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CHAMPAIGN – The first choice when new players start EA Sports College Football 25 is to select a favorite team.
This decision only concerns the theme of the homepage, from which every “dynasty” or “road to fame” begins.
Each home screen is unique based on the selected program with a collage of photos and graphics.
Select Illinois and you’ll see a Fighting Illini pennant, a foam finger, a photo of the team walking through the tunnel before a game, a picture of the orange helmet and a model of a ticket from the 2019 Homecoming win over Wisconsin.
All around is a photo of quarterback Luke Altmyer.
Because that’s where this game differs from its predecessors. There are real college football players in the game, and anyone who opted in will receive $600 and a copy of the game as compensation for their name, image, and likeness. (The very thing that led to an 11-year gap in the franchise.)
“To be able to choose Illinois as your favorite team and then see me on the cover is crazy,” Altmyer said. “It’s a shocking thing. When you think about your football background and see where you came from, you can sit back and be thankful for those teams. It’s super cool.”
Altmyer grew up playing the older versions of the game. Back then, Illinois’ starting quarterback in NCAA Football 14 would have been “QB #2,” not Nathan Scheelhaase. Altmyer said he dreamed of one day being in the game. The introduction of NIL in college sports only ensured that Altmyer himself would be in the game and not “QB #9.”
“As you can imagine, it’s incredible to see yourself in the game,” Altmyer said. “It’s absolutely unique. There’s a lot of competition between my friends who are playing against me, playing as me, or wanting to play against me just to beat me. It’s been fun.”
That’s the unanimous opinion of the players of the Illinois football team. The video game has been a hit since its official release on July 19 (or a few days earlier if you pre-ordered a copy).
Altmyer joked that Josh Kreutz went straight to his apartment after each day of training camp to hit the bats again, a claim that Illinois’ starting center said he was familiar with.
“I do play a little bit,” Kreutz said, acknowledging that he runs a run-heavy offense. “I’m fine. I just like playing college football video games. Me and (my younger brother and Illinois linebacker James Kreutz) used to play it all the time.”
At conference media days prior to the game’s release, consoles were available to give players a sneak peek. Even though Big Ten media days were held in Indianapolis a few days after the game’s release, those players still had the opportunity to try out the game.
At least Gabe Jacas and Pat Bryant did. Seth Coleman jokingly called his teammates “stick pigs.”
“I enjoyed the game,” Coleman said. “It’s cool that you’re in the game. We haven’t seen that since 2014. I was just proud to be one of the first people to be in the game. You’re proud of your name. The only thing people can’t take away from you is your name.”
The best players on the team – at least according to Coleman – were two safeties. Miles Scott and Saboor Karriem showed some outstanding performances.
“Miles Scott once blew me out 42-0,” Coleman said. “No mercy. That’s his thing. He doesn’t even play the game, but he plays the game. Then I saw Saboor the other day, spoke with a Jersey accent and beat him. Right now, Saboor is right up there for me.”
Scott was surprised to be recognized as one of the team’s best gamers, especially because he doesn’t play that much. In fact, the redshirt junior safety dropped gaming as an extracurricular activity when training camp began.
“It was incredible because I played all the video games as a kid – NCAA 13, 14,” Scott said. “Now I’m in the video game. It’s a surreal feeling, but I’m locked into the season. I played the game for about a week. I don’t play video games now. I’m a student-athlete. I take care of my job.”
Even though the game is already a month old, there is actually only one complaint among Illinois players. It’s a typical nationwide complaint, actually. No player is ever really happy with their rating in the game.
“It could be better,” Jacas said. “I’m not satisfied, but I’ll let my game speak for itself. The season is just around the corner and I know there will be updates.”
“I’m trying to improve that rating week to week,” Altmyer added. “It’s too low. The only thing I was worried about was speed. We have two quarterbacks on the team (Cal Swanson and Trey Petty) who are faster than me in the game, and that’s just not true. To be that low is a disgrace.”
