Michigan Football camp in Australia could lead to talent pipeline

With satellite camps back on the table, Jim Harbaugh is taking the Michigan football program overseas to Australia. Will this help expand the American football’s footprint in the country?

According to a Twitter post from Nathan Chapman of ProKick Australia, Jim Harbaugh and the University of Michigan football program are going to host a camp in Australia. That’s right, satellite camps are going global.

Harbaugh and his program have been at the center of the satellite camp controversy. If you remember, the NCAA banned satellite camps earlier this year after SEC programs did not take kindly to Harbaugh bringing his program to the south for camps. However, that rule has recently been overturned and the satellite camps are back on.

The camp in Australia will take place on June 3, and all positions will be coached by the Michigan staff. Michigan is undoubtedly looking at this as a recruiting advantage if there ends up being any top talent in the country, but this could easily help expand the footprint of American football.

Australia has not historically been a football hotbed, but there are athletes everywhere and the Australian Rules Football game would be a natural transition for an athlete to make to American football. We saw it with native Australian Jarryd Hayne who ended up making the San Francisco 49ers after playing Rugby for his entire life.

There may not be a stock of players like Hayne currently in Australia, but Michigan is leading the way for American football to expand in to the country. If this goes well, do not be surprised to see more and more Australian talent in our college and professional game.

Harbaugh and company probably have recruiting advantages in mind with this satellite camp, but this could be a start of a long-term pipeline for the entire sport.

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