In the past decade, college football has transformed to the point that it often feels like an entirely different sport.
With elements such as the transfer portal, name, image, and likeness issues, and ongoing conference realignment, college football increasingly resembles the NFL.
These significant changes have prompted some teams, including the Nebraska Cornhuskers, to contemplate major adjustments in the offseason to safeguard their programs and players.
Earlier this winter, Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule revealed that the school was thinking about canceling the spring scrimmage to prevent interference from other schools.
However, Nebraska is not the only one considering these changes. As reported by CBS Sports’ Brandon Marcello, several college football programs are looking into implementing significant alterations to their spring football schedules and may adopt NFL-style practices in the future.
“According to sources, FBS coaches discussed a potential plan to abolish spring practices and introduce organized team activities (OTAs) during the late spring and early summer at the American Football Coaches Association annual meeting in January,” Marcello reported. “The aim is to better organize rosters before the summer semester and address tampering issues prior to the opening of the spring transfer portal window in mid-April.”
It remains unclear whether eliminating spring games would completely resolve the tampering problem, but several coaches surveyed by CBS Sports feel that “poaching players” is a concern that extends well beyond mere offseason scrimmages.
“I respect Matt, but if other schools want your players, they will find a way to acquire them, regardless of whether you have a spring game,” stated one head coach from the Sun Belt, as quoted by CBS Sports.
“Our rosters are constantly subject to tampering. I’m not convinced that the presence or absence of a spring game would make a difference,” remarked an AAC coach to CBS Sports.
Other coaches were more focused on the potential to reduce injury risk by eliminating the spring game, rather than addressing tampering concerns. While this proposal makes sense, it would be difficult for fans who look forward to annual spring scrimmages as a way to gauge their team’s progress and get a glimpse of new roster additions.
Further discussions about this proposal are expected to occur this spring.
Leave a Reply