September 30, 2002

Time to play the freshmen.: Top-ranked Miami has played 10 of its 16 scholarship true freshmen this year. Virginia Tech has played nine, while Florida State eight. Because a growing number of college's finest players are turning pro after their junior seasons -- or in the case of quarterback Michael Vick, after redshirt sophomore seasons -- several of the elite teams' coaches are skipping what used to be a given: the redshirt year. Is college football getting more like college basketball in this way, and is that a good thing for the players or programs?

posted by thescoop to football at 12:40 PM - 2 comments

i don't have a link handy, but i'm fairly sure i read in a daily newspaper that the oklahoma sooners have also played an inordinate amout of freshman. the coaches would like to have 5th year seniors on the field, but the reality of the situation is that a truly talented player will be gone before then.

posted by lescour at 12:55 AM on October 01, 2002

I suppose there would be some pressure to play talented freshmen at programs like Oklahoma and Miami, just to maintain recruiting successes. I'd be curious if it goes beyond the top 5 or 10 teams, though.

posted by thescoop at 10:47 AM on October 01, 2002

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