According to reports from CBS Sports' Brandon Marcello, spring football might be on the verge of a major shake-up.
A growing number of college coaches are pushing for a shift away from the traditional 15-practice spring model and toward NFL-style Organized Team Activities (OTAs) in June and July, according to the report. The move is gaining traction due to concerns about player tampering, injuries, and roster instability in the modern transfer portal era.
At the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) annual meeting in January, FBS coaches reportedly discussed eliminating spring football and implementing OTAs to better organize rosters before the summer semester. The idea isn’t new, but with the transfer portal now open in April, coaches are worried that spring games give rival programs an easy scouting opportunity to poach players.
Nebraska’s Matt Rhule made headlines when he announced that his team would likely not hold an open spring scrimmage this year, explaining, “The word ‘tampering’ no longer exists. It’s just absolute free, open, common market. So I don’t necessarily want to open up to the outside world.”
CBS Sports polled 18 FBS coaches on whether they would hold a spring game this offseason. Ten said yes, but several others admitted they had reservations about the idea. One SEC head coach put it bluntly: “No spring game. I give zero sh**s about tampering, but I care more about not getting players injured.”
Injuries, along with tampering, remain one of the biggest reasons coaches are considering a move away from spring football altogether.
Other coaches, however, told CBS that eliminating spring games won’t solve the tampering problem. “I respect Matt, but if they want your players, they will get them whether you have a spring game or not,” a Sun Belt head coach told CBS. Another ACC coach echoed that sentiment, saying, “If someone wants to leave after spring and is tampered with, then I didn’t want them anyhow. They will eventually quit on you at some point.”
Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze is one of the strongest voices advocating for a change, telling CBS Sports that he doesn't "even want spring practice." Some coaches have proposed a 30-day football activity period spanning from the start of the spring semester to the end of June, with 10 days of full-contact practices mixed in.
Beyond the coaching concerns, this shift would also impact fans. Spring games have long been a free opportunity for fans to see their favorite teams in action. While some programs, like Ole Miss, have turned these events into entertainment spectacles with tug-of-war contests and hot dog eating competitions, other schools still use them as valuable scrimmage opportunities.
An anonymous ACC coach warned that eliminating spring games could create “unrealistic expectations for fans.”
It's unclear how long before changes are made, but it seems like shifts are coming to how spring football is handled.