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The long and complicated road that led to College Football 25

College Football 25 is the first entry in the beloved series in more than a decade.
EA Sports
College Football 25 is the first entry in the beloved series in more than a decade.

A beloved and immensely popular video game franchise has officially made its long-awaited comeback.

“EA Sports… it’s in the game…”

If you’ve ever booted up a copy of Madden or NCAA Football – you’re very familiar with that sound. Both franchises – one focused on the NFL and the other on college football – are geared towards putting gamers into their favorite team’s environment.

Fans of Virginia Tech might expect this year’s game to include one of the most iconic entrances in all of college football… Enter Sandman by Metallica blaring as thousands of Hokie fans welcome their team onto the field.

Except…

“Based on what I’ve heard, there are other schools who have popular songs that have also not been selected and licensed,” said J.C. Whidden, the senior associate athletic director for brand advancement at Virginia Tech Athletics.

“So, we had no involvement in that. Certainly, we would’ve wanted them to have the song, but understand the licensing on the music can be expensive.”

Ok… no Enter Sandman in the game… so, what did Virginia Tech give to the game’s developers – Electronic Arts, or EA?

“We shared photos of our stadium. They had very specific requests," Whidden explained. "So, it was like every five to 10 feet — they needed a photo at different angles; also, inside the tunnel. We shared band music and how and when it's played during an actual game. We’ve shared assets for logos and uniforms and the Hokie Bird and rivalry trophies. So, a little bit of everything to make the game as realistic as possible from a player standpoint — which was important to EA, just like it was important for us.”

The University of Virginia followed a similar process. Officials there sent me this article from Wahoos247 detailing the school's contributions to the game, including songs from the Cavalier Marching Band. James Madison University sent its fight song and some other band favorites. They also passed along extensive photos of its stadium, uniforms, mascots and some of its traditions – like throwing streamers after touchdowns.

If a college or university is in the game, they probably did the exact same as these Virginia schools.

All of that to say – College Football 25 – the latest entry in the franchise formerly known as NCAA Football – is a complicated beast. And an updated version of the series has been a years’ long effort.

A screenshot from College Football 25 depicting a matchup between UCLA and USC.
EA Sports
A screenshot from College Football 25 depicting a matchup between UCLA and USC.

“And I believe it first came out in 1993. So, it was at it year after year after year,” said James Ivory is a communication professor at Virginia Tech. He’s been studying video games and the social dimensions behind them for about three decades.

“And a few years back, [it] came to a screeching halt despite being a perennial top seller.”

The reason? College football players who appeared in the games weren’t being compensated. They sued Electronic Arts, which also lost its deal with the NCAA – the governing body for college sports. Long story short, the series has essentially been on hiatus since 2013.

College athletics has changed a lot since then. Thanks to a Supreme Court ruling, student athletes are now able to receive compensation for the use of their name, image and likeness – or NIL. Ivory says that previous lawsuit has been settled, too – with players going several years back finally being paid.

EA – which was not able to provide Radio IQ with an interview before the game’s release – is also paying both athletes and schools for their appearance in the new edition.

“We’re not talking about life changing money for the players. There are, of course, individual negotiations, especially for players that would be featured on the cover of the game and things like that," explained Ivory. "But I don’t believe it’s incredibly nuanced where a more famous player, a successful player makes X amount more than another – which is often the case in NIL. It’s very kind of stardom friendly.”

Here in Virginia, the General Assembly passed bipartisan legislation this year that guarantees student athletes can be compensated for the use of their name, image or likeness. State Senator Aaron Rouse – a former Virginia Tech football player – helped lead that effort.

“When the ESPNs and the ABCs start paying billions of dollars to broadcast collegiate sports, then the players are certainly entitled to that revenue.”

Rouse said it was important to him to leave college athletics in a better place than it was when he was a player – he remembered how tough it was during his playing days to keep up with practice, schoolwork and being a father.

“But now, with this law and with the changing landscape, these young men and women out there in the collegiate world would have an opportunity to do all those things while not having to worry about, it it’s the offseason, where they’re going to eat while they can’t have a full-time job," he said.

Tech professor James Ivory believes College Football 25 will have no trouble getting back to its former place as a top seller – likely becoming a yearly franchise once more. I asked him if he thought the series could go away again considering the fast-shifting nature of college athletics. Ivory said if anything, the game could provide a blueprint for NIL in this new world.

“This is, I think, probably a successful example of an organization that can say, ‘I can get the whole of college football locked into this."

And maybe some future edition will get Enter Sandman locked in, too.

Updated: July 18, 2024 at 12:54 PM EDT
*Editor's note: Radio IQ is a service of Virginia Tech.
Nick Gilmore is a meteorologist, news producer and reporter/anchor for RADIO IQ.