When EA College Football 25 officially releases to the public on Friday, it’ll mark the first college football game since NCAA 14 came out on July 9, 2013. So much has changed in college athletics in the 4,028 days between the releases.
The College Football Playoff was created in 2014 and its 10-year run as a four-team tournament has now come and gone as it transitions to a 12-team tournament this season. The transfer portal was created in the fall of 2018 to better the management of student-athletes transitioning from school.
Major conference realignment happened with the Power Five becoming a Power Four after the Pac-12 essentially disbanded. Oregon State and Washington State are the only two teams of the defunct conference and can technically remain a part of the conference through 2025 year as NCAA rules allow a two-year grace period for conferences below the minimum number of members (eight).
The main reason NCAA video games ceased for over a decade was player licensing, commonly known as name, image and likeness (NIL). NIL fully came about in the summer of 2021 and is to the point where more than 10,000 players’ NIL will be in the game.
Undoubtedly, the release of one of the most well-liked video games of the 21st century has many players excited to see themselves in the video game.
Missouri quarterback Brady Cook, who recorded 3,317 yards, 21 touchdowns and six interceptions last season, received an 88 overall and is Missouri's second-highest-rated player. It's a grade he's more than happy to have.
"I am (happy)," Cook said happily at SEC Media Days. "I didn't have like crazy high expectations for like my rating, right? I wasn't expecting to be at 95 or 96, save that for Luther (Burden III). I just wanted to be 85 or above and I would be happy and I turned out an 88."
Speaking of Burden, Cook was close on Burden's rating. The 2023 All-SEC first-team receiver got a 94 overall, making him Missouri’s highest-rated player, the 11th-best player in the game and second-best among receivers behind Colorado’s Travis Hunter.
However, when Burden was asked about the rating he replied "STP" (something to prove).
"I feel like I'm the best wide receiver in the country. I'm the best out there," Burden said.
Outside of the rating, Burden enjoys the game and is happy to play as himself and the idea that it allows the fans to play as their favorite players and teams.
"The coolest part about being in this game I feel just for the fans to kind of have an interaction with us, but not really, but kind of indirectly," Burden said. "I feel like it's going bring more attention to college football honestly."
Someone who can relate to Burden and not enjoying their rating in a college football video game is former 2014 All-SEC first-team selection and Mizzou wide receiver Bud Sasser. He was in the last installment of the game, NCAA 14, and was rated a 73 overall.
"Hell nah (those ratings weren't accurate),” Sasser said laughingly. “I was appreciative of some of the ratings like speed and stuff like that. I just couldn’t figure out how my overall rating was so low. I was still going off with myself, though. I had a few 200-yard games.”
When NCAA 14 came out, it was based on the 2012 season, in which Sasser recorded 10 receptions for 231 yards and a touchdown. So, that realization made him feel a little better but he still thoroughly enjoyed the game and remembers one of the cooler moments of being in the game was playing the game with fellow receivers and roommates Jimmie Hunt and Marcus Lucas.
“I'm playing with Mizzou at one point and Marcus and Jimmy are all in the house, and we're all on the field in the game at the same time, on the same side of the field in one of the formations getting ready to run routes,” Sasser recalled. “So, that was pretty dope.”
One of the biggest differences between the last game and this game is the NIL factor. Sasser, Lucas and Hunt knew who they were in the game. The jersey numbers and the measurables were the same. But officially, Sasser was just No. 21 for Mizzou.
For most of the players, their names not being in the game was more of a formality they didn’t care much about.
“We knew it was us,” Sasser said. “If it's like James (Franklin) being an impact player, you knew No. 1 was James Franklin. So, we didn't need to see our names to actually know it was us. Because they give you the number, the position 一 No. 48 like (that’s) linebacker Andrew Wilson. So, we knew. We were seeing it as us.
“I think that was probably more of if you were already expecting yourself to be there, you probably wanted to see your name. I think if you were lower on the depth chart or something, you were probably just happy to see your number on there knowing that it's you.”
This time, players who opted into the game received $600 and a free copy of the game. If Sasser has one thing he doesn't like about the new game it's the compensation the players received for their NIL in the game.
"I wish athletes would be more patient," Sasser said. "(I) think they deserve to be paid more than what they're getting paid for the game. Hopefully, they look forward to in the future understanding that they have a lot of bargaining power, and if they would be willing to be a collective at some point in time, then they actually might get more bang for their buck."
Sasser hasn't played many football games since his career ended but EACFB25 has former college football players in the game, including the ones who played during the video game's hiatus. So, Sasser said he's willing to grab a copy of one of the most anticipated sports games of the decade.
In NCAA 14, Mizzou had an 88 overall, 90 offense and 87 defense. In EACFB25, Mizzou has an 85 overall, 89 offense and a 76 defense.
On Friday, Mizzou fans (who didn't get early access to play the game three days earlier) can play, and form their own opinion about which team they like best.
Top 10 players in EACFB 25
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