EA Sports is bringing back the NCAA Football video game

Finally, we’re getting our college football video game back. EA Sports dropped an absolute bomb on the college football world on Tuesday, announcing the return of the game after so many years away.

The 2014 edition of the game was the last version that was produced, with Denard Robinson on the cover. According to a report from ESPN, the date of the return has not yet been determined, but it will not be happening this year.

Here are a few details from the announcement.

To make the game happen, EA Sports partnered with collegiate licensing company CLC to make sure they had the FBS schools, traditions, uniforms and playbooks — among other things — ready to go for the game. Over 100 teams will be in the game.

For now, EA Sports is planning to move forward without rosters that include the names, images or likenesses of real college players. Current NCAA rules prohibit athletes from selling their NIL rights while in college.

However, those rules are likely to be changed at some point in the coming year — either by the NCAA, state legislatures or Congress. It’s not yet clear if the evolving rules will allow for the kind of group licensing arrangements that would be needed for EA Sports to negotiate with athletes to use their names in the game.

The game was shelved following the 2014 edition after the NCAA did not renew its licencing deal with EA. It’s been a complete mess ever since, which you can read more about here.

The excitement we’ve seen regarding the return of this game has been incredible. The news spread like wildfire. Finally, one of the most beloved games is set to return after things felt bleak for so long.

Whenever it happens, you can bank on the Rocky Top Talk community firing up an online dynasty.