The Loop
Does this NCAA news mean NCAA Football is coming back? Probably not, but we can dream
On Wednesday morning, the NCAA announced that its Board of Governors would support rule changes that allow student-athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness. If the changes are approved by the NCAA's full membership, players would be able to receive compensation for endorsements both on and off the field, as well social media, personal businesses, appearances and autograph signings.
Naturally, everyone on the internet had the exact same reaction to the announcement: does this mean the highly popular "NCAA Football" game is coming back? As of right now, "NCAA 21" is one of the top trending topics on Twitter:
Sadly, it sounds like a big fat NO. Big East commissioner Val Ackerman promptly dumped a bucket of icy cold water on the NCAA Football fire, pointing out that the rule changes do not allow for group licenses, which would be necessary for the return of any NCAA video games. Ackerman stated that the group licenses for video games are "unworkable in college sports," as of now.
As Axelrod points out, a new game would absolutely be a moneymaker. The last game that was made, NCAA Football 14, featuring former Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson on the cover, is on sale for $340.00 on ebay right now. The most recent NCAA March Madness game, which features Blake Griffin on the cover, is on sale for $250.00 on Amazon. These are games that were sold for $60.00 when they first came out. They've now both become cult classics, with some fans of the game even updating the rosters each year and making them available for download. Yours truly is currently in year two of a dynasty in which I created Jay Cutler as the starting quarterback at Vanderbilt.
While a return is not impossible, it does remain unlikely. Your Trevor Lawrence covers and Spencer Rattler dynasties will have to wait.