Let’s Discuss Proposals to Change the Spring Game

[sutomcat]

No one is giving up a fall game for a game in the spring. The TV money in the fall is too big.

When you reduce the number of plays to reduce the chance for injuries you also reduce the number of plays on tape for coaches to evaluate players, players down the depth chart. And yes, if you play an FCS school the chance for injury increases for them.

What’s in it for the FCS school? I assume they travel so no home spring event for them. They assume a greater risk of injury when they play a bigger school instead of an intrasquad format. FCS schools get paid to play bigger schools in the fall. Will they get paid in the spring? Where will that money come from? In the fall the money usually comes from TV contracts. If you don’t televise the spring games cause you don’t want take the shine away from LAX games then schools will lose money. TV money is often used to fund lesser sports so no one is giving up a fall game, and would a spring game attract enough sponsors and viewers to justify paying anyone?

I agree with others that it is unlikely the regular season gets reduced from 12 games. It would probably be a good thing for the players but TV money is driving the sport and the powers that be will not jeopardize that.

From the proposals I have read, the spring game would be a game against an FCS or G5 opponent. Both have been proposed. The game would be a real game. Admission would be charged. Haven’t read about whether the games would be televised but I suspect they would, and would probably be shown on conference networks.

My expectation is that the FCS or G5 opponent would get paid. Probably not quite as much as they get paid for a fall game, but they would get a substantial fee to play. I think that these teams would be very interested in another payday in the spring. I would guess that concerns about injuries to players would not be big, especially given the spring game would presumably be played at or near the end of spring ball, when the team would have 6 months to recover.

Maybe it ends up that the FCS opponent stays in the fall and a G5 opponent is added to the spring calendar. I would be surprised to see someone like Colgate willing to play Syracuse twice in 6 months. More likely, the FCS opponent is the spring opponent and the FCS slot in the fall goes to a G5 opponent.

That game would be a better draw at the gate and TV would like more competing games as well. If I had to bet, that is the direction I think this goes.