Imagine it’s the summer of 2013, and Denard Robinson is in your local GameStop. Granted, Denard Robinson isn’t actually there in person, but he is on the cover of NCAA 14, also known as one of the best football games of all time.
I don’t remember what it was like to play NCAA 14 other than when my cousin and I would play Mascot Mode (he always chose Sparty). However, I picked up NCAA 12 at a pawn shop a couple of summers ago and have a blast playing it whenever I go back home. Neither of those things really matter, though.
What truly matters is the real staple of NCAA 14: the Kibbie Dome. Idaho went 1-11 in the 2012 season, making it prime real estate for a rebuild. Kids and their parents alike booted up their PlayStations and Xboxes, loaded in NCAA 14, scrolled down to franchise and chose the Vandals.
It wasn’t just disgruntled Vandal fans who wanted a shot at the national title, which usually included destroying Alabama in the mecca of college football; it was everyone. Now that I’ve brought back all your favorite childhood memories, it’s time to break your heart. If you haven’t already heard, EA spent the past two years building a college football game just to announce that FCS teams won’t be in it on launch. Two years, and all we get are 134 lousy FBS teams with an even lousier playoff setup.
This means that no one, not even Jason Eck himself, can take the Vandals to the promised land come July 2024. When the game drops, we’ll all have to go through the pain of picking an FBS team that we really don’t care about. Some may pick James Madison or Sam Houston to have that tinge of former FCS glory, but it won’t really be the same.
Despite all this, there may be a sliver of light at the end of the tunnel. Although we won’t have the Kibbie Dome, the Inferno or even the dynastic FARGODOME, the rumor mill is tumbling. There might be a chance that the FCS teams will be released in additional downloadable content later for purchase.
Although I’d be fully willing to drop some extra cash to play as the Vandals in EA Sports College Football 25, making FCS teams into a DLC seems like a slap in the face. Think about all the people in Missoula who think the University of Montana Grizzlies are on their way to a dynasty. Or the North Dakota State University fans who still believe their dynasty hasn’t ended. Or even the South Dakota State fans in a dynasty, what about them?
All in all, EA is once again showing how it’s just a money-hungry company that doesn’t care about the little guy. Idaho, the real MSU, UM and SDSU, plus every other FCS program out there, deserve to be in this game. Whether they are the 0-11 Northern Colorado Bears or the 15-0 national champion SDSU Jackrabbits, they should be in the game.
Mid-July will be a great time for college football fans, and you can bet I’ll be buying College Football 25, but you can also bet that I won’t be happy until I see Joe Vandal riding side-by-side through the Sound of Idaho.
ELtarrance Smith
I think FCS Teams should be in the game. If all bowl games will be in the video game then school's like Texas Southern, Prairie View, North Carolina Central, Florida A&M, South Carolina State should be included because they play in The Celebration Bowl.
Scott Farley
Agreed. EA, just like the NCAA, is money hungry and doesn’t care.