On Tuesday, EA Sports revealed Ohio State’s Jeremiah Smith and Alabama’s Ryan Williams as the cover athletes for its College Football 26 video game. FOX Sports’ RJ Young considered how it could have been better.
Analyst Takes a Look at EA Sports College Football 26 Cover
While being on the cover of a video game indicates a player’s talent, there are always worries of being hexed by the honor, a concern raised by the rise of the “Madden Curse.” Young believes Buckeyes and Crimson Tide fans might be more worried than excited about the news.
“If you’re (an) Ohio State or Alabama fan, ‘Yo, EA, what the hell you doing? What the hell you doing? We didn’t need this! We didn’t ask for this!'” Young said Tuesday on “Adapt & Respond with RJ Young.”
“We got two dudes that are gonna be challenging each other for the Biletnikoff Award, let alone they might be challenging each other for the Heisman Trophy. Hell, they might have an opportunity to challenge each other for the national championship.”
“‘Why are you doing this?’ Because they’re two of the great college football players in the sport and, frankly, I kept asking it like this. Where the hell is Caleb Downs in this?”
Young pointed to last year’s cover, which included Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter, Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers, and Michigan running back Donovan Edwards. If EA was to do the same this time, Young argued that Downs, the Buckeyes’ standout safety, would have to be included alongside Smith, who most regard as the best player in the country entering the upcoming season.
“What was more interesting to me in all of this because I’m that type is we didn’t have a quarterback front and center like you read about,” Young said. “That, for me, is so telling, right? That’s how little we trust this quarterback group and how little Arch Manning wanted to be featured on the cover of this thing.”
“That part, right? Because, if you’re doing this right, I think you go with Jeremiah Smith, Arch Manning, and then you could go with Ryan Williams, so you don’t have a couple of Buckeyes there. You could go with Nick Singleton, who I think is one of the great tailbacks in the sport.”
KEEP READING: Analyst Raises Big Questions About EA Sports College Football 26 Features
The deluxe edition’s cover features active quarterbacks Bryce Underwood (Michigan), DJ Lagway (Florida), Sam Leavitt (Arizona State), Cade Klubnik (Clemson), Garrett Nussmeier (LSU), and LaNorris Sellers (South Carolina).
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