UCLA football players react to EA Sports’ College Football 25 video game

The virtual 2024-25 season began this week with the release of the EA Sports’ College Football 25 video game.

The game returns for the first time since 2013 and features 85-player rosters to represent the 134 NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision teams. It had been in development over the last three years but has had to quickly adjust and keep up with the times as the sport’s landscape has drastically changed with conference realignment, the transfer portal, the 12-team College Football Playoff format and more.

The Bruins’ roster features the likeness of at least 71 real players in the game before it was filled out with a few randomly generated players.

Receiver J.Michael Sturdivant is the highest-rated Bruin in the game with an 88 overall rating.

“I’ve played the game and thrown it to myself a lot,” Sturdivant said at an event hosted by Men of Westwood to celebrate the release of the game. “I really like my speed on the game, I feel like I can get the ball to myself a lot. Everyone wants their rating to be a little bit higher but I’m cool with mine.”

Several other Bruins were just as excited, like Sturdivant, about the opportunity to be in the game but jokily explained that they wished for a higher rating.

“I can’t complain too much,” quarterback Justyn Martin said. “But my speed is ridiculous. A 73 speed is ridiculous. I have linebackers faster than me. I have other quarterbacks faster than me … but everything else I can’t complain.”

Starting middle linebacker Oluwafemi Oladejo’s 81-speed rating placed him among one of the players faster than Martin.

“We talked about it earlier today,” Oladejo said while laughing. “I told him it must be true but all jokes aside it’s just fun and games.”

Notre Dame transfer Rico Flores Jr. and UNLV transfer Alani Makihele were among the most notable omissions from the roster.

Flores posted on Instagram that he was confused about why he wasn’t initially in the game but is likely to be added to it when EA Sports releases its next roster update.

True freshman running back Cameron Jones, who just graduated from St. John Bosco, was also among the missing players from the game but told reporters he was not worried about not initially being in the game because he just filled out paperwork to opt-in.

The Bruins will continue to prepare for the actual 2024 season with training camp expected to start in August.