EA Sports College Football 25 is on the horizon as the long anticipated video game set to be released in just a few short weeks on July 19. The buzz surrounding the game went into overdrive with the release of the trailer in May and the company is adding to the hype with the reveal of several rankings this week.
On Tuesday, EA Sports kicked things off by revealing rankings pertaining to Homefield Advantage, a returning feature from the old NCAA Football games that affects the gameplay for the visiting team. The tougher the environment, the tougher it is for a visitors to call audibles and maintain their confidence in these atmospheres. Here’s who EA went with for their top 25 toughest places to play:
EA Sports College Football 25, the new video game scheduled for release in July, has unveiled the game’s rankings for the toughest places to play in college football. It factors in historical home win percentage, home attendance, etc.
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) June 25, 2024
Let the debating begin… pic.twitter.com/au58H97AmY
To no surprise, their list features some of the most iconic cathedrals of college football, from Texas A&M’s Kyle Field to the Big House at Michigan. Certainly the powerhouses are represented well by EA Sports as the list consists of 12 schools from the SEC, seven from the Big Ten, three from the ACC, and Notre Dame, while the Big 12 and the entire Group of Five have just one representative each. The creators of College Football 25 said they considered several factors when putting this list together, but something like this can still be prone to subjectivity. A high-profile power conference program may have the reputation for being a tough environment, but it may not be backed up by actual results.
So out of my own curiosity, I went back and looked at the home win/loss records of each of these schools since 2014, which is coincidentally the year EA Sports stopped making the old NCAA Football series. I also looked at each team’s home record against the spread during that period to gauge if they were handling their business from a betting perspective. Let’s jump in:
EA Sports College Football 25 toughest places to play stats since 2014
| Ranking | Team | Home W/L record | Home ATS record |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ranking | Team | Home W/L record | Home ATS record |
| 1 | Texas A&M | 48-18 (72.7%) | 31-34-1 (47.7%) |
| 2 | Alabama | 65-3 (95.6%) | 37-30-1 (55.2%) |
| 3 | LSU | 53-12 (81.5%) | 38-24-3 (61.3%) |
| 4 | Ohio State | 61-5 (95.6%) | 34-31-1 (52.3%) |
| 5 | Georgia | 56-6 (90.3%) | 27-34-1 (44.3%) |
| 6 | Penn State | 54-14 (79.4%) | 38-28-2 (57.6%) |
| 7 | Wisconsin | 51-14 (78.5%) | 28-35-2 (44.4%) |
| 8 | Oklahoma | 53-8 (86.9%) | 35-26 (57.4%) |
| 9 | Florida State | 47-18 (72.3%) | 28-36 (43.8%) |
| 10 | Florida | 46-15 (75.4%) | 31-29-1 (51.7%) |
| 11 | Oregon | 54-9 (85.7%) | 30-33 (47.6%) |
| 12 | Clemson | 65-3 (95.6%) | 34-33-1 (50.8%) |
| 13 | Tennessee | 46-24 (65.7%) | 32-38 (45.7%) |
| 14 | Auburn | 49-21 (70%) | 35-33-2 (51.5%) |
| 15 | South Carolina | 40-28 (58.8%) | 30-36-2 (45.5%) |
| 16 | Michigan | 56-11 (83.6%) | 34-31-2 (52.3%) |
| 17 | Virginia Tech | 37-26 (58.7%) | 30-33 (47.6%) |
| 18 | Utah | 49-12 (80.3%) | 34-26-1 (56.7%) |
| 19 | Texas | 41-19 (68.3%) | 29-27-4 (51.8%) |
| 20 | Iowa | 50-17 (74.6%) | 32-33-2 (49.2%) |
| 21 | Notre Dame | 52-11 (82.5%) | 35-27-1 (56.5%) |
| 22 | Michigan State | 43-23 (65.2%) | 28-36-2 (43.8%) |
| 23 | Arkansas | 35-30 (53.9%) | 31-31-3 (50%) |
| 24 | Boise State | 50-12 (80.7%) | 31-30-1 (50.8%) |
| 25 | Mississippi State | 45-23 (66.2%) | 35-31-2 (53%) |
First off, Texas A&M’s Kyle Field being No. 1 is a bit of a reach. They should absolutely be in the top 10 considering that the stadium seats over 102,000 people, the fans have very unique and weird traditions, and the atmosphere is electric for big games.
