EA Sports College Football 26: Cover athlete intel from Rose Bowl photoshoot
EA Sports College Football is set to return in 2026, coming off the widely acclaimed return of the franchise in 2025. Sources tell On3 that on Wednesday, several college football stars and prominent head coaches visited the Rose Bowl for the EA Sports College Football 26 photoshoot.
Sources told On3 that Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood, Florida quarterback DJ Lagway, LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier, Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love, Alabama wide receiver Ryan Williams, Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State safety Caleb Downs, Arizona State quarterback Sam Leavitt and South Carolina EDGE Dylan Stewart were all in attendance.
EA College Football plans to release multiple covers in 2026, sources said, explaining why so many athletes were in Pasadena. That will also reportedly include a coaches’ cover, with Ohio State’s Ryan Day, Georgia’s Kirby Smart, Penn State’s James Franklin, Ole Miss’ Lane Kiffin, Oregon’s Dan Lanning and Arizona State’s Kenny Dillingham participating.
A legends cover is reportedly in the works, too, with former Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson and Florida quarterback Tim Tebow participating in the photoshoot.
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No official release date has been announced for EA Sports College Football 26. Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers, Michigan running back Donovan Edwards and Colorado defensive back Travis Hunter were on the cover in 2025.
The original EA college football video game franchise ran from 1998 until 2013. Moving from the Bill Walsh College Football moniker to NCAA Football, the annual game was eventually discontinued. The game returned in July for the first time in more than a decade.
EA announced last fall that the College Football 25 franchise was the largest new console game launch in North America in 2024. EA also announced the video game had seen 6.5 million unique players to date. Quick math shows EA brought in more than $400 million in sales from the game.