Change is the order of the day in college football, and the sport entering the NIL and transfer portal era appears to be chipping away at another annual tradition: the spring game.
Heading into the 2025 preseason, most teams are still planning on having an exhibition at their stadiums, but there’s a growing and notable list of programs saying thanks, but no thanks.
Part of it boils down to some schools playing much longer seasons after the expansion of the College Football Playoff, while for others it’s a matter of not providing other schools what is effectively a free tryout for their players in an age of immediate transfers.
“I hate to say this … I dealt with a lot of people offering our players a lot of opportunities after that,” Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule said of his decision earlier this year.
He added: “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.”
What college football teams have foregone their spring games so far this year?
–
While the Cornhuskers won’t have a conventional spring football game, athletic director Troy Dannen said that the team would host an event for football fans on April 26.
–
College football’s defending national champion is cutting down on its entire spring schedule after having just played all the way up through Jan. 20. Instead, the Buckeyes will host a Spring Showcase with a fan event before the football event on April 12.
–
Longhorns coach Steve Sarkisian confirmed he won’t host a spring game, citing the long 2024 season, instead opting for an NFL-style organized team activities period, depriving fans a chance to see Arch Manning take QB1 reps on the field.
–
Dave Doeren is keeping things classified this preseason, as the Wolfpack will hold all 15 of their spring football practices in a closed format. Hiring two new coordinators has something to do with it, in an effort to keep everything private until the season begins.
–
Renovations at historic Doak Campbell Stadium is the big reason why the Seminoles won’t play a spring football game this year, but head coach Mike Norvell indicated that the sport is moving away from the exhibition model, so we could see FSU following suit in the future.
–
Risk of injury was the big reason why the Trojans elected to now showcase its football team at the L.A. Coliseum this spring, according to ESPN, in addition to citing “more important uses for financial resources.”
–
–
More college football from SI: Top 25 Rankings | Schedule | Teams
Follow College Football HQ: Bookmark | Rankings | Picks
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
