Loads has occurred within the 11 years since EA Sports activities final launched a school soccer online game. To present you a real sense of simply how a lot has modified, we crafted an electronic mail despatched again in time to players and followers who had no thought what was in retailer when the following version, EA Sports activities School Soccer 25, launched this week.
Hey gamer,
So, all we are able to say is you’re not gonna imagine half of the issues which have occurred in school soccer whereas the world waited greater than a decade for EA Sports activities to carry the faculty soccer online game again.
First off, they expanded the School Soccer Playoff from 4 groups to 12. Oh, they usually’re paying the gamers, which implies we don’t must manually put gamers’ names within the recreation anymore as a result of EA paid them no less than $600 every to place their identify, picture and likeness in it.
Secondly, there’s this factor referred to as the switch portal the place gamers can change faculties as many occasions as they need with out having to take a seat out. The portal (free company) and NIL (pay-for-play) have been two issues that pissed Nick Saban off as he retired from teaching to work on TV this yr.
And this one goes to blow your thoughts: geography and rivalries imply nothing in convention alignment anymore. It’s all about TV cash and the Pac-12 lagged behind, which is why Stanford and Cal at the moment are within the ACC; Oregon, USC, UCLA and Washington are within the Massive Ten; and Arizona, Arizona State, Utah and a Deion Sanders-coached Colorado crew are within the Massive 12.
There’s extra — together with Texas and Oklahoma leaving for the SEC — however you higher sit down.
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No discs wanted
Let’s choose up the place you left off in July 2013, with former Michigan star Denard “Shoelace” Robinson on the duvet of NCAA Soccer 14.
Guess what? You don’t want to purchase discs for video video games anymore. You’ll be able to simply obtain it onto your PS5 or Xbox (Collection S or X). These methods — together with the sport itself —will price you about as a lot as EA pays the faculty youngsters to place their names and faces within the recreation.
Aaron Donald was coming into his fourth season at Pitt and went on to win the Outland Trophy, Nagurski Trophy and Bednarik Award by the tip of the 2013 season. However he wasn’t even the highest-rated participant on his crew. Receiver Devin Road (88 score) was.
Jameis Winston, then a redshirt freshman quarterback, led Florida State to the 2013 nationwide title and received the Heisman Trophy, however wasn’t rated among the many prime 32 quarterbacks within the NCAA 14 recreation. It’s laborious to fault EA Sports activities for not predicting the younger passer would explode on the scene.
That received’t occur anymore, although, as a result of EA goes to replace participant rankings as you go. Right here’s a take a look at the highest 100 gamers within the recreation. You’ll discover Coach Prime’s son, Shedeur Sanders, is the top-rated quarterback.
Convention realignment insanity
Earlier than we dive deeper, it’s best to know the place all of the groups at the moment are.
There have been 126 FBS applications unfold out over 10 conferences and 7 independents, together with Idaho, within the final online game. Properly, dangerous information, however the Vandals moved all the way down to the FCS stage in 2018 and aren’t within the recreation anymore.
The brand new recreation has all 134 FBS groups together with former FCS applications Appalachian State (Solar Belt), Georgia Southern (Solar Belt), Coastal Carolina (Solar Belt), James Madison (Solar Belt), Charlotte (American Athletic Convention), Jacksonville State (Convention USA), Liberty (Convention USA), Sam Houston (Convention USA) and Kennesaw State (Convention USA).
Again in 2013, the AAC had 10 groups; the ACC had 14 groups; the Massive Ten had 12, together with the Legends and Leaders Divisions (it removed them in 2014); the Massive 12 had 10; Convention USA had 14; the MAC had 13; the Mountain West had 12; the Pac-12 had 12; the SEC had 14 and the Solar Belt had eight.
In all, we’ve had 46 faculties change conferences for the reason that final online game and the Energy 5 is now the Energy 4 with the Pac-12 breaking up, leaving Oregon State and Washington State behind.
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Among the many Energy 4, the Massive Ten has 18 groups (together with Maryland and Rutgers which joined in 2014) and the ACC has 17 groups (Louisville and SMU included). The SEC has 16 (Texas and Oklahoma included) and the Massive 12 has 16 (BYU, Cincinnati, Houston and UCF joined in 2023). The American (Military and Navy included) and Solar Belt have 14 faculties every; the Mountain West and MAC have 12 and Convention USA has 10. Notre Dame, Connecticut and UMass are the independents.
Do not forget that TV cash I discussed?
One purpose the Pac-12 fell aside was as a result of it solely paid its faculties round $34 million final yr. Many of the Massive Ten faculties in 2023 every made between $59-60 million whereas the SEC paid its faculties $51 million, the Massive 12 paid between $43-48 million and the ACC between $43-46 million.
Again in 2013, the ability conferences have been paying faculties round $20 million apiece. By the point we hit 2029 and the TV offers are up for renewal once more, the SEC and Massive Ten shall be paying faculties near $100 million with the Massive 12 and ACC within the $50-plus million vary.
Don’t get too comfy with these convention alignments, although, as a result of faculties like Clemson and Florida State are combating to get out of the ACC, and lower-tier conferences wish to get into non-public fairness to make up the cash hole.
Skyrocketing teaching salaries
Conferences and gamers aren’t the one ones making more cash. Coaches are, too, despite the fact that their names and faces are nonetheless not within the online game.
