Florida included in Madden NFL 21’s college mode

There is a nonzero chance that the Florida Gators will not play football this fall. But for the second straight year, you’ll be able to lead them to a national championship in Madden.

Florida is once again among the 10 teams available for players to choose from in Madden NFL 21’s Face of the Franchise: Rise to Fame single-player mode, EA Sports announced Tuesday as part of revealing the mode ahead of its game’s late August release.

The Gators return to the mode as an option after being one of the 10 programs players could suit up for virtually in the Face of the Franchise: QB1 mode in Madden NFL 20. Eight of the 10 teams featured in Madden 20 return in Madden 21 — apart from Florida that list includes Clemson, LSU, Miami, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, and USC — while Michigan State and Nebraska, the first two Big Ten teams to appear in a Madden mode since the game began using collegiate licenses in Madden NFL 18, replace Florida State and Texas Tech in this year’s edition.

And while QB1 was a fairly limited and narrow experience, Rise to Fame sounds like it will be a robust endeavor, with players getting to play through significant high school football games before even embarking on the college portion of the mode, which itself sounds meaty. Players will play through two seasons, per EA — up from just two College Football Playoff games in last year’s title — and seem likely to experience the closest thing to NCAA Football that EA has put since that series was last released in 2013.

Your story doesn’t end there though as you’re thrust center stage on National Signing Day as ten FBS schools vie for your talents. What starts off as a normal Signing Day ends with a dramatic twist after you don the hat of the school you’ve chosen to attend. Once you set foot on campus the stakes get even higher as you not only have to deftly navigate a Quarterback controversy right out of the gate, but also have to figure out how to appease your domineering, old school approach, newly minted Head Coach Red O’Brien – all while attempting to build your draft stock through two challenging seasons of college football AND win an College Football Playoff Championship (or two) along the way. As if that weren’t enough, you’re thrown out of your comfort zone and into disarray when Coach O’Brien delivers you an ultimatum – either switch positions to Running Back or Wide Receiver, or pack your bags and take your chances in the NFL Draft!

That NFL Draft experience will include the return of the vaunted (and daunting) 40-yard dash to Madden, and players can encounter various scenarios as a pro as well.

With the beloved NCAA Football series still tabled for the time being, and the prospect of actual games being played this fall up in the air, it sounds like Madden’s version of college football might well be the best we get this year.