Tennessee offensive lineman Cooper Mays (63), wide receiver Bru McCoy (5), and quarterback Nico Iamaleava (8) surround running back Dylan Sampson (6) in celebration after Sampson's touchdown during an NCAA college football game against Alabama on Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024, in Knoxville. Tenn. Saul Young/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Should Tennessee Football Cancel the Vols' Spring Game?

Originally posted on Tennessee Volunteers on SI
By SI Editorial | Last updated Feb 17, 2025 10:18 AM ET

Should the Tennessee Volunteers cancel their spring football game?

When Ole Miss held a dunk contest and flag football game in place of last year’s spring game, entitled the Grove Bowl Games, it was very confusing. How could they replace such a prominent staple in the game of football with silly games?

During spring games, fans are given a taste of college football after a short three month gap that somehow feels like an eternity. It’s a great chance for the players to compete and for the fans to cheer on their teams as they gear up for the upcoming season.

However, as the transfer portal turned the college football world into the “wild wild west,” spring games have been viewed in a different light. Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule suggested the unthinkable; cancelling the spring game. His rationale was due to the issue of playing being “poached,” or illegally recruited during the games. With the games being televised, they have become potential liabilities for coaches, as their players who excel during the game are subject to being poached and sent to the portal.

Coach Josh Heupel and the Volunteers are coming off their second consecutive ten-win season. A promising power in the SEC’s future, should they consider removing the spring game? Do they have a reason to put their elite talent display for inferior teams to pick apart their roster at the end of the season?

The Vols have been very successful in recruiting in the past few years, with their past three classes all finishing inside the top-15. With that volume of talent, it is inevitable that some players will have to wait their turn and develop into true starters. With the portal being so prominent, a lot of these players that are the potential future of the program are being convinced by other teams to join forces. How can Coach Heupel expect his program to reach the next level if his players are leaving every season? Perhaps removing the game where talented backups are fighting to show they are starter worthy and would likely start at several other programs would be a benefit to the Vols.

While Coach Heupel nor any member of the Tennessee athletic department has suggested removing the game, if the portal is not regulated with more structure, this may be the best team for the Vols and other teams alike to remove the game and potentially save their roster.