As college football spring scrimmages change, would preseason games be better?

IOWA CITY, Iowa — Colorado coach Deion Sanders and Syracuse coach Fran Brown applied for an NCAA waiver in March for their football programs to practice against one another and stage a spring game. Their request was denied by the Division I FBS oversight committee, mostly because of its late timing.

The committee agreed, however, to discuss “a concept that could permit joint spring practices in future seasons” in an upcoming meeting. As a byproduct, the committee — which meets Thursday and again on May 8 — leaves open the potential for creative scheduling in the future.

If spring scrimmages are up for future discussion, what if the oversight committee also considered other types of events in the future, such as preseason football games?

“As long as it didn’t count, I’d be all for it,” said Iowa’s Kirk Ferentz, the longest-serving head coach in Division I football. “It’s kind of like NFL preseason games that don’t count against your win-loss record, but it gives you a chance to get guys in-game experience in different situations.”

The concept of preseason games intrigued Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti, who wanted to know more about Ferentz’s position when asked. Petitti was non-committal but talked through several scenarios, such as if teams would compete at full speed for four quarters or limit reps for their starters.

“I’ve heard it come up a little bit on basketball, ‘Hey, why can’t we just play a few games to get started?’” Petitti said. “I’d be curious to see the approach on the pro side about who plays. They’d use it as evaluation, right? I’d be interested to see what that would mean for us.”

There is an NCAA precedent for either spring or fall scrimmages. Division II rules allow for spring scrimmages between teams, of which Nebraska-Kearney and Sioux Falls (S.D.) will conduct this week. In Division III, programs are allowed up to two preseason scrimmages, exhibitions or joint practices each fall.

The possibilities are endless for what programs might consider if preseason games were allowed, from two power-conference teams colliding to an FBS-FCS matchup with few frills. The SEC and Big Ten are exploring opportunities to compete against one another more often in football, and perhaps preseason games could figure into that dynamic. Maybe they could even be used as a way to restore regional rivalries, such as Oklahoma-Oklahoma State, USC-Stanford or Maryland-Virginia or bring about convenient nearby series like Iowa State-Minnesota or Cincinnati-Kentucky. Or it could enhance the regular season by shifting games against FCS opponents to the preseason.

Preseason football could tap additional revenue streams through ticket sales, sponsorships and media rights. Many schools require seven home football games per year to generate enough revenue to pay for the other sports on campus. With gate, concessions, parking and other sales, many power-conference programs earn more than $5 million per home game.

NFL franchises charge full price for preseason games, which are included in season-ticket packages. Even if colleges have a different pricing structure, any additional income will help offset the cost of paying athletes as much as $20.5 million per year beginning July 1, should the House v. NCAA settlement be approved. In addition, preseason football could provide content to each league’s media partners, which in turn could increase payouts.

“There might be a little revenue, absolutely,” Ferentz said. “No question about that. That’s one more factor that might push the needle a little bit, because that’s a reality with what we’re doing right now. You’ve got to raise money.”

There are differences of opinion among key stakeholders within the Big Ten. Illinois athletic director Josh Whitman, who chairs the NCAA’s Division I Council, cited several logistical concerns that engulf campuses on traditional football game days, such as security, parking and other issues. Ferentz’s players offered contrary views as well.

Defensive tackle Jonah Pace, who transferred to Iowa from Central Michigan in January, was not in favor of either a spring scrimmage or a preseason game.

“Why do we need to go somewhere else and train against someone else when we’ve got the best here in the building going against each other every day?” Pace said. “I wouldn’t say a preseason game would be necessary. We’ve already got long periods of time, and then possibly going into the postseason, that’s a lot of football.”

Pace’s teammate, defensive back Koen Entringer, took the opposite position.

“College football is ever-changing, and you’ve got to change with the times,” Entringer said. “It’s a great opportunity to maybe just play somebody else and just kind of get a feel. Because I know as spring ball goes on, you start to build a little bit of animosity between the offense and defense.

“The biggest thing is just they’ve got to come up with a plan and just stick to that plan. As college football players, we just want to play football. We just want to compete.”

To reiterate his interest in preseason football — whether that’s a game or joint team workouts — Ferentz recalled competing in high school scrimmages before the regular season while growing up in Pittsburgh. He also spent seven years as an NFL assistant with Baltimore and Cleveland and liked how preseason games helped him with player evaluations. College is the only level of football without preseason competition.

With roster limits expected to be set at 105 players beginning this fall, Ferentz said college football’s hierarchy should investigate every opportunity to help the sport improve. Ferentz, who has led Iowa since 1999, also approves of spring football practices against other programs and adding organized team activities in June.

“Everything’s possible right now, just because we’re in such a transitional period,” Ferentz said. “It makes more sense now. Because your rosters are a little bit smaller, maybe you have a chance to work against other people.

“Several years ago, I said we should be doing this with Missouri.”

(Photo: Matthew Holst / Getty Images)