Deion’s dream has hit a wall. “I’m trying to help salvage spring games and spring football,” he declared. Yet, what should have been a straightforward spring has turned into a battle against the status quo in college football. Matt Rhule, Ryan Day, and numerous others have slammed the door on spring games, opting for cancellation to ward off potential poachers from the transfer portal. Conversely, Deion Sanders aimed to revitalize the tradition by thinking outside the box, fueled by his push for a pro-league-esque evolution. His idea?

Replace the usual intrasquad spring game with a contest against a different team. “I’m just thinking of a way to improve it, so I want to play against somebody,” he proposed. Syracuse Head Coach Fran Brown immediately stepped up, ready for his Orange to be that opponent for Coach Prime’s Buffaloes. While certainly not a move aligned with NCAA rules, was the NCAA prepared to bend them to rescue the dwindling spring game tradition? Apparently not, as the NCAA swiftly quashed the entire vision before it could even gain traction. Frustration hangs heavy in the air as many wonder why innovative ideas continue to meet such staunch resistance.

The FBS Oversight Committee denied the waiver that would have permitted the two teams to practice together, thereby upholding the regulation that prohibits spring scrimmages between different institutions. It appears the NCAA is not yet ready to embrace such a model.

This straightforward rejection did not sit well with RJ Young, who voiced his displeasure, saying, “But this is one of those where it actually got to be their decision, and they said no, and they said no for reasons that don’t feel anything like on the no. They didn’t—the risk of injury, the other reasons for which you could cite this. I’m not quite sure what they might be, though, like the way in which you said no is also the bottom line is no, but the way in which you said no just doesn’t feel on par. It doesn’t feel above board.” Given that players frequently sustain injuries even in regular season games, Young questioned the logic, implying that perhaps all play should cease if injury risk was the primary concern.

The NCAA cited the late timing of the request as the primary reason for denying the waiver for a joint spring practice between Colorado and Syracuse, a move that left both Fran Brown and Deion Sanders disappointed. While seemingly reasonable, this explanation doesn’t sit entirely well considering both programs were fully prepared. The FBS Oversight Committee has stated they will “review the current rule” regarding inter-team spring scrimmages and discuss potential allowances for “joint spring practices in future seasons.”

Another cited concern from the NCAA was the potential for a competitive and recruiting edge for the participating schools over those that didn’t host such an event. This justification feels out of sync with the current realities of college football, where significant financial disparities already allow wealthier schools to essentially buy talent, leaving less affluent programs at a disadvantage.

Critics argue that if the NCAA isn’t effectively regulating the transfer portal and NIL, it should not hinder innovative efforts by individual programs to enhance the sport. The committee also mentioned that other programs were too far into their spring schedules and raised “academic concerns and potential recruiting advantages not available to other programs.” However, this explanation has been met with skepticism, prompting questions about the NCAA’s true motivations. Could there be more to this picture than what’s being said?

Young further elaborated, saying, “Whereas I’ll go ahead and say it, if Kirby Smart and Ryan Day wanted to do this, would we be getting this kind of pushback? Would the NCAA say no to a request that would be filed by Ohio State’s head coach and Georgia’s head coach, or was it because it was Colorado and Syracuse? Like, these are the questions that you open yourself up to when you do such a thing.” This raises a valid point: was the rejection influenced by the fact that it was Deion Sanders making the proposal?

Even if so, he is not alone in viewing this as an opportunity to inject life into a period often marked by elite programs canceling their spring games.

Deion Sanders’ vision is backed by Bucks, blocked by NCAA

Spring football is facing some serious hurdles, and Coach Prime knows it. “We got to sell this thing (spring game) out and pack this thing because the way the trend is going, you never know if this is going to be the last spring game,” he recently stated, highlighting the need to keep the tradition alive. Interestingly, just this Friday, amidst these challenges, Colorado announced a new five-year, $54 million contract for Sanders. This hefty deal bumps his salary from $5.7 million in 2024 to a cool $10 million this year, placing him among the top 10 highest-paid coaches in the country.

Despite this vote of confidence from Colorado, the joy was somewhat muted as the NCAA seems unresponsive to the vision of one of the highest-paid coaches in college football. Sanders is reportedly less worried about losing players and more invested in the long-term health of the game. He’s pushing hard to revitalize spring football with competitive practices and actual games against other teams, moving away from what he sees as dull intrasquad scrimmages.

For Coach Prime, it’s all about putting his players in pressure situations to see who can handle the heat, which spring games are perfect for. His vision, shared by several other coaches, is to mirror the intensity of an NFL preseason with joint practices and real opponents.

Even Oklahoma State’s head coach, Mike Gundy, expressed eagerness to revive the historic Bedlam rivalry with a spring matchup against Brent Venables’ Oklahoma Sooners. Moreover, Joey McGuire firmly supports Deion Sanders’ recent advocacy for college football teams to participate in joint offseason practices or even spring games against other schools. As McGuire stated, “I think it’d be good to have, at the very least, have a joint practice, whether it’s (with) A&M or Texas or OU, whether we’re traveling.”

For the time being, however, it remains a vision championed by Deion Sanders. Coach Prime’s objective is to establish a true proving ground. The pivotal question now is whether the NCAA will ultimately support this vision or continue to impede progress in the seasons to come.