NCAA Basketball: What EA SPORTS College Football’s return means for college basketball

For the first time in a long while, the gaming world and the NCAA sports world collided on Tuesday afternoon, courtesy of EA Sports’ sudden announcement that they would be developing a college football game for the first time in eight years.

It is no mystery to both gamers and sports fans the limbo that video games pertaining to collegiate athletics have been in.  Electronic Arts (EA) has been the primary developer and publisher of collegiate sports games dating back to 1993 when Bill Walsh College Football was released – before their basketball flagship began five years later with NCAA March Madness 98.

But the O’Bannon v. NCAA lawsuit – led by former UCLA basketball player Ed O’Bannon – essentially ceased the NCAA Basketball line of games in 2009, followed by the final of the football titles being released in 2013.  Additionally, it accelerated the ongoing debate over whether college athletes should be paid – particularly when it comes to Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL).

The debate regarding paying college athletes has only been furthered since EA Sports was forced to cease their collegiate line, as well.  The Fair Pay to Play Act in California – which allows collegiate athletes to acquire endorsements and sponsorships – is currently set to go into effect in 2023 after being signed in 2019.  Additionally, NIL has been addressed repeatedly over the past year, but talks have been forced to go on pause on several occasions for a variety of reasons – with the latest being as recent as January 15th.

But now, with EA Sports announcing that collegiate sports games are returning, it only begs the question: what now?  What is the next step in the NIL debate?  And, if collegiate football video games are set to return, then what about basketball?

Here is what we currently know about the tentatively named EA College Football, which currently does not have a release date – but is set to begin development soon: the game will not feature any player likenesses, as a way to work around the issue of having to pay players.  Instead, courtesy of the Collegiate Licensing Company, EA College Football will use any and all other branding pertaining to college football – including team names, uniforms, and stadiums.

Not using player likenesses hardly makes this title one befitting of belonging to the NCAA Football series, but it cannot be overstated just how big of a step this could potentially be in the fight for players’ rights, as well as in the debate for NIL.  Unless there is something at work behind the scenes, this presents a substantial problem for the NCAA – and one that will eventually need to be addressed.

Naturally, it is no surprise that the resurrection of the collegiate gaming brand has been met with some criticism – even on the basketball level.  Look no further than Rutgers’ star tandem of Ron Harper Jr. and Geo Baker, both of whom delivered blunt disdain for EA Sports’ decision:

https://twitter.com/Geo_Baker_1/status/1356658352873422853

If anything, however, this has the great potential to expedite the process of forcing NIL to come into effect.  With NCAA v. Alston – the more recent version of the O’Bannon case, essentially – currently on the Supreme Court’s table, in addition to the ongoing fight from Student-Athlete Advisory Committees and the Student-Athlete Engagement Committee regarding NIL, the NCAA will be forced to do something before long – especially before California’s law comes into effect in two years.

On the EA Sports front, this also opens the realm of possibility for the NCAA Basketball series to return in some form.  Considering how popular the NCAA Basketball and NCAA Football series continue to be, despite being dormant for so long, it seems difficult to imagine most fans flocking to a new title where there are no player likenesses whatsoever.

There will obviously be players, there is no doubt about that – and gamers and sports fans who have been unable to play those titles on older consoles will finally have the opportunity to enjoy a similar title.  But there is no way that EA College Football – as both a game and a series – will enjoy the same success as prior titles unless likenesses are adopted at some point.

That goes for the potential of a basketball title, as well.  With no timetable currently set for EA College Football‘s release, that makes the possibility of an EA College Basketball game all that more unexpected.  If anything, the return of EA Sports’ collegiate series – during a time where NIL and pay-the-players debates run rampant – may bode well for those who support those causes.

That can especially be true if EA College Football does not do as well as prior titles because it could result in the NCAA taking some sort of action to ensure that a video game series using its collegiate programs is successful.  Obviously, time will tell, and there is no telling when the game is expected to be released – but with California’s law set to go into effect in 2023 and EA Sports now throwing their hat back in the ring, the NCAA will have to make a decision soon on the matter.

How this affects college basketball in the longterm will be incredibly vital to watch, particularly on the recruiting trail – and if players begin to go to schools where those endorsements and sponsorships are available, especially in regards to California.

Until then, however, this is an opportunity to celebrate the return of a heralded video game series that means a substantial amount to gamers and sports fans alike – but even more importantly, this is an opportunity for Mark Emmert and the NCAA to right their wrongs and deliver the care, responsibility, and fair treatment that student-athletes should have earned in the first place.