All across the country, spring football is dying. College football coaches have opted for more of an open practice in lieu of a spring game to protect their players and appease their own paranoia about opposing teams getting an early look at their roster. The spring transfer portal and slew of player movement this time of year only further incentivize keeping your cards close to the vest.
With the entire sport trending away from real spring football games, Penn State is falling in line, planning a “non-traditional experience” for the annual Blue-White game. Now, a large aspect of the “non-traditional experience” is Beaver Stadium construction, which will limit fan seating to the North, East, and South ends of the stadium for the festivities on Saturday, April 26.
James Franklin not ready to do away with Blue-White game entirely
James Franklin stuck with a more traditional game experience last season, a game in which Drew Allar did not perform well due to windy conditions. The unnecessary narratives that spring to life out of spring games are another reason that so many coaches are doing away with them.
Penn State’s Blue-White game will feature fewer live periods than previous years and will include more practice elements. Franklin has stated that he still plans to continue the festivities that surround the spring game in the future for its impact on the community and fanbase in and around Happy Valley, but the “game” will not be televised this year, which is just another step towards doing away with the event entirely.
Spring games are a unique element of college football fandom, and the Blue-White game has been beloved, but after much of the team played 16 games last season and played well into January, there isn’t much value to that group hitting each other a few months later in April. College football is changing to a much more professional model, and spring games will almost inevitably be another casualty in that tectonic shift.