A warning to expectant mothers: Don't be surprised if college basketball coaches start asking for copies of your ultrasound films. Recruiting is getting that crazy.

OK, maybe not that crazy, but the NCAA Legislative Council has lowered the grade-level age of ''recruitable'' boys' basketball prospects from ninth to seventh. The intent of the new rule, put into place last week, is to prevent overzealous college coaches from overstepping bounds and getting a leg up in the recruiting process as they solicit middle school students.

By implementing the rule and getting younger players on the NCAA radar, the organization can now monitor and regulate college coaches' contacts and visits with seventh- and eighth-graders, as they do with high school students. It had become a concern because of the increasing exposure young players are getting through AAU youth tournaments and elite summer camps, which college coaches attend.

Last May, eighth-grader Michael Avery of Encino, Calif., accepted Kentucky coach Billy Gillespie's scholarship offer to play for the Wildcats in 2012. Granted, Avery had not even selected a high school at that time, but that didn't stop him from committing to UK. Gillespie had seen Avery play in an AAU tournament in Akron, Ohio, and the courtship began.

A year earlier, eighth-grader Ryan Boatright of Aurora, Ill., committed to the University of Southern California's Tim Floyd after attending a camp at the school. And in 2006, Dwayne Polee Jr. of Los Angeles gave USC an oral commitment. Both players were 14 at the time.

`IT'S SCARY'

''For the good of the sport of men's basketball, this was something that needed to be implemented,'' said Joseph F. D'Antonio, associate commissioner of the Big East Conference and chair of the Division I Legislative Council. ``The fact that we've gotten to this point is really just a sign of the times. It's scary.''

The rule is strongly backed by the National Association of Basketball Coaches, which is constantly trying to ensure recruiting doesn't fall into the hands of youth coaches and that junior phenom camps don't become feeding frenzies.

''The need to nip this in the bud was overwhelming,'' said Steve Malone, the NCAA Managing Director of Academic and Membership Services.

South Florida coaches applaud the aim of the ruling but aren't sure it will help much. If anything, they said, some coaches will feel compelled to start paying attention to seventh- and eighth-graders.

''The recruiting wars are so competitive that you are going to have schools start evaluating seventh-graders now because they're afraid other schools are doing it,'' said University of Miami coach Frank Haith. ``Most coaches have a ninth-grade list, and now they'll have an eighth-grade list and a seventh-grade list. That means sending more mailings, and letting them come on official visits. You won't see me ever doing that. I just don't believe I could tell if an eighth-grader will be ready to play in the ACC four years from now. How can you project that?''

Florida International University coach Sergio Rouco agrees. ''If a 12-year-old already knows where he wants to play college basketball, we're all more warped than I thought,'' Rouco said. ``Kids that age are going through puberty and should be thinking about things like movies and homework and going on a first date, not dealing with the pressures of college recruiting. What does a seventh-grader know about college?''

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