
Welcome to the dog days.
We are deep into the Northwestern football offseason, but there is solace to be found on the virtual gridiron.
This Friday, I took the not-so-painstaking responsibility of simulating Northwestern’s 2025 season in EA College Football 26. I played last year’s game a lot — we’re talking double-digit national championships, including a couple with the ‘Cats — and tapping into the new game with the revamped Northwestern roster had a bit of a Christmas morning feel to it.
First, some
housekeeping for those unfamiliar with the video game/those who haven’t tapped into Charlie Jacobs’ article covering EA’s interpretation of the Northwestern roster. I say “interpretation” because I was a touch disappointed with a few aspects of the virtual ‘Cats.
The Roster
A handful of Northwestern players chose not to opt into the game, including key transfer portal additions such as tight end Alex Lines, right guard Evan Beerntsen and cornerback Fred Davis II. While I wish these guys were in the game, it’s hard to complain given that there are 83 other authentic NU student-athletes (plus two autogenerated replacements who loosely fill the spots of punter Niki Dugandzic and quarterback Gavin Frakes). Each team also has an 85-man roster limit, so there were bound to be a few relevant names missing.
There are some minor issues that I do feel like are EA’s fault. The wide receiver depth chart is all over the place; true freshman Braden Blueitt is a 71 overall, while true sophomore Hayden Eligon II, who was one of just a handful of true first years to play in 2024, is a 64. Robert Fitzgerald is listed as the starting free safety over Damon Walters despite Walters starting the final five last season. Inside NU is happy to consult on any depth chart questions for next year’s game!
The most egregious errors are issues with player ages. Quarterback Preston Stone, edge Anto Saka and cornerback Josh Fussell are all one year younger in the game than in real life. One cannot attempt a realistic rebuild of the ‘Cats with those three players, some of the most impactful on the roster, having an extra year of eligibility. Annoying.
Simulation Rules and the Transfer Portal
Everything is automated except for the depth chart, which I tweaked to better fit what I think Northwestern will trot out in 2025.
A new setting that bears mentioning is the ‘max transfers per team’ slider, which I moved to the maximum of 30. This is arguably the best addition to this year’s game, as it better replicates the real-life chaos of modern college football. There are examples of players losing just about their entire starting lineup after a bad year at a mid-major school.
The way the portal works in the game is that every player has a “dealbreaker,” like “playing time,” “pro potential,” or “proximity to home.” Each school is graded off these categories and each category is position-specific. For example, Northwestern’s “pro potential” for offensive lineman is higher than for its quarterbacks. When a school’s grade in the dealbreaker category falls below a player’s requirement, the player enters the portal. A cool wrinkle in this year’s game is that when a player’s overall increases, their dealbreaker threshold increases as well. A 70 overall quarterback recruit who prioritizes “conference prestige” may start satisfied with a “C” grade in that category to start, but may become less lenient as he develops. These dealbreakers also change — for the mock 70 overall quarterback, “conference prestige” could change to something like “pro potential” before his senior year.
Entering 2025, Northwestern has about 20 guys in danger of transferring according to the game. Wide receiver Griffin Wilde, the highest-rated Wildcat pass catcher at a 75, is threatening to leave due to “playing style,” which means that he will enter the portal if Northwestern doesn’t throw for over a certain number of yards per game. True freshman running back Daniel Anderson is threatening to leave for the same reason. He is also a 74 overall, which is legit for a true freshman. Ratings that high are usually reserved for high-four stars/low-five star recruits and not three-stars like Anderson.
Mac Uihlein, Damon Walters, Ricky Ahumaraeze, Joe Himon II, Evan Smith, Jack Sadowsky V, Braydon Brus, Caleb Komolafe, and Aidan Gray are notable guys who begin the season as likely to transfer due to “pro potential.” Another minor gripe: Sadowsky should not be on this list after transferring in from Iowa State this offseason. I’d argue that his dealbreaker should be something closer to “proximity to home” given that he grew up in Batavia, IL.
Robert Fitzgerald, Chase Farrell, Braden Blueitt, Nigel Glover and Ezomo Oratokhai are notable guys who are trending towards the portal due to brand exposure.
Week One
Onto the season.
I’m not going to go game by game for this simulation, but I did want to grab as much detail as I could from Northwestern’s season opener against the Green Wave.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/26062262/Screenshot_2025_07_20_at_12.15.24_PM.png)
Northwestern loses to Tulane 24-13 after a banner day from quarterback Kadin Semonza, who beat out former Wildcat Brendan Sullivan for the starting job in this alternate universe. Semonza diced up the NU defense to the tune of 304 passing yards and three touchdowns, though he was picked off once by Josh Fussell for the redshirt sophomore’s first career interception.
Preston Stone was 20-for-32 with 214 yards, no touchdowns and an interception. He was sacked three times.
Frank Covey IV led all Wildcat receivers with nine catches for 93 yards. Chase Farrell had four catches for 44 yards, Griffin Wilde had three for 41 and Ricky Ahumaraeze had one for 17.
Cam Porter, who is an 87 overall in the game, led all Northwestern rushers with 14 carries for 66 yards and a touchdown. Braden Turner led the team in tackles and Uihlein had two sacks.
Midseason Check-in
Northwestern starts the season 2-3, with a 42-3 loss to Oregon, a 38-14 loss against UCLA and wins over UL Monroe and FCS Midwest (the game doesn’t yet have FCS schools, so this is the fill-in for Western Illinois).
Stone struggles a little early with just 917 yards and six touchdowns to four interceptions through five games. Porter’s numbers look a little better with 372 yards and five touchdowns on 372 carries. Himon is less efficient with 37 carries for 132 yards and two touchdowns.
Covey leads all wideouts with 23 catches for 258 yards. Farrell has 22 for 228 and Wilde has 13 for 157, which is almost his exact stat line from his 2024 game against Oklahoma State while at SDSU.
Uihlein has a blistering start to the season with 47 tackles, 5 tackles for losses and 3.5 sacks. Fussell has another interception to go with 35 tackles.
Center Jack Bailey suffered another season-ending injury, so Jackson Carsello has slotted in as the starting center.
For some happier news, Ohio State is nowhere to be found at the top of the Big Ten after a Week One loss to Texas and a home upset against Ohio. Oregon, USC and Nebraska make up the top three.
End of season
EA does not believe in the ‘Cats.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/26062345/Screenshot_2025_07_20_at_1.24.58_PM.png)
Northwestern finishes the virtual 2025 football season at a disappointing 3-9, with the lone Big Ten win coming over Minnesota. The ‘Cats ride a 15-0 fourth quarter to a 29-12 win over the Golden Gophers, led by 154 combined rushing yards from Porter and Himon. Damon Walters is the player of the game with three interceptions.
Other than the Minnesota game, the only other highlight is a hard-fought 31-28 loss to a Nebraska team that finishes 8-4. Stone shines in that one, finishing with 261 yards and three touchdowns. Wilde has his best game of the season against the Cornhuskers with eight catches for 131 yards and a touchdown.
Northwestern puts up an embarrassing showing in the Battle for the Hat. Illinois keeps the Land of Lincoln trophy with a 27-6 win after holding the ‘Cats to just 250 yards of total offense. Stone struggles in his final game in Evanston, going 17-of-36 through the air for 159 yards, no touchdowns and an interception.
Stats
By the numbers, the virtual Northwestern offense is the worst in the Big Ten with 296.8 ypg (195 passing, 101 rushing), 43 yards behind Iowa in second.
The defense is not much better, allowing the seventh most yards per game (392.1) and the fourth most points (30.7).
There were some positives. As you’ll see below, Mac Uihlein is a monster in the game, and Chase Farrell earns Big Ten First-Team All-Freshman honors for leading Northwestern in receiving yards. Josh Fussell and Damon Walters also earn All-Freshman team honors, though both are redshirt sophomores. We’ll take it!
