Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian made a rather interesting announcement during his appearance on the Up & Adams Show with Kay Adams on Thursday morning, and college football fans are starting to catch wind of it.
Chip Brown of Horns247 suggested a few weeks ago that the Longhorns were toying with the idea of not holding their annual spring game in 2025, and now Sarkisian has confirmed that report, pointing to a need to rejuvenate the roster and maximize the development of the younger players.
Are College Football Spring Games Becoming a Thing of the Past?
Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian made headlines during his appearance on Up & Adams with Kay Adams, confirming a growing rumor in the college football world. According to Sark, Texas will likely skip its annual spring game in 2025—a move that’s sparking conversation across the sport.
This aligns with what Horns247’s Chip Brown reported weeks ago, suggesting Texas was reconsidering the spring scrimmage. Now, Sarkisian has explained the reasoning: it’s all about player development and optimizing limited practice time.
“There are a couple of reasons,” Sarkisian said. “Over the past two years, we’ve played 30 games—14 two years ago, 16 this year. That’s a heavy load for college athletes. Plus, we’ve had 25 guys invited to the NFL Combine during that time, which means we’ve got a ton of young talent on the roster now. We brought in 21 mid-year high school enrollees who need focused development. So we’re shifting to a more NFL-style approach—think OTA-style workouts early on, then ramping up to scrimmages later in spring ball.”
Sark added that with only 15 practices available, using one for a fan-facing spring game doesn’t serve the team’s long-term goals. And Texas isn’t alone. Powerhouses like USC, Ohio State, and Nebraska have also pulled the plug on their spring games this year, signaling a broader shift in how programs approach the offseason.
What used to be a fan-friendly tradition—an early glimpse at the squad, fun tailgates, and autograph sessions—is slowly fading. Unless a Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) angle is involved, programs see little value in them now. College football is shifting toward business-first decisions, and unfortunately, spring games are no longer a top priority.
What was once a celebration of community and team spirit is being replaced by behind-the-scenes prep and quiet development.
“[There are] A couple of reasons why,” Sarkisian explained. “Over the last 2 years, we’ve played 30 games and that’s a lot for college football. [Texas played]14 two years ago, 16 this year. And we’ve had 25 guys get invited to the NFL Combine the last 2 years, so we’ve got a lot of young players on our roster. We’ve got 21 mid-year high school players that just showed up. The development that’s needed for these guys to get ready for the fall is a little bit different than it used to be.
“So, our approach is going to be a little bit more NFL-driven, kind of an OTA-style early on and then as we grow into more of the scrimmage formats in the second half of spring ball, I just don’t know that rolling the ball out, playing the game when we only get 15 practices is the best for us to maximize opportunities that we get.”
It appears that some of college football’s larger programs are starting to trend away from traditional spring games, as Texas isn’t the only program to remove the event from their calendar.
USC, Ohio State, and Nebraska have already nixed their plans for a spring game in the coming months, and there’s likely to be more teams following along.
It’s a sad reality, but the draw of a spring game used to be about giving fans an opportunity to see their team perform before the lights come on in September. However, the game has changed, and college football really isn’t about the fans any more.
It appears that spring games and fan meet-and-greets are becoming a thing of the past—that is, unless there’s an NIL element attached to it.
College football has become a pursuit of the almighty dollar, and spring games just aren’t the most cost-effective outreach, so it’s just easy to be rid of them and let the teams prepare without fan interference.
