Report: NCAA body favors banning spring football trips

Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh is spurring more potential change in the NCAA.

According to an ESPN. com report on Thursday, the NCAA Division I Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) is on board with eliminating spring practice trips over spring break, like the one Michigan’s football team took last year to IMG Academy in Florida. Harbaugh and his staff held four practices while in Florida over break and the rest of the team’s time there was free time to visit the beach or participate in other activities.

Michigan’s unusual spring trip sparked college football debate nationally.

The Pac-12 originally proposed last November a change in rules to prevent a trip like the one Michigan took. The SAAC weighed in on the subject after the Division I Council asked the group to review the situation and make a recommendation at this week’s annual convention in Nashville.

“We all agree, that’s something that should not happen,” SAAC co-chair Bradley Bramlett told ESPN.com. “We’re very adamant that, in your non-championship season, if you have a vacation period, it should really be a vacation period. If we’re going to honor student-athletes’ time, we need to honor to the utmost.”

The recommendation will ask the Council to create legislation and vote on it in April. The ban would begin in August.