Florida Football: Spring game shows Gators are willing to innovate

Spring games are mostly dull affairs. Only diehard fans of Florida football will know the players getting action and teams are not going to put anything on film that can be used against them later on.

For coaches, Spring games provide the opportunity to set depth charts heading into the Summer break. But since his arrival to Gainesville, Billy Napier has used the Spring Game as an opportunity to market the Gators around the country and elevate the Gators brand.

Florida Football: Under the lights

The Florida Gators announced on their website today that the annual Spring Game would be played on April 13th. While it was noted that kickoff time and streaming options would be announced later, April 13th is a Thursday so it is safe to assume Florida will be playing under the lights.

This mimics what Florida football did last year and it is genius for several reasons:

• Even by April, it gets hot in Florida. The idea of baking in the sun while having arguments over who should be the fourth-string QB is not the most appealing prospect. By having it at night, it gives manageable weather to entice fans.
• It gives Florida a primetime slot on ESPN. By April, we are desperate for any kind of football. We are willing to watch the XFL or the USFL because there is nothing else. The NFL draft always brings in monster ratings. So while the Spring Game won’t be high-quality football, it provides the opportunity to further market the Florida Gators brand.
• There will be less competition for getting recruits to attend the game. By having the game on a day when no one else is having its Spring Game, Florida can be better positioned to have recruits attend the game and take in atmosphere.

Moving the Spring Game to Thursday isn’t going to bring Florida football a national title by itself. But it shows that Napier is willing to not stay stagnant and is willing to keep trying new things to break the mold.