It’s time to chuck the Orange and White Game. Like a hobbled Tennessee Walking Horse, it can just limp into the past of Volunteer traditions that just lost their resonance. At least no animals were harmed in the annual culmination of spring camp.
Ultimately, Josh Heupel is the bad guy, but he’s your bad guy and he’s willing to be “bad” because he thinks its best for Tennessee’s football program. No one should have a problem with that. Tennessee can blame construction all they want, which will limit the event to 10K seats in Neyland Stadium, but there has to be a certain satisfaction with limiting access to his program. That’s just the Heupel way. He wants prying eyes to see as little of his program, especially being the scenes, as possible.
I’m not sure why the Orange and White Game needs to be a “game” at all. I could spend an afternoon and come up with something as – or more – exciting than a team running vanilla plays halfheartedly at each other. A simple quarterback challenge with some linemen and receiver drills would be more exciting that a couple of dozen practice snaps. Or, there could be another option.
This notion would have sounded absolutely insane just a few years ago, but with all the massive changes in college football, why not one more? Why can’t schools play their spring game against another opponent, such as Tennessee vs. Clemson or Alabama vs. Washington? No one would expect a completely serious game, but it could teeter on that if sprits run high.
Having a game-like scrimmage would also make spring camp a bit more exciting when, in reality, it’s a pretty big drag. Sure, there are news and notes about just who is performing well, but that is controlled by individual coaches. One scrimmage-like practice against another opponent would make both teams get ready for real. And I’m really ready for that. As for an Orange and White Game with historically bad apathy, I’m not so ready for that.
