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AUSTIN (KXAN) — College football is back on video game platforms when EA Sports releases its highly-anticipated College Football 25 worldwide July 19, bringing the pageantry and traditions back from an 11-year hiatus now that Name, Image and Likeness are in place.
EA published some of its rankings ahead of the game's release, particularly the offensive and defensive ratings of programs and the "toughest places to play." The Texas Longhorns are in the top 25 in all three, and inside the top 10 in offense and defense.
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The Longhorns offense, led by one of the game's cover athletes in quarterback Quinn Ewers, received a 91 overall rating to tie with Alabama for No. 3 overall. EA said its development team "meticulously examined hundreds of thousands of data points to arrive at our team power rankings," and they used Pro Football Focus data to help.
Georgia and Oregon have the game's top offenses with 94 ratings while Ohio State, Louisiana State, Miami, Colorado and Missouri all received ratings of 89. Clemson rounds out the top 10 with a rating of 87. Texas A&M checks in at No. 18 with a rating of 85.
On the defensive side of the ball, Texas gets a little less respect from the game at No. 8 overall with a rating of 88. Penn State, Utah, Florida State, Oklahoma and Iowa all have the same defensive rating as the Longhorns. There are seven teams with ratings of 90 and above with Ohio State leading the way with a 96. Georgia rates at 94 while Oregon, Alabama, Clemson, Notre Dame and Michigan all garnered 90. Texas A&M's defense is at 84, tied with several other schools at the bottom of the top 25.
In previous versions, EA added elements of teams gaining a home-field advantage. When a user-controlled team plays in a hostile environment, the controller shakes with varying intensity, blurred and incorrect pass routes come up on the screen and player attributes ebb and flow with "confidence and composure" levels. This year's game takes it to a different level with its "toughest places to play" list.
EA's development team used historical data like home winning percentages, attendance, home winning streak, program prestige and other factors to build the list, and the one that stood out was a Southeastern Conference team in Texas.
Texas A&M's Kyle Field topped the list, followed by Alabama's Bryant-Denny Stadium, LSU's Tiger Stadium, Ohio State's Ohio Stadium and Georgia's Sanford Stadium make up the top five. Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium sits at No. 19 between Utah's Rice-Eccles Stadium and Iowa's Kinnick Stadium.