Kalen DeBoer and
Alabama football have decided to become the latest program to make changes to the spring game format.
Some are canceling the game. Others are modifying it. The Crimson Tide is in the latter group, based on what
DeBoer told On3 this week.
āA lot of times here, the A-Day Game, itās been more of a practice, and thereās been some scrimmaging, not necessarily much of a game,ā DeBoer told On3. āEven when I was at Fresno State, we called it the spring preview. Especially this year, thereās some things weāre working through with some injuries and so forth. So itāll definitely be modified. We want to try to have some type of event around April 12.ā
A-Day is scheduled for Saturday, April 12th.
Nebraska, Southern Cal, Texas and more have decided to cancel their spring games with the changing times in college football. The reasons have varied. Some of it stems from wear and tear and trying to move to more of an NFL model. Other parts stem from limiting viewing opportunities for other teams to see your players right before the spring transfer portal window opens.
āWe certainly understand the impact that putting things out there for the whole world to see, what that can do, especially related to the transfer portal, whether itās guys in or guys out,ā DeBoer told On3. āI get all of that, and I know thereās different reasons for different programs.ā
Texas coach
Steve Sarkisian joined Kay Adams on āUp and Adamsā a week ago to share why the Longhorns will be going with an NFL model of organized team activities.
āOur approach is going to be a little bit more NFL-driven, kind of more of an OTA style early on and as we grow into more of the scrimmage formats in the second half of spring ball. ⦠I just donāt know if rolling the ball out, playing the game, when we only get 15 practices, is the best for us to maximize the opportunities that we get. So itās going to be a little bit of a different approach, but I think college football is changing right now. And we need to do a great job as coaches of adapting to college football. And thatās what weāre trying to do."
No matter the reason, itās clear spring games are changing in todayās new world of college football.