By Pat Harty

IOWA CITY, Iowa – For the sake of convenience and because some habits are hard to break, the Iowa football team’s final spring practice still is called the annual spring game.

Fans describe it that way, as does the media and Iowa itself.

But the truth is, Iowa hasn’t played a true spring game since early in the Kirk Ferentz coaching era.

It just isn’t Ferentz’s thing and that’s his call as the head coach.

Ferentz prefers to have an open practice that concludes with a scrimmage in which a scoring system is used to record points for the Iowa offense and for the defense.

But even that won’t happen on Friday due to the north end renovation at Kinnick Stadium. The team will have about 70 yards of space on which to practice, so it’ll be a spring game in name only.

The only thing that makes Friday’s practice different from any other spring practice is that it'll be held at Kinnick Stadium, is open to the public and will be covered by the media as if it’s the moon landing.

The media will suck enough information and takeaways out of whatever occurs under the lights on Friday to last for as long as possible in the spring.

We’ll over-react to what we see, but probably more in a positive sense because spring football practice is meant to be positive, even without a spring game.

Ferentz will address the media afterwards and repeat what he says every year at the conclusion of spring practice. He will praise the work ethic and the progress made by his players, while also saying that his team still has a long ways to go in every facet of the game.

Several of his players will be interviewed afterwards and will express cautious optimism about the upcoming season because that’s what players always say in the spring.

And we’ll have Mother Nature to thank for allowing the practice to happen in the first place, considering what a pain she has been this spring.

Iowa State, Wisconsin and Michigan all cancelled their spring game last Saturday due to poor weather conditions.

It makes you wonder about the future of the annual spring game on a national basis, and if Ferentz was way ahead of the times by discontinuing it at Iowa.

Some fans were disappointed when Ferentz ended the spring game more than a decade ago, but it rarely gets brought up anymore because there has been time to adjust.

The traditional spring game might be on the verge of having run its course at more schools than just Iowa.

I personally would like to see the final spring practice become more of a fan-friendly event in which fans get more access to the players.

Split the players up by position and allow fans to move from one group to another for autographs, photos and just to mingle.

Some of that goes on right now. However there won't be an autograph session on Friday.

As for what to watch in Friday’s practice, start with falling debris since it is a construction site. There hasn’t been this much destruction at Kinnick Stadium since Iowa crushed Ohio State 55-24 in early November, so be careful.

The arm of true freshman quarterback Spender Petras is also worth watching based on the spring hype. I’m told that he can really sling it and you don’t need a spring game to see that.

Also pay close attention to punters Ryan Gersonde and Colten Rastetter because punter is probably the second biggest concern on the team behind having to replace all three starting linebackers. The problem with evaluating the punters in spring practice is that it’s not the real thing. Punting in practice is one thing. Punting in a real game is entirely different.

Linebacker is another point of interest because none of the returning linebackers have much game experience beyond playing on special teams. Defensive coordinator Phil Parker said on Tuesday that senior Aaron Mends, junior Amani Jones and sophomore Nick Niemann would be the three starting linebackers if a game were played tomorrow.

Fans can judge for themselves on Friday, although, it might be hard to evaluate the linebackers without a scrimmage.

The same with running back, receiver and pretty much every position on the team.

Fans will leave Kinnick Stadium on Friday knowing more about the progress being made with the north end zone than with their football team.. 

 Iowa 2018 spring game

• Gates to Kinnick Stadium will open at 6 p.m. with practice scheduled to start at 7 p.m.
• The practice will be lived streamed on BTN2GO.
• The Hawkeye Radio Network will be on the air from 7-8 p.m., with Gary Dolphin, Ed Podolak and Rob Brooks.
• Sections 122 through 128 will be open on the west side of Kinnick Stadium, along with the entire south grandstands. Gates B and E will open at 6 p.m. All parking lots will open at 5 p.m. Roster cards and 2018 poster schedules will be available at the entrances. Normal game day procedures will be in effect. Patrons should expect delays if they are attempting to carry purses or bags into Kinnick Stadium.
• Complimentary parking will be available in all surface lots near Kinnick Stadium. Fans are reminded that Iowa City ordinance prohibit the consumption of any alcoholic beverage on UI and public property, which includes UI parking lots and parking ramps. As in the past, the ordinance is in effect on the day of the final spring practice.
• Fans with recreational vehicles will be able to park Friday after 5 p.m. in UI Lot 75 south of Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Please note:  normal daily parking rates will be in effect in the parking ramps adjacent to UI Hospitals and Clinics.
• The autograph session which has been a part of spring practice activities in the past, will be held as part of Kid’s Day in the fall. Sponsored events will be held near Gate B and Gate H inside the stadium, including Coca-Cola, Nissan, and The Hawkeye Fan Shop.  There will not be activities held in Krause Family Plaza outside the stadium.