Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios
Baseball isn't the only sport trying to make its games shorter.
Driving the news: The NCAA Football Rules Committee has proposed three measures that would shorten college football games, including one aimed specifically at reducing the number of plays.
Why it matters: The more plays, the more opportunity to get injured. And with a longer season coming in 2024 when the College Football Playoff expands, the NCAA wants to get a head start on improving player safety.
Details: The most impactful proposal would see the clock continue to run after a first down except in the final two minutes of either half, just like in the National Football League. Currently, the clock is stopped after a first down until the refs reset the chains and spot the ball.
- That change would eliminate about eight plays per game, per the NCAA.
- Over a 12-game season, that would save 96 potential injury exposures per team, AP notes.
The other two proposals: No consecutive timeouts in the same dead-ball period (often used to ice the kicker), and no untimed downs on penalties at the end of the first and third quarters.
Between the lines: While the NCAA and Major League Baseball are both eyeing shorter games, they have different goals in doing so.
- MLB wants to play baseball faster because games can be sluggish.
- The NCAA wants to play football less because games can be barbaric.
By the numbers: Safety aside, shortening games might not be the worst thing for college football, where bloated runtimes rank among fans' biggest complaints.
- The average Football Bowl Subdivision game last season averaged 3 hours, 27 minutes and 180 plays. Compare that to the NFL, which averaged 3:10 and 155 plays.
- Wild stat: The Tampa Bay Buccaneers led the NFL last season with 68.8 plays per game. That would have tied for 85th-most among FBS teams.
What's next: The NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel will meet on April 20 to discuss the proposals, which if accepted would take effect this fall.