The disappearance of the spring window for the NCAA transfer portal creates the opportunity for a reappearance of spring football games on campuses across the country.
Playing a game in front of fans to end spring practices had become a fading tradition in the age of conference networks and a transfer climate in which players seemed to be on the move all year round. Coaches feared the possibility that rival staffs could watch televised spring games and turn them into scouting opportunities — not to prepare for a game but to build their roster.
“It just didn’t incentivize us to be out there playing when people could watch that tape on national TV and call a kid,” said Nebraska coach Matt Rhule, who last year did away with the Cornhuskers’ spring game, which dated to the 1920s and had been played annually since 1950.
That’s not as much of a concern now that college football no longer has a second portal window in April. Nebraska responded to the change by bringing back its spring game.
“We missed it,” Rhule said. “We wanted to do it. … It’s a great thing for the fans. It’s a great thing for people who want to come watch us play. Once they kind of changed the calendar, we went back to a more traditional setting.”