What started as a bold idea from University of Colorado head coach Deion Sanders has sparked a national conversation about the future of spring college football. In a bold move, Colorado and Syracuse formally asked the NCAA for permission to hold joint practices culminating in playing each other in a live spring scrimmage.
That request was subsequently denied by the Division I FBS Oversight Committee. While issuing the denial for 2025, the committee could revisit the topic next year. The governing body cited timing, fairness, and academic concerns as the reason for dismissing the petition which was co-authored by Syracuse head coach Fran Brown.
Not everyone is on board. Traditionalists argue the sport shouldn’t tamper with long-standing preseason norms; others see the move as a natural evolution, a way to build fan engagement, and a way to give players meaningful reps before the season.
Robert Griffin III: Coach Prime’s Spring Game Idea Could ‘Save’ College Athletics
Although competitive spring football may not happen this year, former Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III believes the topic has now been officially placed on the table for future consideration and will continue to gain momentum.
“Deion Sanders and Fran Brown, the head coach at Syracuse, just saved college athletics,” Griffin III stated. “I’m going to say it to you. They saved college athletics because this joint spring game idea is going to give football fans exactly what they want. You know, there’s this long period between February and September where we really don’t have a ton of football that’s meaningful. Football that people care about.
“They’re going to get it now. And guess what? That’s going to equal money. That’s going to be a new revenue stream for these colleges and my sources, 100% legit real people, are telling me that these colleges are struggling with raising money and finding the money to pay their players; all of their players, not just the football players.”
Deion Sanders and Fran Brown have given the blueprint to save College Athletics from CUTTING SPORTS.
Colleges and Universities are MILLIONS OF DOLLARS SHORT of being able to pay their student athletes in accordance with the new revenue share model combined with NIL.
Joint… pic.twitter.com/wWdDecmIqr
— Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) April 13, 2025
Whether the NCAA eventually sanctions competitive joint spring games is irrelevant right now. The bold proposal from Sanders and Brown has sparked much-needed conversation, igniting meaningful discussion that seeks to challenge the status quo.
“I would like to style it like the pros. I’d like to go against someone [in practice] for a few days, and then you have the spring game,” Sanders said, via ESPN. “I think the public would be satisfied with that tremendously. I think it’s a tremendous idea. I’ve told those personnel, who should understand that, that it’s a tremendous idea.”
As college programs continue to seek additional revenue streams and ways to gain more exposure, the question may no longer be if spring scrimmages between schools will happen but when spring scrimmages between schools will happen.
Colorado opens the 2025 season at home versus Georgia Tech on August 29, while Syracuse travels to Atlanta to face Tennessee on August 30.