Georgia football makes major spring game decision

The Georgia Bulldogs' spring game won't be televised on ESPN this year. Georgia along with numerous other SEC schools reportedly opted not have their respective spring games televised on ESPN.

Georgia's spring game is scheduled to be played on April 12, but it is clear that there's no guarantee that Georgia will play its spring game in front of fans. Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule noted that he won't have a spring game, so that other teams won't poach his players via the transfer portal.

"Everybody wants to talk about that (cancelling spring games) and make it about the portal and make it about this decision to not ever have spring games based on the fluidity of players," said Georgia head coach Kirby Smart. "I don't know that that's every coach's reason. There's a lot of coaches that didn't like the spring game before the portal ever came about. Everybody has different approaches."

Last year, Georgia had a very enjoyable spring game that actually resembled football and not seven-on-seven drills or two-hand touch. That may be changing this year.

"My approach has been I like to have spring football games. But that's – every year we make that decision based on where we are," noted Smart, who also gave an example of how Kentucky did not have spring game last season due to injuries along their defensive line. "It would be remiss if I said 100 percent I'm dead set we're having a spring game."

Georgia's 2025 team will look very different from the 2024 version. The Bulldogs are breaking in a new starting quarterback and have a lot of roster turnover from last season, especially in the trenches.

"We're planning to have a spring game. I've talked to (Athletic Director) Josh Brooks about it several times. We've had a conversation. But that doesn't mean it can't change," Smart said.

Georgia coach Kirby Smart speaks to the media on the first day of spring practice in Athens, Ga., on Tuesday, March 11, 2025.

Out-of-town Georgia fans are big-time losers from the recent announcement that Georgia's spring game won't be televised. Spring games are a cheaper and more accessible to many fans than regular season games. Additionally, they serve as a way to get fans fired up for the upcoming fall season.

"I like spring games. I want to have a spring game. I think it's important because you allow kids to play that don't typically get to play. You sometimes allow fans to enjoy an experience in Athens that they normally wouldn't get. But I'm not ready to say that it's 100 percent," Smart said.

We'll know more about Georgia's potential spring game as we get closer to April. It is unclear what Georgia will do, but it is surprising that UGA and other schools aren't having spring games to try to earn more revenue since so much of college football revolves around money these days.

This article originally appeared on UGA Wire: UGA football makes major G-Day decision

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