College football has become increasingly professionalized in recent years, with NIL payments to players and the transfer portal acting as a de facto free agency. While the sport resembles the NFL more than ever, the offseason is not following suit.
Colorado head coach Deion Sanders recently expressed his desire to play an opponent in the Buffaloes’ spring game. This practice is common in the NFL, where teams hold joint practices before preseason games across the league. The idea generated buzz, as Houston head coach Willie Fritz told CBS Sports that he has been trying to get this concept implemented “for years.” Syracuse head coach Fran Brown supported Sanders, with both programs petitioning the NCAA to allow a scrimmage. Unfortunately, that waiver was denied.
Ohio State head coach Ryan Day was asked about the possibility of facing a different opponent in practice or in the spring game. Day, who has experience in the NFL and with joint practices, believes that teams should have that option. However, he is not interested in the Buckeyes doing anything beyond intra-squad scrimmages.
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“I think if teams want to do that, then I think the rules committee should take a look at that and allow folks to do that if that’s what they want to do,” Day said. “For us, I’d be concerned about the health because when you practice, there’s certain rules of engagement that have to happen. And so one of the things we really have to teach our players is how to practice. And 7-on-7, team work. If we’re not tackling people to the ground, what is the tempo? And you start talking about thud and different things, and we don’t take side shots. When receivers are in the air, we don’t take their legs out and do those types of things.
“I’d be very, very concerned with practicing against another team when the rules of engagement aren’t clear or you’re not going against one of your teammates that you’re trying to take care of. I think we all understand what that could be like.”
Although joint practices won’t occur this offseason, the NCAA hasn’t completely ruled out the idea.
“The committee agreed to discuss, during a future meeting, a concept that could permit joint practices,” the oversight committee said in a memo obtained by The Athletic.
This potential change is likely intended to reinvigorate the end of spring practices. This offseason, programs such as Florida State, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas and USC all canceled their spring games. The Buckeyes will play a spring game on Saturday, April 12, although it will probably be a scrimmage, depending on player availability.
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Day and the Scarlet and Gray navigated the longest season in college football in 2024, capturing the national championship in January after a 12-game regular season and four games in the new 12-team College Football Playoff. The head coach expresses concerns about adding another opponent, even in the offseason, to an already busy and challenging schedule.
“When you’re playing now a 16-game season, I feel like we need to do a little bit better job of making sure, especially with a 105-man roster it looks like that we’re headed towards here this summer, the health is one of the most important things we had in the preseason,” Day said. “So, for me right now, it’s not something that I would consider. But for those who want to do it, I think they should be able to.”
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