By College Football 25 officially releases on Friday after the early access released Monday, and EA Sports’ beloved video game franchise is finally back on the shelves after an 11-year hiatus.
For the first time in the series’ history, real player names and likenesses are featured in the games, a positive consequence of the NIL era in college sports. However, while the older games didn’t feature overt usage of player names, the in-game players were clearly based on their in-game counterparts.
With that in mind, CBS Sports went back to make the historic All-EA Sports NCAA Football team, finding the highest-rated players in the history of the games. Four former Tigers were chosen as first-teamers, and a fifth was on the second team.
OG Andrew Whitworth (97 overall)
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First of all, yes, I did cheat a little bit on the offensive line. I have once true center and four tackles in this starting lineup, but I don’t have much doubt that Andrew Whitworth and Joe Thomas could handle the interior offensive line positions just fine. Besides, before every season in Dynasty Mode, didn’t everyone just go through the depth chart and start the five best offensive linemen anyway?
Whitworth was a two-time First Team All-SEC selection at LSU, and he’s a first-teamer here as well. He ultimately played 16 seasons in the NFL, winning a Super Bowl with the Rams in his final year.
DT Marcus Spears (99 overall)
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In the middle, Marcus Spears and Ndamukong Suh are big and nasty enough to do plenty of damage against the run and passing games on their own. Just time the snap perfectly and bull rush your way to a sack or tackle for loss.
The former consensus All-American at LSU-turned-broadcaster, Spears is the highest-rated member of the Tigers’ contingent in CBS’ hypothetical ratings.
Tyrann Mathieu (93 overall)
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With Rolle on one side, I went with Tyrann Mathieu on the other side because speed trumps everything in video game football. Mathieu had more than enough speed to keep up with any receiver, and his recovery was excellent whenever I found myself well out of position after switching players at the wrong moment.
Mathieu has a lower rating than some of the other players on this list, but his speed and playmaking ability made him the choice here after he was a star all over the field for the Tigers.
P Brad Wing (91 overall)
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The best video game punter is one you never use, but if you were going to use one, Brad Wing was more than capable of flipping the field. In the event a punt was absolutely necessary, it was always a good feeling to nail a perfect coffin corner.
The former Australian Rules Football star was a standout in his two-year career in Baton Rouge. It would be hard to pick a better punter here.
DT Glenn Dorsey (98 overall)
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Dorsey is a second-teamer here despite being the second-highest rated LSU player on the list. The competition at defensive tackle was steep, but Dorsey remains one of the best players in LSU history.
