Texas and USC will join Nebraska in not holding a spring football game this year.
Citing the workload that the Longhorns have endured through College Football Playoff runs the past two seasons, in addition to several players participating in the upcoming NFL scouting combine, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian revealed the decision during an interview with “Up & Adams” on Thursday.
“Over the last two years, we’ve played 30 games,” Sarkisian told Kay Adams. “That’s a lot for college football. Fourteen [games] two years ago, 16 this year. And … we’ve had 25 guys get invited to the NFL combine the last two years. So we’ve got a lot of young players on our roster, we have 21 mid-year high school kids that just showed up.
The development that’s needed for these guys to get ready for the fall is a little bit different than it used to be. Our approach is going to be a little bit more NFL-driven, kind of more of an OTA-style early on, then grow into more of a scrimmage format in the second half of spring ball,” he added. “I just don’t know if rolling the ball out and playing the game, when we only get 15 practices, is the best for us to maximize the opportunities that we get.”
Meanwhile, USC officials told ESPN that injury concerns are a big reason for the Trojans not having their spring game. Additionally, the program believes its financial resources can be utilized better to engage fans.
The reasons cited by Texas and USC are different from those expressed by Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule for canceling the Cornhuskers’ spring game. Rhule pointed to the spring transfer portal and rival coaches making offers to players after seeing them play as a reason for not having the game.
“It’s really because last year we were one of the more televised spring games and I dealt with a lot of people offering our players a lot of opportunities after that,” Rhule told reporters. “So to go out and bring in a bunch of new players and showcase them for all the other schools to watch, that doesn’t make a lot of sense to me.”
Florida State also will not hold a spring game this year, but that’s because of renovations to Doak Campbell Stadium. However, head coach Mike Norvell voiced similar concerns as Rhule in regards to giving opposing coaches and scouts an opportunity to see their players in a game setting or practice circumstance.
“I would assume that you’re going to see less and less spring games just because of that part of it,” Norvell told ESPN’s Dave Wilson. “You go play a spring game and put whatever information you want out there, and that’s going to help somebody that you’re playing against. Even if it’s just seeing the look of personnel.”
Though coaches seem to be pessimistic about the future of holding spring games, despite the revenue and fan interest they generate, Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte said the Longhorns are not done with them.
“We’re just looking at everything that happened this year,” Del Conte said. Last year, quarterback Arch Manning threw three touchdowns in Texas’ spring game, stoking excitement for the season to come.
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