma a focus of their recruiting efforts.

The ban on satellite camps is a feather in the cap for the SEC and other schools in areas with a high population base. These conferences and football coaches balked at northern and western schools holding satellite camps in their natural recruiting areas. With Michigan and coach Jim Harbaugh holding camps in Florida catching most of the national attention.

The most puzzling thing about this vote is the Mountain West supporting the ban. It is easy to suggest that the California schools San Diego State, Fresno State, San Jose State (and to a lesser extent UNLV and Nevada due to proximity) all supported the ban because of the rich talent base in California. The real question is where did the other votes to reach a  conference wide majority come from? I can’t see any legitimate reason schools such as Boise State, Wyoming, Colorado State and Utah State would oppose such a ban because satellite camps clearly would boost their recruiting efforts.

It will be telling to see what information because available in the coming days on this vote as to who voted what and why. It’s another clear indication that college football is becoming more and more inequitable and there is a strong chance that in the next five to ten years (or sooner) that the so called “Power 5” conferences will split off into their own subdivision with rules and regulations that fit their needs and allow them to make even more money as a quasi semi-pro league.

The bottom line is a ban on satellite camps is bad for “student athletes” as it decreases the chances of  unheralded kids getting discovered and earning the life changing opportunity to play Division I college football and earn a college degree while on scholarship.