Oversigning Day is almost upon us. That means the Packing Months are nearly here too.

For the first time, the NCAA limits college football teams to 28 signees between Feb. 2 and May 31. The rule -- sponsored by the SEC, which treats oversigning like a national pastime -- is window dressing.

Some high school senior will soon find out he has no scholarship as promised. Some current college player is about to be put on medical hardship or chased off.

Lacking trades and free agency, this is how college football magically manages rosters. It's an ugly underbelly of the sport that many fans choose to ignore. Watching how the sausage gets cooked makes for a less-appetizing meal.

BCS CONFERENCE COMPARISON 2002-10

SEC

Average annual signees per team:

27.6

Highest annual average:

Auburn, 28.1

Lowest annual average:

Vanderbilt, 21.2

BIG 12

Average annual signees per team:

24.3

Highest annual average:

Iowa State, 27.0

Lowest annual average:

Texas, 21.3

BIG EAST

Average annual signees per team:

24.1

Highest annual average:

West Virginia, 26.1

Lowest annual average:

Connecticut, 22.3

PAC-10

Average annual signees per team:

23.2

Highest annual average:

Oregon State, 26.1

Lowest annual average:

Stanford, 18.9

ACC

Average annual signees per team:

22.2

Highest annual average:

North Carolina, 25.0

Lowest annual average:

Wake Forest, 19.3

BIG TEN

Average annual signees per team:

22.2

Highest annual average:

Purdue, 24.2

Lowest annual average:

Northwestern, 18.9

Source:

Fortunately, there has been increased media scrutiny of this issue in recent years, such as from SI.com and ESPN. There's also a blog called oversigning.com, which tracks how far over budget the worst offenders are.

The 2011 "Oversigning Cup" leaders, based on commitments/early signings compared to available scholarships: Ole Miss (+14), Alabama (+10), USC (+10 if NCAA sanctions are upheld), LSU (+9), Arkansas (+8), South Carolina (+5) and Mississippi State (+5).

The SEC started applying the new 28-cap rule last year -- and it worked so well that Auburn and LSU signed 32 and 29, respectively. That's because the cap can be bypassed by enrolling recruits before or after the dates in the rule.

Schools can still bring in 25 new scholarship players each academic year and can have no more than 85 on scholarship at once. Grayshirting, when a player is asked to delay enrollment until the next January, is one way around the 28-player cap.

Not everyone oversigns, and it's not always unethical when a current player or recruit loses his scholarship. There are legitimate reasons some players aren't on campus the next season.

But oversigning reflects values that are based more on business models than educational missions. Coaches are under pressure to win and justify their multi-million-dollar contracts provided by athletics directors, who eye lucrative BCS bowl games to satisfy rabid fans.

Some SEC athletics directors are studying oversigning, which is hardly a new concept. Bobby Dodd pulled Georgia Tech out of the SEC because he signed 28 to 30 players a year while rival SEC teams signed 60 and ran off players.

It only took the SEC 45 years to reach Dodd's scholarship numbers -- and it's still a meaningless limit. To seriously clean up oversigning, look for guidance from the Big Ten, which has essentially banned the practice since 1956.

In 2002, the Big Ten started allowing schools to oversign by three players -- that is, three over the 85-man limit, not three over the annual 25-man limit. Key difference.

If a Big Ten school does oversign, it must document to the league office how it came into compliance. A few Big Ten schools have used the exception, but the majority don't, presumably due to transparency.

According to SI.com, 25 of the 120 Football Bowl Subdivision teams averaged more than 25 signees a year between 2006 and 2010. That includes eight SEC teams: Ole Miss, Auburn, Mississippi State, Arkansas, Kentucky, Alabama, LSU and South Carolina.

Troy leads the nation with 32.8 signees per year. Half of the Big 12's soon-to-be 10 members average more than 25. So does half of Conference USA, including UAB, which averages 25.8.

Coaches who oversign can better erase recruiting mistakes. During the SEC's current run of national titles, four of its five champions signed at least 14 more players than their title-game opponent in the four years leading up to the game.

Auburn signed 19 more than Oregon. Alabama signed 18 more than Texas. LSU signed 14 more than Ohio State. Florida signed 16 more than Ohio State. The only exception was Oklahoma signed three more than Florida. SEC teams averaged 13.4 more signees between 2007 and 2010 than their bowl opponents last season.

Fans will again salivate over recruits on Oversigning Day. One day, some of those players will quietly disappear to make room for others, as only the Packing Months can do.

Jon Solomon's column appears in The Birmingham News. Follow him on Twitter @jonsol. E-mail him at jsolomon@bhamnews.com.