EA Sports College Football 25 sees the return of the old NCAA series after more than a decade away. While many will lazily label this a collegiate version of Madden NFL 24, die-hards know it as so much more – and have been clamoring for its return since the PS3 and Xbox 360 era. Now it's finally confirmed, with a likely release date of summer 2024, and trailer and initial teams list below. As the year passes we'll have the features list and other details right here, in your College Football 25 guide.
College Football 25 trailer
The first College Football 25 trailer offered a glimpse at all the intricacies on offer in the series' return, such as lifelike mascots, jerseys, locker rooms, and stadiums. It also confirmed the first four teams: Michigan, Georgia, Florida and Alabama. Hit the image above to give it a watch.
College Football 25 release date speculation
The College Football 25 release date is expected to fit into the same window as Madden NFL 25 – which should follow tradition with an August arrival. College Football 25 was announced in February 2024, and is being made at EA Tiburon, longstanding home of the Madden series.
NCAA Football 25 vs College Football 25
Is College Football 25 just NCAA Football 25 under a different name? Kind of, although there's a key legal difference. The National Collegiate Athletic Association were accused of failing to compensate its players for appearing in EA's games, which led to a lawsuit from some of the players in question – and the end of that series with NCAA Football 14. As a result, this is indeed considered the 21st game in EA's non-NFL football series – but it no longer bears the NCAA name.
College Football 25 real players
Given the lawsuit mentioned above, EA has been super careful when securing College Football 25 real players. Those who agree to be in the game will receive a $600 flat payment and a copy of the game, in reward for their likeness being used. The good news is that this strategy has worked, and more than 10,000 college athletes have signed up to appear.
However, there will be absentees. For instance, Texas quarterback Arch Manning – nephew of NFL greats Peyton and Eli Manning – has reportedly opted out of College Football 25. Those who decline the use of their identity will be replaced with a generic character, and sadly there's no way to manually edit their name or likeness. Still, 10,000 real players is a colossal start. EA's goal is to have 85-man rosters for every school in the game, which would mean it's signed up 87% of real athletes.
College Football 25 teams list
All 134 Football Bowl Subdivision teams are confirmed for College Football 25. That means newer additions to the association, such as the James Madison Dukes and Jacksonville State Gamecocks, will be playable for the first time ever in an EA game. Below are 25 of the teams we expect to score highly on the College Football 25 ratings list when it emerges in the autumn, sorted according to their rank at the end of the 2023 season.
- 1 Michigan Wolverines
- 2 Washington Huskies
- 3 Texas Longhorns
- 4 Georgia Bulldogs
- 5 Alabama Crimson Tide
- 6 Oregon Ducks
- 7 Florida State Seminoles
- 8 Missouri Tigers
- 9 Ole Miss Rebels
- 10 Ohio State Buckeyes
- 11 Arizona Wildcats
- 12 LSU Tigers
- 13 Penn State Nittany Lions
- 14 Notre Dame Fighting Irish
- 15 Oklahoma Sooners
- 16 Oklahoma State Cowboys
- 17 Tennessee Volunteers
- 18 Kansas State Wildcats
- 19 Louisville Cardinals
- 20 Clemson Tigers
- 21 NC State Wolfpack
- 22 SMU Mustangs
- 23 Kansas Jayhawks
- 24 Iowa Hawkeyes
- 25 Liberty Flames
College Football 25 vs Madden NFL 25
Will College Football 25 just be a reskinned version of Madden NFL 24? That doesn't appear to be the case. That'll be good news to many players out there, particularly those who have argued that the NCAA series was in fact stronger than its pro counterpart. One of the key differences was recruiting. Instead of wheeling and dealing, players had to be scouted and approached while in high school, playing the strengths and weaknesses of your college off against those of others after their signature. It was so moreish that you could often spend more time trying to attract future players than out on the digital turf – and will likely be a key area of focus in EA trying to bring back fans from NCAA's heyday on PS3 and Xbox 360.
College Football 25 NCFAA awards
One key difference from the classic series is that you won't be able to win NCFAA awards, such as the Ray Guy. These are the trophies dished out at the end of each season to the best players in collegiate football. "The offer that has been made is not adequate for the rights fee for the awards," president Mark Wolpert told On3. Apparently the figure presented by EA was "a "nominal increase based on the 2014 number."
According to Wolpert, EA has a plan B: fictional accolades: "If brands are going to be represented there, we want to be compensated properly. So when I explained that to the EA rep, the response came back to me that if we choose not to do that, they'll just make their own awards up and put them in the game."
However, along with EA's apparently self-created gongs, the Heisman Trophy is expected to be in College Football 25. That's because it's operated by a different organization to the NCFAA – the Heisman Trust.
