Does College Football Really Need an Exhibition Game?

A few weeks ago, Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez spoke out in favor of college football adding an exhibition game to the schedule.

"If there was one rule to change in Division I college football, they would allow you to have a exhibition or preseason game against somebody else. We're the only level (without one.)"

Sure, most people would think this is because he hadn't, and still hasn't, picked a starter from one of his three quarterbacks he says will all play on Saturday against Western Michigan. Or it could be he just wants to work his team of sissies even more than he already does, but the idea seemed to have fallen on deaf ears until yesterday.

That is when Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer spoke up about adding an exhibition game to the college football schedule.

Beamer had the same sentiments as Rodriguez did, including wanting the chance to "get some of the things out of the way that come up in that first ball game."

While this seems like a good idea to begin with, the ability to start off in a game that doesn't count, there are a few problems with it.

First, how would a team feel if injuries happened in that exhibition game? It is bad enough Virginia Tech has lost start running back Darren Evans for the season in practice, but how would that go over if he tore his ACL in an exhibition game?

Teams already lose players in scrimmages. USC has averaged losing one starter per scrimmage so far this preseason without playing one real snap. Would creating an exhibition really make them feel any better when a player got hurt?

Speaking of USC, and this goes for many other teams across the Bowl Subdivision, they already have an "exhibition game" the first week of the season.

The Trojans open up their season with San Jose State, one of the better choices for week one cupcakes, before their big game in Columbus with Ohio State. The Buckeyes open the year with Navy.

In the SEC alone, teams are playing Jackson State, Western Carolina, Charleston Southern, and Memphis, just to name a few, in week one as a warm-up game for the better teams on the schedule.

Finally, should anyone really be surprised that Virginia Tech and Michigan are asking for exhibition games?

If there are any two teams in college football who just down right suck out of the gate, it's these two.

Remember 2007 for Michigan. Most people would consider Appalachian State an exhibition game, and Michigan lost to them at home. Last year, Michigan lost to Toledo at home to begin the year. Toledo is at least a Bowl Subdivision squad, but no where near the BCS.

As for Beamer's Boys, they are only 4-2 in their last five season openers, including last year's loss to East Carolina at home on ESPN.

In 2007, the had to rely on a fourth quarter punt block to take down the Pirates in Blacksburg. After that game, LSU put a boot up their "you know whats" in Baton Rouge on national prime time television.

So the question still remains, is an exhibition game really necessary? Well, Rodriguez did have one good thing to say in his rant on the subject.

"Imagine the crowd we'd have at the Big House if we had a spring game against somebody here."

A home-and-home scrimmage in the spring does not sound like a bad idea.

Nonetheless, I would still want to play Michigan.