Playing a game inEA Sports College Football25can be a complicated affair, with many different athletes and strategies that can be hard to follow. From organizing formations to hidden defense coverage, football is constant back and forth, similar to a chess match. As a result, any tricks you can use to win consistently can make a difference as you try to create successful seasons with your favorite teams.

Whether you are building a roster of players for Dynasty Mode orRoad to Glory inCollege Football 25or just playing an online match with a pre-set team, you have to understand the game’s fundamentals. Take some time to practice how things work before you try to start a season. Plenty of in-game tutorials exist to help you learn if you don’t know the rules of American football.

Two teams in EA Sports College Football line up to start a play

EA Sports College Football 25 Teases Team Builder & Dynasty Changes In New Update

Following its successful launch, the EA Sports College Football 25 is already teasing fans with what they can expect in the game’s upcoming update.

10Go Through The Ultimate Team Tutorials

See Gameplay Changes From Past Titles

Although theUltimate Team mode inCollege Football 25is mainly for building a team out of random players for online competition, it features several tutorials that can help you get started. This title has many changes compared to previousMaddenorNCAA Footballtitles made by developer Electronic Arts. As a result, you’ll want to see every gameplay difference first before you start diving into other aspects of the game.

Try tocomplete every 101 Challengeto learn about new mechanics of the game, including passing, the run option, and how to set up a basic defensive scheme. The Offense and Defense Scheme trials also give you a chance to understand some sample strategies used by various teams. With Ultimate Team’s trials acting as a tutorial, you can quickly learn how to play to start forming plans of your own to win games.

College Football 25 player running with the ball against two Wyoming defensive players.

9Learn How To Kick Properly

Don’t Just Kick At Full Power All The Time

Your Kicker will be responsible for scoring the 7th point after a touchdown or a field goal for 3 points to win games, making their role incredibly important on your team. When you line up for a kick, you can aim it and then build up a meter to determine the power of your Kicker’s strike against the ball. While this process may seem simple, it can be easy to mess up the kick itself due toCollege Football 25’s mechanics.

Younever want to kick with 100% of the power meter, as doing this will lower your kick’s accuracy. This increases the risk of you missing a field goal or even an extra point, despite how close you are to the goalposts while doing the latter. Focus more on the direction of your kick by adjusting it to the left, right, up, or down to get the most accurate attempt possible even if your power isn’t always at max.

College Football 25 Oregon kicking an extra point after scoring a touchdown.

8Study Various Offense And Defense Playbooks

See What Teams Do Similarly And Differently

Every team inCollege Football 25has an Offensive and Defensive Playbook that details their core strategies for winning games. Some teams prefer running the ball on offense, while others like passing to dedicated receivers with a skilled quarterback. At the same time, one team’s defense may focus on hard-nosed man-to-man coverage while another prefers to cover the whole field with complex zones for their linebackers and defensive backs.

As you can see in the above YouTube video byEA Help, Playbooks can be customized from different teams to form a unique strategy that only you understand, making it hard for opponents to predict your plans on offense or defense.

Alabama player running the ball in College Football 25.

Deciding on the best Defense orOffense Playbook inCollege Football 25is important for your team, especially in Dynasty or Road to Glory modes. Youhave to pick Playbooks that match your team’s strengths, but only if you understand what makes your team strong. Experimenting with many team Playbooks can help you determine which ones work best or synergize the most with your best athletes.

7Watch Out For The Blitz

Keep Your Quarterback Protected

One of the strongest defensive strategies during a game is to commit one or more linebackers to blitz through the line of scrimmage to try and tackle the opponent’s quarterback. Getting a sack through this plan is a great way to make your opponent lose yardage, but this could happen to you just as easily on offense. A sudden sack could set you back 5 or more yards, making it very hard to get a needed first down.

Remember topass the ball fast if you see a blitz comingorthrow the ball away to prevent lost yards. If you’re using a running play, a blitz is an easy way for linebackers to reach your running back early, so be careful to avoid these defensive players as they approach. Those who manage to outwit a blitz can capitalize on their opponent taking a risk and gain tons of yards while enemy players are focused on getting a sack.

EA College Football 25 Defensive Formation with individual character assignments based on positions

6Remember That Defense Takes Time To Master

Focus On Getting Consistent Tackles

While offensive plays can be easy to get used to, defensive strategies take time to understand if you are new toCollege Football 25. With far more moving parts, defensive schemes have to be broken down into passing coverages, possible blitzes, and a variety of other factors to be effective. Youhave to learn what an opponent’s offense is doingfor your defensive strategy to become reliable.

