EA Sports College Football 26 is officially out. And as expected, Colorado head coach Deion Sanders is nowhere to be found.
This wasn’t a surprise. News broke months ago that Sanders, along with North Carolina’s Bill Belichick, opted out of the game’s coaching license agreement. The two most brand-conscious coaches in football weren’t about to let EA use their likeness on terms they didn’t control.
So now that it’s real, we're seeing exactly what that looks like in-game.
Instead of Sanders, Buffs players are led by “Kirk Patrick,” a fictional coach described as a level 40 recruiter with a spread offense and a 4–2–5 base defense. He’s got ties to East Texas and boasts an A+ coaching grade. What he doesn’t have: sunglasses, swagger, Hall of Fame resume.
Now that the game is live, it’s clear just how big of a hole his absence leaves in the Dynasty Mode experience. Colorado football under Coach Prime is a brand. It’s a show.
Prime is hard to replicate with a generic coach, no matter how good his digital recruiting skills are.
What stings a bit more is that Sanders had previously hinted at a possible collaboration. In a 2024 Well Off Media video, he joked with CU’s equipment staff about sending gear to EA and said directly to the camera, “EA Sports—we do business.”
Apparently not this time.
On top of coach's absence, the player ratings have drawn the real heat. Colorado’s team overall sits at 83—on par with reality, maybe, but light on respect.
Freshman wideout Dre’lon Miller and sophomore breakout Omarion Miller were both rated 79 overall. That raised some flags, especially among us who saw Omarion’s 10-catch, 216-yard explosion against USC before his season was cut short due to injury.
Defensive back Preston Hodge, one of the best returning nickel defenders in the country, was rated an 82 overall—at strong safety. He didn’t play that position last season.
It’s not just fans upset about it either. Deion Sanders Jr. took to Instagram, calling out the EA team for “disrespecting” Colorado’s playmakers.
“You gotta stop disrespecting Om, bro,” he posted. “Don’t sleep on Drelon either. Y’all saw what those boys can do.”
The big-picture story however, isn’t just about Deion Sanders, but about the future of college sports video games in the NIL era. EA had to strike individual deals with every head coach.
More than 300 coaches agreed. Two didn’t: Sanders and Belichick.
And while some fans say it's no big deal—especially since gameplay and recruiting are what matter most—others see it as a missed opportunity to include the sport’s most important personalities.
It also sets a precedent. If Coach Prime isn't in this year’s game, and he’s still the biggest name in the sport, what does that say about how much control top figures are going to demand over their likenesses?
Ultimately, the Buffs are going to be one of the top played teams.
But that visual of Deion Sanders, pacing the sideline in CU gear, hyping his players, is missing. And it leaves a noticeable gap.
Whether he’ll be in College Football 27 remains to be seen. But for now, Buffs fans are stuck with Kirk Patrick—and a team still fighting for national respect.