Jan 20, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day leads his team onto the field for the game against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the CFP National Championship college football game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Ohio State Buckeyes Featured in Epic First Look at College Football 26

Originally posted on Ohio State Buckeyes on SI
By Jacob Harrison | Last updated May 28, 2025 12:15 PM ET

After a long wait for EA Sports' revival of the College Football video game series, it’s crazy to think we’re just a few weeks away from College Football 26.

Earlier this week, EA Sports revealed the cover athletes for the game , including Ohio State standout receiver Jeremiah Smith. The Buckeyes' head coach, Ryan Day, also appears on the deluxe edition of the game to highlight one of the game's biggest new features: real head coaches.

Earlier today, EA Sports released the first screenshot of a real coach in the game -- for the first time in the series’ history -- featuring Day front and center, ready to lead his Buckeyes onto the field.

Your first look at College Football 26 - more ways than ever to bring glory home.

Coming July 10. Full reveal tomorrow.

: https://t.co/VZn1m93N6o pic.twitter.com/0iA8RJkH9n
— EASPORTSCollege (@EASPORTSCollege) May 28, 2025

Virtual Ryan Day isn’t the most one-to-one replication in the history of video games, but it’s still cool to see the title evolve with actual coaches featured in the game. After all, fans who played last year’s edition could tell EA Sports made absolutely sure they wouldn’t accidentally replicate any real-life coach's image with their generic stand-ins.

EA Sports is set to drop a full reveal video for this year’s edition of the game tomorrow, May 29, on their YouTube channel. Fans will get their first look at what other new features will be coming to the game. With real-life coaches in the mix, Dynasty Mode could be in store for some new features never imagined in previous editions.

EA Sports’ College Football 26 will release on July 10th worldwide for Xbox Series X|S and the PlayStation 5. There are tons of extras for fans who pre-order or purchase the Deluze or MVP editions of the game; full details about the upcoming release are available here.

This article first appeared on Ohio State Buckeyes on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: