Spring Football: Virginia announces Spring Football Festival date

Though the format has not yet been released, the 2016 Virginia Spring Football Festival will be held on April 23.

Two months ago, when new Virginia Football Head Coach Bronco Mendenhall held a press conference announcing the newest class of Virginia recruits, he made one thing clear: everything this year will be earned, not given. Among other things, this included wearing the V-sabres, as well as even enjoying the privilege of participating in practice, as we've learned that players are fighting to hit their tempo runs in order to participate fully.

It also meant that the Spring Game was not guaranteed. Whether or not the players would get a spring game depended on how things progressed over the course of the spring.

Things must have progressed fairly decently, then.

In a tweet released on April 1 (this had better not be an April Fool's prank), Virginia Football announced that the Spring "Football Festival" will be on Saturday, April 23, with gates opening at 2.

UVA Spring Football Festival will be Saturday, April 23. Gates open at 2 and on-field football at 4. Exact format TBD. Come see #HoosRising

— Virginia Football (@UVa_Football) April 1, 2016

"On-field football" suggests, of course, that a full game will not be played, which is standard for these types of things. We'll keep you posted as to what the "Spring Game" might look like. The only other spring sport going on in Charlottesville that weekend is the outdoor track and field Virginia Challenge.