However, the Aggies have won just over 70% of their home games over the last decade and while that’s impressive, that home winning percentage ranks third in the now former SEC West. A&M has failed to break into the tippy top echelon of the conference and part of that can be attributed to key losses at home. There’s an argument to be made for either Alabama and LSU jumping them for the No. 1 spot and it’s backed up by excellent winning percentages, records against the spread, and notable traditions.
Clemson’s Memorial Stadium is a bit low at No. 12 as the Tigers have rarely lost at home under Dabo Swinney. There really must be something magical about Howard’s Rock as only a few teams in the last decade have been able to escape Death Valley alive, perfectly explaining how they ruled the ACC with an iron fist for several years. Another venue probably ranked too low is Utah’s Rice-Eccles Stadium, which has an argument for being the most underrated venue in college football. The Utes have won 80% of their home games since 2014 and usually wins in convincing fashion as they’ve covered the spread roughly 57% of the time. That’s part of the reason why many view Utah as the program that could fill the power vacuum in the new Big 12.
As far as the overrated camp is concerned, I’m staring right at South Carolina’s William-Brice Stadium at No. 15. 15 for what? Because they play Sandstorm and a sound clip of a rooster crow a million times a game? Homefield advantage hasn’t gotten you anywhere since Steve Spurrier resigned. Get out of here! And take Arkansas with you, who’s only won 53.9% of their home games since 2014. Woo Pig Sooie? More like Woo Pig try winning some more games in Fayetteville. Pathetic.
As mentioned before, just one Group of Five program occupies this list with Boise State’s Albertsons Stadium clocking in at No. 24. The “Smurf Turf” continues to provide one of the more unique aesthetics in the entire sport and the Broncos continued to handle business against Mountain West Conference opponents on said turf. This being the only G5 stadium represented on this list got me thinking about some other underrated venues around the sport. Using the same metrics, here are some that stood out:
Underrated home venue stats since 2014
| Team | Home W/L record | Home ATS record |
|---|---|---|
| Team | Home W/L record | Home ATS record |
| West Virginia | 43-18 (70.5%) | 33-25-3 (56.9%) |
| Air Force | 46-11 (80.7%) | 33-23-1 (58.9%) |
| Kansas State | 46-21 (68.7%) | 41-26 (61.2%) |
| UAB | 36-9 (80%) | 28-16-1 (63.6%) |
| NC State | 49-18 (73.1%) | 36-30-1 (54.6%) |
| Georgia Southern | 41-16 (71.9%) | 35-22 (61.4%) |
| Washington State | 40-21 (65.6%) | 35-36 (57.4%) |
| Ohio | 40-16 (71.4%) | 30-26 (53.6%) |
| Virginia | 39-26 (60%) | 38-26-1 (59.4%) |
| Liberty | 32-6 (84.2%) | 22-14-2 (61.1%) |
West Virginia’s Milan-Puskar Stadium could’ve easily been in the top 25. It has continued to provide a good homefield advantage for the Mountaineers even as they’ve languished as the outlier school in the Big 12. Kansas State’s Bill Snyder Family Stadium is another sneaky difficult place to play in. Depending on the weather in the fall, you may mess around and play in a snowstorm.
Air Force’s Falcon Stadium is a venue that has been difficult for opponents to overcome because: 1. It has the second-highest elevation in FBS at 6,621 feet and 2. When you get up there, you’re going to be triple-option’d to death. Not a fun time for any team venturing up to Colorado Springs. Meanwhile, Georgia Southern carried decades of tradition and fan support into FBS in the last decade and while the Eagles have been somewhat of a disappointment in the Sun Belt, they’ve at least been a really tough out at Paulson Stadium.