The 2011 season is still somewhat visible in the rear-view mirror, and already preparations for the 2012 season are set to commence in earnest.
All 124 Div. 1-A (FBS) programs -- UMass (MAC), South Alabama (Sun Belt), Texas State (WAC) and UT-San Antonio (WAC) will make the jump to big-boy football this season -- will begin spring practice at some point this month and next -- some West Coast schools such as Oregon State won’t start until April -- culminating in the respective program’s spring game.
Army has already begun using their allotted 15 spring sessions, while Texas, TCU, Texas Tech and Duke are among the handful of schools that start in February as well. The vast majority, however, will begin spring practice next month.
Below the jump is a list of the start dates for each individual school plus the date of its spring game, separated by conferences. Some programs have yet to announce their spring dates, so we will add them to this list as they become available:
ACC
Boston College: first practice -- Feb. 18; spring game March 31
Clemson: first practice -- March 7; spring game -- April 14
Duke: first practice -- Feb. 21; spring game -- March 31
Florida State: first practice -- March 19; spring game -- April 14
Georgia Tech: first practice -- March 26; spring game -- April 20
Maryland: first practice -- March 10; spring game -- April 21
Miami: first practice -- March 3; spring game -- April 14
North Carolina: first practice -- March 14; spring game -- April 14
North Carolina State: first practice -- March 23; spring game -- April 21
Virginia: first practice -- March 19; spring game -- April 14
Virginia Tech: first practice -- March 28; spring game -- April 21
Wake Forest: first practice -- March 1; spring game -- April 14
BIG EAST
Cincinnati: first practice -- March 1; spring game -- April 14
Louisville: first practice -- March 21; spring game -- April 14
Pittsburgh: first practice -- March 15; spring game -- April 14
Rutgers: first practice -- March 20; spring game -- April 28
Syracuse: first practice -- March 20; spring game -- April 21
Temple: first practice -- March 12; spring game -- April 14
UConn: first practice -- March 20; spring game -- April 21
USF: first practice -- March 21; spring game -- April 21
BIG TEN
Illinois: first practice -- March 7; spring game -- April 14
Indiana: first practice -- March 3; spring game -- April 14
Iowa: first practice -- March 24; spring game -- April 14
Michigan: first practice -- March 17; spring game -- April 14
Michigan State: first practice -- March 27; spring game -- April 28
Minnesota: first practice -- March 21; spring practice -- April 21
Nebraska: first practice -- March 10; spring game -- April 14
Northwestern: first practice -- March 3; spring game -- April 14
Ohio State: first practice -- March 28; spring game -- April 21
Penn State: first practice -- March 26; spring game -- April 21
Purdue: first practice -- March 6; spring game April 14
Wisconsin: first practice -- March 22; spring game -- April 28
BIG 12
Baylor: first practice -- March 6; spring game -- April 14
Iowa State: first practice -- March 20; spring game -- April 14
Kansas: first practice -- March 27; spring game -- April 28
Kansas State: first practice -- April 4; spring game -- April 28
Oklahoma: first practice -- March 8; spring game -- April 14
Oklahoma State: first practice -- March 12; spring game -- April 21
TCU: first practice -- Feb. 24; no spring game
Texas: first practice -- Feb. 23; spring game -- April 1
Texas Tech: first practice --Feb. 17; spring game -- March 24
West Virginia: first practice -- March 11; spring game -- April 21
CONFERENCE USA
East Carolina: first practice -- March 19; spring game -- April 14
Houston: first practice -- March 21; spring game -- April 13
Marshall: first practice -- March 27; spring game -- April 28
Memphis: first practice -- Feb. 22; spring game -- March 31
Rice: first practice -- March 6; spring game -- March 30
SMU: first practice -- April 2; no spring game
Southern Miss: first practice -- March 5; spring game -- April 14
Tulane: first practice -- Feb. 22; spring game -- March 24
Tulsa: first practice -- March 6; spring game -- April 7
UAB: first practice -- March 28; spring game -- April 21
UCF: first practice -- March 13; spring game -- April 14
UTEP: first practice -- Feb. 28; spring game -- April 6
INDEPENDENTS
Army: first practice -- Feb. 13; spring game -- March 9
