“Dabo Swinney’s Bold Vision: Could His Radical Proposal Transform the Future of College Football?”

What if college football could mimic the excitement of an NFL preseason? That’s exactly what Clemson’s head coach Dabo Swinney has been dreaming about—offering his team the chance to scrimmage against another school before the regular season kicks off. While Clemson is set to hold its traditional spring game, the decision not to air it on television has sparked conversation about the limited opportunities college teams have for live competition. Swinney, who’s been advocating for the ability to practice against other teams for over ten years, believes that a spring exhibition could provide invaluable experience for his young players. Amidst whispers of potential changes in NCAA regulations, will we see a shift towards a model that embraces more competitive preparation? For now, coaches like Swinney and Oklahoma State’s Mike Gundy are left pondering the age-old question: why can’t college football practice like the pros? To dive deeper into this discussion and what it means for the future of the sport, LEARN MORE.

If Dabo Swinney had his way, Clemson would play against another football school before the regular season.

Unlike some other programs, Clemson will hold a spring game this year. However, the Tigers chose not to televise next Saturday’s showcase at Memorial Stadium.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Swinney explained that a spring game offers an important chance for live competition that his new players can’t receive elsewhere.

“If we had two preseason games, you all think we can get 50,000+ people to show up and see the Tigers play a preseason game in August? I guarantee you we could,” Swinney said. “And that’d be great, but we don’t get that, so this is the only opportunity.”

Colorado and Syracuse attempted to hold joint practices and a scrimmage, but the NCAA denied their waiver request to allow the scrimmage. While the concept gained steam after Deion Sanders publicly championed the idea, Swinney said he’s made the same suggestion every spring for over a decade.

“From Pee Wee League, to middle school, to high school, we are the only level of football — to the NFL — that we don’t get to practice against anybody,” Swinney said. ‘We can’t scrimmage anybody. I’ve never understood that.”

Swinney noted a peril of watching an intra-squad scrimmage from a coach’s perspective.

“Any time somebody grabs an ankle, all 22 of them on the field are your guys, right? It’d be nice to only be 50 percent invested,” he said. “You know, it just is what it is.”

Per ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg, the FBS oversight committee cited short notice when rejecting Colorado and Syracuse’s proposal. The committee felt the scrimmage could give the schools a recruiting advantage and interfere with the athletes’ academic schedules.

However, the committee said it will discuss “a concept that could permit joint spring practices in future seasons” when convening on April 10.

More coaches are joining the campaign to resemble an NFL preseason with scrimmages or exhibitions against other teams. Oklahoma State’s Mike Gundy suggested scrimmaging Oklahoma in the spring.

“I think it’s a great idea,” Gundy said of scrimmaging other teams earlier this week. “We get tired of practicing against one other.”

Related: NCAA Rejects Deion Sanders, Colorado’s Spring Game Request