Passing:
Preston Stone: 2,344 yards, 15 tds, 10 ints, 52% completion percentage, sacked 25 times (for context, Jack Lausch was sacked 22 times in 10 games last year)
Rushing:
Cam Porter: 134 car, 710 yards (5.3 ypc), 9 tds
Joe Himon II: 111 car, 358 yards (3.2 ypc), 2 tds, 21 catches for 80 yards
Receiving:
Chase Farrell: 52 catches for 641 yards, 2 tds
Griffin Wilde: 39 catches for 553, 4 tds
Frank Covey IV: 44 catches for 510 yards, 3 tds
Hunter Welcing: 25 catches for 373 yards, 2 tds
Defensive:
Mac Uihlein (who is white and gets incorrectly depicted with a Black face scan) has an all-time virtual season as a redshirt junior. Uihlein leads Northwestern almost in every major statistical category with 94 tackles, 7 TFLs and 4 sacks. EA continues the disrespect by snubbing Uihlein for any All-Big Ten honors — Ohio State’s Arvell Reese is First Team with 92 tackles, 4 TFLs, two sacks and three interceptions.
Walters rides the Minnesota game to lead NU with four interceptions, and Fussell is right behind him with three.
Aidan Hubbard is the team sack leader with 4.5 to go with 11 TFLs. Saka has just one, but he shines in the run game with 8 TFLs of his own.
Around the Conference
Curt Cignetti and Indiana keep the good times rolling with a win over Oregon to win the Big Ten title. Ohio State is unable to bounce back from the Ohio loss and finishes 8-4 and unranked. 11-2 Indiana, 10-2 USC and 9-3 Penn State all make the College Football Playoff. Oregon is snubbed at 10-3 after losing in the conference championship game despite beating Indiana and Penn State during the regular season. Its only losses came against 10-2 USC at home and ranked 8-4 Washington on the road.
Only USC wins a playoff game, and Texas Tech beats Miami (FL) 20-17 to win the national championship.
Players Transferring
The pain doesn’t stop for Northwestern football.
25 total players enter the portal, including Uihelin, Walters and Ahumaraeze for pro potential, Wilde and Daniel Anderson for playing style and Farrell and Fitzgerald for brand exposure. Jack Lausch leaves for pro potential reasons as well, which is funny/ironic given that his future on the 2025 team is in doubt amidst speculation he will pursue professional baseball.
Uihlein goes to Temple in a befuddling move (Haason Reddick must boost the pro potential grade, but are you kidding me?!) and Fitzgerald and Walters both make a move to LSU.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/26062297/Screenshot_2025_07_20_at_12.57.34_PM.png)
The game also has Preston Stone, Aidan Hubbard and Caleb Tiernan transferring out, but I’m less bummed about this one as they are all exhausting their eligibility this season anyway.
Reason for hope
It was 99% doom and gloom for the virtual Wildcats, but the game does offer Northwestern fans some crumbs.
Caleb Tiernan is drafted in the second round in 2026 after illegally transferring out of Evanston.
Anto Saka is a third-round pick — a year later than he should be because EA got lazy with Northwestern, but we take it as well.
Redshirt sophomore offensive lineman Anthony Birsa eventually gets drafted in the fourth round, Frank Covey IV gets drafted in the seventh and true freshman defensive lineman Mason Mayne is a fifth-round pick in 2029 after racking up 13 combined sacks in his junior and senior seasons.
Josh Fussell never transfers and finishes his career as 93 overall and tied for third in school history with 11 interceptions. He is All-Big Ten twice and cements his Wildcat legacy as a first-round pick.
Aside from some positives in the draft, Northwestern fans should be glad that this very fun but hopefully very dumb video game is not real life.
To cleanse the system, here’s a clip of video game Anto Saka bullying Oregon quarterback Dante Moore from a game I played this weekend — complete with some brutal goal line play calling to add to the realism:
More from insidenu.com:
- Northwestern Undrafted Free Agent Tracker: Austin Carr agrees to deal with the New England Patriots
- Anthony Walker Jr. drafted in the fifth round by the Indianapolis Colts
- Ifeadi Odenigbo drafted in seventh round by the Minnesota Vikings
- Northwestern basketball lands Boston College transfer A.J. Turner
- Collins, Fitzgerald extensions signal lofty goals for Northwestern
- Pat Fitzgerald agrees to new contract, will stay at Northwestern through 2026
- Chris Collins, Northwestern agree to “lengthy” contract extension