Josh Brooks unsure if Georgia will play spring game as calendar changes loom
ATHENS — There is some uncertainty as to whether Georgia will have a spring game in 2026.
When asked whether the Bulldogs would have G-Day this year, athletic director Josh Brooks did not confirm the annual spring game would be played.
“We’ll see,” Brooks said following Friday’s athletic board meeting. “Everything on that end is building and making those decisions work. We’re kinda just getting through the (transfer) portal now and we’ll see. But that’s one of those things that is going to be a part of the future calendar discussions. What do spring games look like? What does the calendar of spring football look like? There’s a lot of discussions around that. That’s going to be an evolving process.”
Georgia did have a spring game last year, but it was not televised.
Brooks serves as a member of the NCAA Football Oversight Committee, which is examining further changes to the college football calendar.
Brooks understands that there are a lot of moving pieces when it comes to making any changes to the chaotic college football calendar.
“I mean, everybody wants to wave a magic wand and just pretend, but there’s things — when you look at the Army-Navy game, when you look at the dates of the CFP, when you look at the dates of when semesters start on campuses,” Brooks said. “Those are beyond the committee’s purview, so we have to look within those contracts and say, what can we move? So there’s easy ones and then the hard ones, right? You start getting into, OK, we’re going to keep the portal in January or we’re going to move it to a later date.
“In every scenario you look at, there’s a bunch of consequences from that, intended and unintended. Fleshing all those out and deciding the lesser of two evils is where you wind up when you’re making tough calendar decisions.”
Traditionally, the spring game has been played in April at the conclusion of spring practice. The Bulldogs will get 15 practices to begin shaping the 2026 team.
Spring practices have usually begun the Tuesday after Georgia’s spring break, which would be March 17. That would allow for a possible spring game April 18.
Sanford Stadium is set to host a concert April 25, with Luke Bryan, Jason Aldean and Zach Top headlining.
Georgia went 12-2 last season, winning the SEC once again. The Bulldogs did lose in their first College Football Playoff game, to Ole Miss in the quarterfinals.
The Bulldogs bring back significant contributors such as quarterback Gunner Stockton, running back Nate Frazier and safety KJ Bolden.
Georgia did make one coaching change this offseason, with Phil Rauscher stepping in for Stacy Searels as the offensive line coach. Searels will remain with the program as an analyst.
The Bulldogs do have some key pieces to replace, with CJ Allen, Christen Miller, Monroe Freeling and Zachariah Branch all entering the NFL draft.
Georgia did bring in eight players via the transfer portal, with Georgia Tech wide receiver Isiah Canion and Auburn defensive end Amaris Williams being the most newsworthy additions. The eight transfer additions will be able to participate in spring practice.
The Bulldogs have won back-to-back SEC championships. Brooks praised the job Kirby Smart has done in leading the Georgia program.
“We’re living in times with the success coach Smart has had, or record against our rivals, this will be something we can talk about 30-40 years from now when we think about what him and his staff and players have been able to accomplish,” Brooks said.
About the Author
Connor Riley has been covering the University of Georgia since 2014 before moving to DawgNation full-time before the 2018 season. He helps in all areas of the site such as team coverage, recruiting, video production, social media and podcasting. He graduated from the University of Georgia in 2016.
