With the 2016 college football season wrapping up, it’s time to look ahead to the 2017 spring games. Here’s the most updated schedule available.
As soon as Clemson and Alabama face off in the College Football National Championship Game, the 2016 college football season comes to a close and fans will have to wait until April for the start of spring football practice and the spring scrimmage games that wrap up the practice season.
Spring football has grown in popularity to the point that some games are televised. They arrive just in time to fill in the gap after March Madness wraps up, providing he perfect segue between sports.
The schedules are in and there are three Saturdays to watch in 2017: April 8th, April 15th, and April 22nd.
Here is the current breakdown of the big spring football games to watch for:
April 8th: Ole Miss, Iowa State, Mississippi State, and Auburn
April 15th: Nebraska and Texas
April 22nd: Georgia, Penn State, Virginia Tech, and Wyoming
There are a lot of rules governing spring football. Teams have 15 practice days that must take place within a 34-day window. The 20-hour practice per week rule is still enforced even though practice can take place over spring break.
You might recall Jim Harbaugh taking Michigan to Florida for some sunny weather practice over spring break, and he can do this because in spite of all of the rules about how many contact and non-contact practices can be held, there is no rule about where practice can take place. This rule may change in the future, but it’s not uncommon for other teams to travel to warmer climes over breaks in order to hold practice. (When I worked in college athletics, a men’s swim team from the Northeast traveled to San Diego to use our pool facilities in the winter)
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Scheduling can be a nightmare for coaches when it comes to those 15 days, and since the incoming freshmen aren’t around campus yet, there are fewer people available to participate. Rules and complications aside, it’s still fun to watch the teams shake off the dust and get back out on the field.