Pitt Featured in EA Sports College Football 26 Trailer

WVU fans pointed out that Holstein was down at the two-yard line, with senior nickel/safety Fred Perry tackling him before the goal line.

The trailer itself featured rivalries across college football, including Notre Dame vs. Navy, Tennessee vs. Vanderbilt, USC vs. UCLA, Michigan vs. Ohio State, Texas vs. Texas A&M, Oregon vs. Oregon State and others.

Holstein excelled in the Backyard Brawl last season, completing 21-of-30 passes for 301 yards and three touchdowns.

He also played as the hero, completing a 2nd-and-30 play to wide receiver Daejon Reynolds for a 40-yard touchdown with three minutes remaining.

Holstein then dominated on the last drive, completing two passes of 17 yards to tight end Gavin Bartholomew and 23 yards to wide receiver Konata Mumpfield, while rushing 29 yards, including a five-yard rush, dragging WVU defenders to the one-yard line, where running back Derrick Davis Jr. punched it in for the winning touchdown with a minute remaining.

He earned both ACC Quarterback of the Week and ACC Rookie of the Week honors for his performance.

This is the second edition of the college football video game series for EA Sports, after an 11-year hiatus.

Some of the reasons for this hiatus included some conferences backing out of the game, the NCAA continuing to argue the amateur status of student-athletes, and a lack of understanding of how to pay college athletes, which forced EA to choose to shelve the game for the foreseeable future.

The introduction of NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) changed the landscape of college sports video games, allowing student-athletes to profit off of themselves.

Electronic Arts collaborated with One Team Partners, who work with NIL rights and CLC, the country’s top college trademark licensing company, allowing more 15,000 current student-athletes to make merchandise deals, which includes this video game.

NIL paid student-athletes around $600 for participating and the game for free, which costs around $70. 

While EA never released the numbers/sales for the game, Circana reported that the 2025 edition set the record for the best-selling sports game in total dollars.

EA Sports College Football 26 comes out on July 10 on both PS5 and Xbox Series X/S.