BYU: first practice -- March 5; spring game -- March 30
Navy: first practice -- March 19; spring game -- April 14
Notre Dame: first practice -- March 21; spring game -- April 21
MAC
Akron: first practice -- March 20; spring game -- April 21
Ball State: first practice -- March 27; spring game -- April 21
Bowling Green: first practice -- March 16; spring game -- April 13
Buffalo: first practice -- March 20; spring game -- April 14
Central Michigan: first practice -- March 13; spring game -- April 14
Eastern Michigan: first practice -- March 13; spring game -- April 15
Kent State: first practice -- March 27; spring game -- April 21
Miami: first practice -- March 28; spring game -- April 28
Northern Illinois: spring practice -- March 28; spring game -- April 21
Ohio: first practice -- March 27; spring game -- April 21
Toledo: first practice -- March 14; spring game -- April 13
UMass: first practice -- March 27; spring game -- April 28
Western Michigan: first practice -- March 16; spring game -- April 14
MOUNTAIN WEST
Air Force: first practice -- Feb. 24; no spring game
Boise State: first practice -- March 12; spring game -- April 14
Colorado State: first practice -- March 21; spring game -- April 21
Fresno State: first practice -- Feb. 27; spring game -- March 25
Hawaii: first practice -- March 20; spring game -- April 28
Nevada: first practice -- March 30; spring game -- April 21
New Mexico: first practice -- March 24; no spring game (subject to change)
San Diego State: first practice -- Feb. 21; spring game -- March 18
UNLV: first practice -- March 12; spring game -- April 20
Wyoming: first practice -- March 21; spring game -- April 21
PAC-12
Arizona: first practice -- March 5; spring game -- April 14
Arizona State: first practice -- March 13; spring game -- April 21
Cal: first practice March 13; no spring game
Colorado: first practice -- March 10; spring game -- April 14
Oregon: first practice -- April 3; spring game -- April 28
Oregon State: first practice -- April 3; spring game -- April 28
Stanford: first practice -- Feb, 27; spring game -- April 14
UCLA: first practice -- April 3; spring game -- May 5
USC: first practice -- March 6; spring game -- April 14
Utah: first practice -- March 20; spring game -- April 21
Washington: first practice -- April 2; spring game -- April 28
Washington State: first practice -- March 22; spring game -- April 21
SEC
Alabama: first practice -- March 9; spring game -- April 14
Arkansas: first practice -- March 14; spring game -- spring game -- April 21
Auburn: first practice -- March 21; spring game -- April 14
Florida: first practice -- March 14; spring game -- April 7
Georgia: first practice -- March 20; spring game -- April 14
Kentucky: first practice -- March 21; spring game -- April 21
LSU: first practice -- March 2; spring game -- March 31
Mississippi State: first practice -- March 21; spring game -- April 20
Missouri: first practice -- March 6; spring game -- April 14
Ole Miss: first practice -- March 23; spring game -- April 21
South Carolina: first practice -- March 13; spring game -- April 14
Tennessee: first practice -- March 26; spring game -- April 21
Texas A&M: first practice -- March 31; spring game -- April 28
Vanderbilt: first practice -- March 16; spring game -- April 14
SUN BELT
Arkansas State: first practice -- March 14; spring game -- April 14
FAU: first practice -- March 19; spring game -- April 14
FIU: first practice -- March 2; spring game -- March 30
Louisiana-Lafayette: first practice -- Feb. 28; spring game -- March 30 or 31
Louisiana-Monroe: first practice -- March 5; spring game -- March 24
Middle Tennessee State: first practice -- March 17; spring practice -- April 14
North Texas: first practice -- March 26; spring game --April 21
South Alabama: first practice -- Feb. 15; spring game -- March 24
Troy: first practice -- March 18; spring game -- March 31
Western Kentucky: first practice -- March 19; spring game -- April 14
WAC
Idaho: first practice -- March 22; spring game -- April 20
Louisiana Tech: first practice -- March 16; spring game -- April 14
New Mexico State: first practice: March 29; spring game -- April 28
San Jose State: first practice -- March 6; spring game -- April 13
Texas State: first practice -- Feb. 25; spring game -- March 31
UT-San Antonio: first practice -- March 19; spring game -- April 15
Utah State: first practice -- March 27; spring game -- April 28