EA Sports College Football 25: Release date, early access, features, more
EA SPORTSEA Sports is bringing back its College Football franchise in 2024, called EA Sports College Football 25 so here’s everything you need to know about the newest entry including its release date, platforms, features, and more.
The last installment in the beloved college football series from EA Sports was all the way back in 2014. The game, titled NCAA Football 14, marked the end after multiple lawsuits were filed over athlete likenesses, which resulted in a massive payout to players featured.
11 years later the franchise is returning with EA Sports College Football 25 and there are plenty of modes, players, and teams to enjoy.
Release date, platforms & early access
EA Sports College Football 25 will be released on July 19, 2024, for PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series S/X.
If you pre-order the Deluxe and MVP editions of the game, however, you can get Early Access from July 15, 2024.
Early access will be available at the following times worldwide:
- 1 PM PDT – North America (West Coast)
- 4 PM EDT – North America (East Coast)
- 9 PM BST – United Kingdom
- 10 PM CEST – Western Europe / Paris
- 5 AM JST (July 16) – Tokyo
Anyone with an active EA Play membership can also get a 10-hour early access trial of the game beginning on July 16, 2024. So if you’re keen to try it without pre-ordering, you can get a month’s subscription for $5.99 USD.
Trailers
The official reveal trailer for EA Sports College Football 25 was released on May 17, 2024.
This was followed by a gameplay deep dive which showcased a handful of new gameplay mechanics. These include the Wear & Tear system that players will need to manage.
Wear and Tear affect attributes, as injuries to limbs can hurt how a player performs. For example, an arm injury will limit QB power and accuracy. Injury effects can carry over from week to week in both RTG and Dynasty and sitting out plays when fatigued or injured will help alleviate the damage to a certain extent.
Mental and physical player abilities were also highlighted in the deep dive, with the game featuring 80 different abilities.
Fans also got a look into the Sights and Sounds of the game in another deep dive that was shared on June 26, 2024.
This year’s game will include authentic crowd noise with the help of ESPN, mascots, and runouts that replicate what football fans see in the real world on Saturdays, and student sections and chants.
Finally, a deep dive into Dynasty mode was revealed on July 2, 2024. as well as new mental and physical player abilities.
As well as checking out the deep dive below, we’ve also got a full recap on how the mode will work.
Who are the cover athletes for EA Sports College Football 25?
College Football 25 features a handful of athletes on its cover, with cornerback / wide receiver Travis Hunter, running back Donovan Edwards, and quarterback Quinn Ewers taking center stage in the image.
The three players are featured on both the standard and deluxe versions of the game.
Rankings
During the week of June 24, 2024, EA Sports released rankings for the best teams at launch, including which schools will have the highest-rated offenses and defenses. Here are the top 10 best overall teams in the game and their overall ratings:
| Rank | Team | Overall |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Georgia | 95 |
| 2 | Ohio State | 93 |
| 3 | Oregon | 93 |
| 4 | Alabama | 92 |
| 5 | Texas | 92 |
| 6 | Clemson | 90 |
| 7 | Notre Dame | 90 |
| 8 | LSU | 90 |
| 9 | Penn State | 88 |
| 10 | Utah | 88 |
For more details about rankings including the best offenses and defenses, you can check out our dedicated guide for the best teams here.
We’ve also got a rundown of the top 10 overall players below taken from our 100 best players list.
| Rank | Player | Team | Overall |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Will Johnson | Michigan | 96 |
| 2 | Will Campbell | LSU | 96 |
| 3 | Ollie Gordon II | Oklahoma State | 96 |
| 4 | James Pearce Jr. | Tennessee | 95 |
| 5 | Caleb Downs | Ohio State | 95 |
| 6 | Travis Hunter | Colorado | 95 |
| 7 | Malaki Starks | Georgia | 95 |
| 8 | Mason Graham | Michigan | 95 |
| 9 | Quinshon Judkins | Ohio State | 95 |
| 10 | Tate Ratledge | Georgia | 95 |
Features & gameplay
As far as features and gameplay, the new game will make use of EA’s Frostbite engine. Madden, UFC, and NHL all make use of the engine, so this makes sense. And much like Madden, EA FC, and NHL, College Football 25 will also have an Ultimate Team mode.
For fans of the original NCAA Football series, both Kirk Herbstreit and Chris Fowler have confirmed that they will be returning to lend their voices to the game as commentators.
The duo will be joined in the booth by newcomers to the series, ESPN commentators Kevin Connors and Jesse Palmer, along with commentator David Pollack.
The new game will feature player opt-ins, and over 10,000 players from across the college football landscape. And, virtually all the schools that were in NCAA Football 14, with some exceptions, will return for 25.
The Road to Glory and Dynasty modes return in College Football 25. The modes will allow players to either step into the shoes of a student-athlete or run their own college football program and lead it to success. Anyone who owns Madden 25 will also be able to transfer their RTG player over to the NFL.
EA also confirmed that the new game will come with a Team Builder for Play Now and Dynasty, crossplay, a Road to the College Football Playoff mode, and the ability to rattle opponents with Homefield Advantage.
That’s everything you need to know about EA Sports College Football 25! For more on the latest upcoming games, you can check out our Madden 25, Silent Hill 2, and Assassin’s Creed Shadows hubs.