The NFL preseason kicked off last week and will continue through the rest of the month. For most of August, it will be the only way football-starved fans will be able to enjoy the sport until the college games kick off at the end of the month (we’re almost there, I promise). If San Diego State head coach Rocky Long had things his way, there would be a college football preseason as well.
“I wish we had an exhibition season like the NFL does,” Long said this weekend, according to Mountain West Connection on SB Nation. “I’d like to play a game or two against somebody else and then you’ve got a better feel for your team.”
Because college football does not have a preseason, a number of programs will schedule games early in the season against bottom feeders from various conferences or dip their toes in the FCS waters, which can prove dangerous at times. With the new focus on strength of schedule and with the possible cutting back by power conference schools scheduling programs from outside the other power conferences, perhaps the preseason idea could gain some traction.
The idea is not entirely new in concept. Playing the equivalent of preseason games in the spring has been thrown around before as well as the mini preseason concept. College basketball allows for preseason games, but football has not crossed that line. Would scrimmages against other schools in the state, be they FBS vs. FBS or FBS vs. FCS match-ups be too much to tack on to the rigors of a full 12-game regular season at the college level? In a changing landscape for the sport, maybe anything is possible.
San Diego State opens the 2014 season at home on August 30 against Northern Arizona.