Colorado and Syracuse will have to wait at least another year to hold joint practices and a scrimmage in the spring after an NCAA committee denied their request this week.
The Football Bowl Subdivision oversight committee, in a video call Thursday, opposed the legislative relief waiver request from Colorado and Syracuse regarding the rule prohibiting teams from scrimmaging in the spring.
Colorado coach Deion Sanders first proposed the idea, saying he wanted to model it after the NFL, where teams frequently hold joint practices before preseason games. Syracuse coach Fran Brown jumped at the chance to play Colorado, noting his admiration for Sanders and that many schools no longer hold intrasquad spring games.
The FBS oversight committee cited three factors in opposing the waiver: the late timing, as most teams have planned out spring practice and, in some cases, concluded their sessions; a recruiting advantage Colorado and Syracuse would receive when other teams couldn't hold a similar scrimmage this spring; and the potential academic impact for athletes missing classes to participate in the practices and a scrimmage.
"The way the trend is going is, you never know if this is going to be the last spring game," Sanders said earlier this month. "Now, I don't believe in that, and I don't really want to condone that. ... To have it competitive, and to play against your own guys, it can get kind of monotonous, and you really can't tell the level of your guys."
The committee, in its report, said it would continue to discuss "a concept that could permit joint spring practices in future seasons." The group is set to meet next April 10. The committee consists mostly of athletic directors and conference administrators, as well as Illinois coach Bret Bielema and College Football Playoff executive director Rich Clark.
Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy this week expressed interest in holding practices or scrimmages against in-state rival Oklahoma rather than individual spring games. The teams suspended their annual Bedlam series after Oklahoma left the Big 12 for the SEC.