Nebraska football head coach Matt Rhule took a ton of heat after announcing the Huskers might not play a spring game this year but as it turns out, he might be a trend setter.
Rhule announced on Saturday that while something is planned for April 26, it likely won’t be a traditional spring game or televised. The Huskers’ head coach said that the driving force behind the decision was that he’s tired of teams watching his players show what they can do on national television and then coming in and trying to steal them away.
Just days after the Nebraska football team, announced some major changes to its spring plans, rumblings emerged from Austin that Texas might cancel their spring game as well. Matt Winter posted segments of an interview that UT head coach Steve Sarkisian gave where he talked about changes to the calendar. Winter reports that the Longhorns are considering calling it a day with an actual spring game.
Texas is another school that may get rid of its spring 🏈 game.
— Mit Winter (@WinterSportsLaw) February 5, 2025
But not because of potential “tampering.”
Because of player wear & tear with longer college football seasons.
They may move to an NFL model offseason.
Makes sense.
Players should be involved in decision making. pic.twitter.com/EVsFZ1f7WY
Nebraska football could be just the first of a ton of spring game cancellations
If Texas does decide to follow the Huskers’ lead, it appears that tampering won’t be the reason it blames. Instead, it’s more about the longer schedule that comes along with making the playoffs.
Teams that make the field are playing as many as 16 games. That’s an NFL schedule. And teams are starting to talk about moving to an NFL offseason schedule.
To be fair, it’s unlikely that the Nebraska football team is really worried about tampering. It’s a nice catch all boogeyman but it’s also something that has plenty fo workarounds in the age of players having agents. It seems more likely that Rhule also believes that wear and tear on players, especially when the roster is going to be down to 105 at some point, needs to be lightened. Not playing a scrimmage in front of tens of thousands of fans in the stadium and more on TV is a needless risk.