Another defensive tip is tonot rely on fumbles and interceptionsall the time. While you always want to hope for these sudden, explosive shifts through turnovers, they are hard to force when you are playing on defense.

College Football 25 Quarterback throwing the ball with gameplay shot on the side

You’ll inevitably make many mistakes as you attempt to read an opponent’s offense, but over time your defensive calling should get better with more experience. Try toexperiment with audible adjustmentsto adapt on the fly rather than solely relying on a chosen plan. These kinds of changes are easier to implement as you start to recognize different patterns in an offense that you’ve seen multiple times in other games.

How To Quick Adjust Linebackers In College Football 25

The Linebacker position in College Football 25 can adapt to enemy team formations to get more tackles when you quickly adjust their field placement.

5Recognize The Strengths And Weaknesses Of Your Players

Go Into Player Cards To See What They’re Best At

When you’re recruiting players for a team in Road to Glory or Dynasty modes, it can be hard to determine the best qualities of potential athletes. Thetop players inCollege Football 25have a variety of defining traits, from physical stats to mental abilities that estimate their performance in a season. Since it takes a significant time investment to sway certain players to your team, you’ll want to know who is worth the effort.

EA Sports College Football 25: All Mental Abilities & How To Use Them

The Road to Glory mode in College Football 25 has a variety of mental abilities your custom athlete can choose to grant passive buffs before a game.

As you can see in the above video by YouTube creatorEricRayweather, the"Player Management"menu is a great place for seeing general traits of athletes you may want to recruit. Here, you can analyze a player’s Speed, Strength, Agility, Awareness, and several other factors that make up their overall Rating. Studying player cards and checking their abilities can help you narrow down which ones will suit your team best.

EA Sports College Football 25 Michigan player next to Road to Glory mental abilities

4Only Sprint At The Right Times

Discover Movement And Other Speed Techniques

A common mistake you might make during running plays on offense is to have your running back sprint immediately as they get the ball. Youdon’t want to sprint right awaysince this can make it harder to dodge incoming tackles, forcing you to gain only a few yards on an important play. Sprinting after a pass can be tricky as well since you may still have to turn to run upfield after completing a catch.

You have to control your movement at a slower speed first andfind an opportunity to reach the open field before you start sprinting. With the stamina of some players being limited inCollege Football 25, it is best to conserve your agility for a sudden burst of speed. This way, when you unleash the jets at the right time, you can juke, stiff-arm, or just bolt past enemy athletes quickly and race to a first down or more.

Georgia running the ball in College Football 25

3Stick To Plays That Work Consistently

Do What Your Team Is Best At

You only have a limited time to select plays on offense and defense during a game, so it might be easier tohave consistent strategies you can fall back onfast. For example, if you know your opponent isn’t covering the left side of the field deep, have a consistent passing play ready that targets that side of the field. While you don’t want to become predictable, if a plan isn’t broken, don’t fix it.

As you can see in the above video by YouTube creatorSports Gamers Online, you can set plays as favorites to have access to them quickly. Do this with your strongest plays on either side of the ball to reliably have something ready for your team to do. These plays can also be great ways to start a game if you aren’t sure what your opponent is going to do inCollege Football 25.

An Alabama player pointing past the camera in EA Sports College Football 25.

2Don’t Let Strategies Become Predictable

Change Up Your Plan When Opponents Don’t Expect It

Even though you want to have some consistency in your plays, using the same thing over and over will easily cause opponents to counter you. Try torotate between a set of plays that are proven to workand switch between them often to stay unpredictable. Audible adjustments to planned formations or defensive sets can also be a great way to change your strategy on the fly to confuse rival players.

1Adjust To Hostile Stadium Environments

Learn How To Overcome The Away Games

When you’re in Dynasty or Road to Glory mode, your team has to deal with hostile environments when playing on the road. This comes in the form of different away game stadiums, whose crowds provide an extra layer of difficulty you have to play around. The sheer sound from largerstadiums inCollege Football 25can make it hard to select plays and negatively affect the composure of your athletes throughout a game.

Some mental abilities for individual players can reduce their loss of composure, but this isn’t the case with other members of your team. You have tofight through the noise by keeping your game plan simplerather than trying to execute complex strategies. One of the best tips you’re able to get inEA Sports College Football 25is to keep a cool head and recognize what works without overcomplicating your team’s actions.

College Football 25 Texas A&M Stadium with full crowd of spectators.