To the College Football Analysts on ESPN: Spring Football Sould Be Taken Seriously

Each year around this time, Spring football practices get under way at most schools. And each year, I watch College Football Live on ESPN to get the lowdown on the some of the top teams. It's a great way to familiarize myself with some of the names I'll be hearing throughout the upcoming season, key games, and what kind of results to expect from each team.

In addition to what was already mentioned, there is something else that happens every time this year. During one of these Spring football feature broadcasts, at least one analyst says 'fans take Spring Ball too seriously.'

I am officially putting all the College Football analysts at ESPN on notice. If I hear this from anyone, and that means ANYONE, again, I'm going to write a letter full of toilet language, curse words, and childish insults to all of you. I promise this letter will be so intense, once you read it, you will cry, your hair will fall out, your lawn will die, and any wallpaper in your house will peel immediately.

Fans should take Spring Ball seriously if they really care about the team. It's the de facto starting point for the season. Teams come together on the field in an organized manner for the first time since last seasons end. With players departing every year, these practices exclusively feature the group that will be lining up together throughout the upcoming season. Most of the recruits aren't there, but unless any of them are something really special, the numbers you see on the field during these practices, barring injuries and discipline cases, are the numbers you'll be seeing from Labor Day weekend onward toward Thanksgiving and bowl season. These are teenagers and young men whose every triumph (or failure) will effect our happiness. This is the team.

On top of that, the players and coaches take these practices very seriously. This is the time when athletes can push for playing time in the fall. On the flip side, coaches see which players are going to possibly make an impact, and which players will be "used to provide depth," or in fan language, which players will have the cleanest jerseys after the games. The players and coaches also emphasize these practices to brush up on their schemes, work on fundamentals, and to get a taste of competition before the long summer layoff. If these sessions mean so much to the players and coaches, why shouldn't they mean as much to the fans?

And lets not forget, college football, like it or not, is a business. Schools prominently feature these practices to drum up fan interest. If things look good now, fans will jump on the bandwagon, pony up, and buy tickets. Schools want fans to take these practices seriously, or else it means business is in the toilet.

I would also like to point out the hypocrisy that the analysts exhibit. In any instance when a team or a player looks great during a Spring Game, they always say that it doesn't mean that much. However, when there are things that look bad during the Spring Game, the criticism is in huge supply. Make up your minds, people!

There. Consider yourselves warned.