Latest news with #EASportsCollegeFootball2026
Yahoo
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Who is Jayson Ball? Why Ohio State has 9 fake players in new EA Sports College Football game
Who are the nine mysterious players on Ohio State's roster for EA Sports College Football 2026, and what did the game do with 11 incoming Buckeyes freshmen? Fans of OSU have a wealth of talent in the game, including sophomore receiver Jeremiah Smith (98 overall rating) and safety Caleb Downs (96 overall rating) adorning the cover, but those who have secured the game's early deluxe edition are a little baffled by a running back named Jayson Ball, a sophomore from Cleveland with an 87 overall rating as an elusive bruiser. Advertisement More: Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith, Caleb Downs top-rated players in EA Sports College Football 26 Well, he's fictitious along with eight other video Buckeyes whose ratings aren't close to Ball's. Meanwhile, 11 members of OSU's incoming class are missing, including five-star cornerback Devin Sanchez and running backs Anthony Rogers and Isaiah West. How did this happen? The answer is multi-pronged, including a likelihood that a sizable number of players didn't opt into EA Sports' name, image and likeness contract despite the company increasing its NIL payout from $600 plus a deluxe edition of the game in 2025 to $1,500 plus a deluxe edition in 2026. Other actual players who have been excluded might have committed to a school late in the recruiting process or transferred too late via the portal for inclusion in the 2026 game's opening rosters. Advertisement Not having those players creates voids within an 85-man roster, and that's when Jayson Ball walks or rolls into Ryan Day's virtual office via programming magic. Speaking of Day, he's one of more than 300 actual coaches whose likenesses are now included in the game as a series first. As for missing and made-up players, there are likely more than you may think with 136 Football Bowl Division programs in the game. Ohio State coach Ryan Day leads Ohio State out of the tunnel. Real life coaches will be in EA Sports College Football 26 for the first time. That is a lot of roster holes to fill, and Ohio State's nine pretend players might not be a lot comparatively. It's a pittance compared to West Virginia, which has 43 actual players who aren't included. That's half of the Mountaineers' roster comprised by fillers. Advertisement The good news for purists is the game's editing function. Those with time to edit can transform fictitious players into actual players by adjusting names, heights, weights, positions, ratings, and other traits. Once the game's standard version is released July 10, EA Sports programmers are expected to issue update patches at some point to correct rosters. Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith has an overall rating of 98 in the latest EA Sports college football game. In the meantime, Buckeyes fans can form a strong 1-2 punch in their backfield with their new elusive bruiser, Jayson Ball, and Bo Jackson, an actual OSU player not related to the former Auburn/NFL/MLB superstar of the same name. Advertisement Got all that? Good, now go hit the video gridiron. Dispatch reporter Brian Hedger can be reached at bhedger@ and @ Get more Ohio State football news by listening to our podcasts This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: EA Sports College Football 2026: Why Ohio State has 9 roster fillers
USA Today
28-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Notre Dame has a higher ranked offense than defense in EA Sports College Football 2026
As the college football season is getting closer, we are learning much more about how Notre Dame will be featured in EA Sports College Football 2026. We already know that head coach Marcus Freeman and star running back Jeremiyah Love are going to be on the cover, but what we found out on Friday was much more interesting. The team's overall rankings were announced, and surprisingly, the Irish offense was ranked higher than the defense. EA Sports has the Notre Dame as the No. 8 offense, coming in with an 89-overall rating, while the defense has a better rating at 90-overall, it's the No. 11 unit in the game. Yes, technically Chris Ash's unit is rated higher, but others are viewed as better, while the offense is viewed as a top-10 group. Notre Dame overall is the No. 5 team in the game, trailing just Alabama, Texas, Ohio State and Penn State, while being ahead of teams Iike Georgia, Clemson, Texas A&M, Oregon and LSU. There is no doubt that many of the people playing the game will choose to use the Irish, as they are one of the most well-rounded teams in the latest version of the franchise.
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
EA Sports releases its trailer for NCAA College Football ‘26 with a Notre Dame flare
Notre Dame football fans found out earlier this week that it will have two representatives on the cover of EA Sports NCAA College Football 2026 in head coach Marcus Freeman and star running back Jeremiyah Love. On Thursday morning, a game trailer was shared on social media, and once again, the Irish are one of the many teams across the nation that got love from the video game series. Early in the almost 2 minute preview, we catch a glimpse of Notre Dame Stadium, but that wasn't all of the Irish they showed. Later you see Love trucking over a defender, and then Freeman meeting at midfield with another coach. Once again college football fans across the nation will get their opportunity to build a team, and surely many of us will be trying to create a dynasty with Notre Dame. The game will be available for purchase on July 10th, but you can preorder the game now so you won't have to wait to get your own copy. This article originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire: Notre Dame is featured in EA Sports College Football 2026's trailer
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Notre Dame will have an cover athlete for EA Sports NCAA College Football 2026
(This story has been updated to add new information.) The question of if Notre Dame would have one of its players on the cover of EA Sports NCAA College Football 2026 was answered on Tuesday, with star running back Jeremiyah Love and head coach Marcus Freeman being on one of the covers. Advertisement While he wasn't selected to be on the standard edition, he was one of the many athletes on the deluxe edition, and is front-and-center on the cover. Love is directly behind the two standard players in Alabama's Ryan Williams and Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith, giving his signature love hand-gesture. Freeman is right behind Love, giving the Irish two representatives. It's fitting that he was selected to be on the cover, as he's one of the most recognizable players across the country. What different about this one is that there are fans in the background as well, as it play homage to everyone who cheers on these athletes every Saturday. Congrats to Jeremiyah and Marcus on this great honor, as they are now Notre Dame cover representatives for EA Sports. This article originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire: Jeremiyah Love is a cover athlete for EA Sports College Football 2026
