Does anyone know WHY the scrimmage wasn't televised? From the looks of the 'crowd," only Missoula area residents attended. Kennedy's idea or Haslam's.
Around the country less and less teams are doing them. I haven't heard Kennedy talk about it, but the general reasons are about not letting other teams get eyes on our young players to help prevent some amount of poaching and hiding any schematic changes for a new coaching staff.
There is plenty of debate if that is right or not, but this isn't something that UM is pioneering or a giant outlier on. Personally, I liked it being televised when I didn't live in Missoula, but if it keeps one young stud from getting poached, I'm fine with it not being televised.
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From ESPN (
https://www.espn.com/college-footba...ollege-football-spring-game-changes#cancelled) --
Why, coaches are wondering, should they invite cameras in to showcase their players and schemes for opposing coaches? If a player performs well -- this goes for backups or starters -- it may generate interest from other programs who can offer a better role and/or more money. If a play is executed well, it's something teams can prepare for. There is almost no competitive advantage, and that's before factoring in the possibility of injury.
This isn't a new revelation. That's why these games have been consistently scaled back. They've become glorified practices, and in most cases, coaches believe they are less productive than the other spring practices.
An SEC coach said he records every opponent's televised spring game, and the staff watches them in the summer to observe potential personnel changes with new players, rather than looking for schematic insights, as the games are intentionally kept basic.
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