EA Sports College Football 25 is destined to be one of the biggest game releases of 2024, and Lane Kiffin is as excited for its release as players and fans. However, unlike over 10,000 college football players, the Ole Miss Rebels head coach won’t be in the game.
Despite not being included, Kiffin sees the long-term benefit of head coaches being incorporated into the game and has spoken out about wanting to be included.
Why Does Lane Kiffin Want To Be in EA Sports College Football 25?
Lane Kiffin has recently spoken about college football head coaches not being included in EA Sports College Football 25 and how he could use the game to his advantage.
It was reported on February 22, 2024, that college football head coaches would not be in the game’s release. While college athletes who opt into the game are offered $600 and a free copy, a method of including current head coaches has not been established.
While head coaches will not be in the 2025 edition of the gaming franchise, EA Sports vice president of business development, Sean O’Brien, told ESPN that they are working to “offer coaches the opportunity to opt in beyond year one.”
“Coaches are a really good example as the figureheads of their schools because we believe there’s a real impact on gameplay or product differentiation that you could be a coach, have a different type of schedule, have a different type of recruiting philosophy, have a different type of gameplay and play style,” O’Brien said.
“So there’s an interesting way of doing that in a similar way to the athletes. No real way of doing that very easily.”
With coaching contracts, it clearly isn’t easy to make an overarching universal offer to head coaches like EA Sports has to athletes. However, one SEC head coach says it isn’t about the money.
Speaking to Andy Staples from On3, Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin said he would love to be in the game and even do it for free.
“I would let them do it without any deal,” Kiffin said. “I would just let them do it.”
The Rebels head coach’s reason for this is simple. Kiffin’s contract is a mega $9 million in 2024, making him one of the highest-paid head coaches in college football. Therefore, money isn’t a problem. However, his vision is bigger than this.
Even for head coaches who earn a fraction of Kiffins’ wage, his thesis is wise.
“The kids like to play it,” the Ole Miss HC said, explaining why he wants to be in the game. “When they’re picking the team, you would want recruits to play with the coach.”
This comes down to recruiting. When kids play the game, they envision themselves inside it. Kiffin sees the game as a new recruiting tool where it becomes one of the key factors in the signing process.
When teens play the game, they will see the head coach, creating a relationship and an attachment that can potentially pay dividends for game players who go on to become student-athletes.
“My brain thinks about ‘What would help in recruiting?’ If you did pay me for that, I wouldn’t want it. I’d want you to put it into our NIL,” Kiffin said.
KEEP READING: Potential EA Sports College Football 25 Cover Athlete From Every FBS Program
Kiffin is one of the sharpest minds in the game, utilizing all available avenues to recruit players for the Oxford program. Whether via high school recruiting or the transfer portal, the Ole Miss head coach knows how to play the game. Now, he wants to be in one.
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