Bear in mind when individuals have been freaking out as a result of Saban, Mack Brown and Bret Bielema have been making greater than $5 million a season again in 2013? There are 40 head coaches making that a lot or extra now. Jimbo Fisher, who Texas A&M employed away from FSU 4 years after that nationwide title, is getting paid $77 million to not coach the Aggies. No one will get paid greater than Georgia head coach Kirby Sensible, Saban’s ex-defensive coordinator at Bama, who led the Bulldogs to back-to-back nationwide championships in 2021 and 2022. Sensible is making $13 million per season.
Talking of Bielema, issues didn’t go so effectively in Arkansas. He went 29-34 earlier than he acquired fired and the Razorbacks haven’t been in a position to get proper since. Bielema is now teaching Illinois, the place he’s 18-19 in three seasons.
Brown left Texas after the 2013 season. He spent just a few years on TV earlier than returning to North Carolina the place he’s had two actually good quarterbacks however hasn’t been in a position to win huge.
Bear in mind Tommy Tuberville? He left soccer for politics. He went 4-8 in his final season at Cincinnati in 2016 and have become a senator in Alabama a few years in the past.
There are solely six coaches who’re nonetheless on the identical faculty they have been again in 2013: Air Power’s Troy Calhoun, NC State’s Dave Doeren, Utah’s Kyle Whittingham, Oklahoma State’s Mike Gundy, Iowa’s Kirk Ferentz, Kentucky’s Mark Stoops and Clemson’s Dabo Swinney.
100 recreation winners: Earlier than and after
Group
2000-12
▼
Nationwide titles 2000-12
2013-2023
Nationwide titles 2013-23
147-21
0
102-39
0
142-32
1
113-31
0
133-37
2
100-41
1
132-35
1
81-58
0
132-33
1
127-17
1
128-44
0
76-64
0
127-39
2
89-49
0
126-37
0
85-54
0
126-44
0
122-27
2
126-43
2
80-58
0
123-42
0
101-40
0
116-54
0
96-54
1
116-54
0
107-48
0
114-53
3
138-16
3
113-56
0
61-71
0
113-53
1
85-57
0
112-52
0
75-61
0
112-50
1
82-57
0
109-51
0
91-47
0
108-55
0
84-57
0
107-56
0
101-38
1
106-60
0
65-71
0
106-58
0
86-55
0
106-60
0
130-22
2
102-67
0
63-72
0
102-61
0
76-62
0
102-67
0
79-58
0
102-62
0
89-50
0
101-64
0
66-71
0
101-60
0
88-44
0
Packages on the rise
“Clemsoning” means a completely completely different factor now: the refusal to make use of the switch portal.
Solely Alabama has received extra video games over the previous 11 years than the Tigers. Swinney received two nationwide championship rings and made it to the title recreation two different occasions. However he doesn’t like taking transfers.
Lane Kiffin has no downside doing that. The previous USC coach who ended up at Ole Miss has turned the Rebels round. They’ve gone from having a dropping file from 2000-12 (76-82) to ending ranked within the AP Prime 25 4 occasions over the previous decade. This yr’s crew is a reliable Playoff contender.
SMU isn’t a loser anymore and the Mustangs cashed of their chips. They went 56-102 from 2000 to 2012, however have gone 68-67 for the reason that begin of the 2013 season and simply joined the ACC.
San Diego State, in the meantime, flipped the script as a program however was unable to money in. The Aztecs went from sputtering within the Mountain West (64-93 file from 2000 to 2012) to having fun with 5 double-digit win seasons (91-49) over the previous decade. However they’re nonetheless within the Mountain West.
Bear in mind how dangerous Duke was in soccer (31-122 from 2000 to 2012)? Between David Cutcliffe and Mike Elko, the Blue Devils have gone 73-66 over the previous 11 years.
Military, Baylor, Memphis, Utah State, Washington and Western Kentucky have all stepped their video games up within the win column, too.
Falling groups
Some applications have undoubtedly taken a step again.
You recognize the present “The Largest Loser?” They stopped making it in 2016 and determined to only begin filming Nebraska soccer as an alternative.
The Cornhuskers haven’t had a profitable season since that present went off the air. However former Temple coach Matt Rhule could be on the verge of a breakthrough. He’s acquired this freshman quarterback named Dylan Raiola who everybody is worked up about.
Virginia Tech has had a tough go of it too. The Hokies went from profitable huge with Frank Beamer to being simply above common (76-64 since 2013). They’re on their second coach since Beamer retired.
Miami, Florida, USC and Auburn — all championship-winning groups within the online game — have all slipped again too.
West Virginia was so enjoyable to play with within the recreation. The Mountaineers have been very mid over the past 11 years.
South Carolina, in the meantime, went from ending fourth within the ultimate AP ballot in 2013 below Steve Spurrier to going 58-66 over the past 10 seasons with just one Prime 25 end (2022).
We’ve had a number of applications go from compiling profitable data from 2000 to 2012 to changing into largely losers. That features Arkansas, Boston School, California, Connecticut, Georgia Tech, Hawaii, Maryland, Purdue, Rutgers, South Florida, Southern Miss, Texas Tech and Tulsa.
Do you are feeling caught up but? I do know it’s rather a lot to absorb.
P.S. — I hope this helps you paint an image of what the following 11 years are like. We don’t wish to spoil an excessive amount of extra. However be sure to don’t miss the Alabama-Auburn recreation this November. It’s kick (six)ass.
(Picture: Candice Ward / USA Right now)
