In this new version of college football, with paid players and annual transfers, some top programs have canceled their spring exhibition games this year. Notre Dame has changed their Blue-Gold Game but they still hope fans will come out on Saturday.
Fearing recruiters will come to lure players away with money and promises, Michigan State has cancelled its spring game. Texas, Ohio State, LSU, Oklahoma and Nebraska are among the others that have scrapped the spring tradition.
This year’s Blue-Gold Game, starting at 2 p.m., will still be played in the stadium but it will look very different. Instead of the traditional two full teams playing against each other, the offense will play against the defense, with a scoring scheme that awards points for things like first downs by the offense, or tackles for lost yards by the defense.
Speaking on the university’s Wake Up the Echoes podcast, Coach Marcus Freeman said he wanted to continue the event because he remembers the excitement of attending spring games as a kid.
"It means the world for us to continue to interact with the people that are closest to us, and that's the people who are in the Greater South Bend area," Freeman said. "But it's always great for our guys to be able to compete around fans, with fans watching, in some type of gameday environment. I think, for us, the reward is greater than what it would be if we cancelled the game."
The university will continue another tradition, unveiling this year’s fan T-shirt, on Friday at 4:30 p.m. on the Library Lawn. This year’s celebration will include performances from various student groups, including the marching band, glee club, cheerleading team and dance groups.
The university says proceeds from all sales of The Shirt go directly to The Shirt Charity Fund, which assists students with unexpected medical expenses. It also offers programming and resources to students with limited incomes. More than 3.5 million shirts have been sold since the project’s inception 36 years ago, making it the largest student-run fundraiser at Notre Dame.
