Bret Bielema has an interesting idea to help recruiting (article)

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To say that Southeastern Conference football coaches are displeased about the recent recruiting changes would be an understatement.

The new recruiting reform legislation was a hot topic amongst coaches this week at the SEC spring meetings in Sandestin, Fla.

Coaches admitted confusion as to how certain rules like the new recruiting calendar were approved. There was anger that what the SEC's coaches wanted didn't win out nationally. There were legitimate concerns that one new rule could severely limit opportunities for high school coaches looking to break into the college ranks. Nick Saban said it was like taking a "sledgehammer to kill a fly."

It was mostly complaining without any real solution on how to fix it. Thankfully, one coach offered what could be one of the best ideas to fix recruiting in a long time.

Arkansas head coach Bret Bielema's idea is a simple one, but it makes a lot of sense: Let recruits take multiple official visits to the same school if they want to.

Under the current rules, recruits can take up to five official visits but have to be at different schools. There's never been a particularly compelling reason why that's the case; it's just the way it is.

In Bielema's scenario, a recruit would able to do more due diligence on a school without having to pay out of pocket. Recruits can take as many unofficial visits as they want to a school but that's cost prohibitive, and not everyone can afford to make those trips. Allowing a recruit to take two official visits to the same school gives him more knowledge and perspective as to whether that school is the right fit.

"A lot of times the visit becomes more real on the second rather than the first," Bielema explained. "For those of us married, that first date wouldn't be great and the second one probably a little better. You kept building that progression and if not, you got out of it."

Bielema's idea could turn a new recruiting calendar that's viewed as a major negative into a positive. A recruit could take one official visit in May and then come back in October for a gameday weekend to get two varied visit experiences. It'd also help recruits bring more family members to see the school they might be spending their next four years.

There aren't many downsides to Bielema's idea. It could increase the costs for schools -- that may not play well with the Group of Five schools -- but it's a two-way street. A recruit wouldn't have to take multiple official visits to the school, same as a school doesn't have to host the same recruit for multiple trips. Not every recruit would be able to take two official visits which in itself provides clarity: Someone else is a bigger priority than you.

In theory, allowing recruits to take multiple official visits to the same school will cut down on transfers. It's a way to combat rushed decisions that could increase with a new 72-hour early signing period set to debut this December.

"There's a certain element that if we could bring a kid on a second official visit...I think you'd have a higher success of placing kids in the right situations," the Arkansas head coach said.

How likely is it to happen? Bielema said there have been discussions about it though Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn said Wednesday he's never heard anything about the idea. It's a bold idea but relatively mild compared to some of the recent recruiting changes put into effect.

At the least, it's a smart idea on a week bereft of them.

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