Unofficial visits too expensive for many families

This is a topic I have witnessed as becoming more pronounced with today's recruits. The greatest recruitment emphasis is placed in areas where top prospects are spawned and plentiful. These areas include FL, Texas, and California. As Michigan has continued to strengthen its recruitment in these areas, and as the economy has dipped and fuel costs have increased, recruits from these areas have fewer opportunities to visit distant schools, outside of their official visits. I feel this limits our ability to gain the commitments of many out-of-state prospects. This leads me to my question.

Is it possible, or rather legal, for fans or people outside of a university to donate money to fund unofficial visits for recruits who cannot foot the bill?

Also, these issues raise another question, is the SEC as strong as it is b/c of its location and the recruits available? Do the monetary limitations which hinder many of them from visiting and building conformability with northern/distant schools, create an unfair advantage for the SEC as a geographical monopoly?