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College Football '25 Rulebook

The 2024 - 2025 College Football '25 Rulebook for High School leagues.

Updated yesterday

View the High School Competition Rulebook for league details.

The PlayVS College Football 25 Leagues are being run by PlayVS. EA is not the operator of these events. College Football 25 is a PlayVS-sponsored league.

Introduction and Purpose

These Official Rules (Rules) of the PlayVS Scholastics Esports League apply to each of the teams who have registered and met the requirements for the 2024-2025 school year, as well as their head coach, assistant coaches, vice principals, athletic directors, Starters, Substitutes (collectively Team Members), and other members.

1. Game Rules

1.1 Definition of Terms

1.1.1 Game. An instance of competition that is played until a winner is determined by one of the following methods, whichever occurs first: (a) completion of the countdown timer or objective achieved, (b) Team Surrender, or (c) Team Forfeit.

1.1.2 Round. An instance of individual competition, often between individual team members. The player or team that wins the majority of available rounds will be determined the winner of the game.

1.1.3 Set. A series of games that is played until one player wins a majority of the total games (e.g., winning two games out of three “best-of-three”). The winning player will receive a win tally in favor of their team for the match.

1.1.4 Match. A group of sets that is played until one team wins a majority of the total sets (e.g., winning two sets out of three “best-of-three”). The winning team will either receive a win tally in a league format or advance to the next round in a tournament format.

1.1.5 League. A group of teams that regularly play against one another. There are two distinct types of PlayVS leagues: (a) Recreational and (b) Competitive

1.1.6 Phase. A section of scheduled league play that comprises a season. There are distinct phases for leagues, with each phase having its own league format.

1.1.7 Season. Scheduled league play that will occur over a predetermined amount of time.

1.2 Roster Requirements

1.2.1 Roster Submission

Team members must be eligible to compete on behalf of their school as listed in Section 2. Team Member Eligibility of the league's Competition Rulebook.

Each League page will list the number of players necessary to fill a team’s Roster and Bench. No individual may simultaneously hold two or more roles as listed above. All players and coaches are expected to be present physically or virtually for all official PlayVS matches. The Roster and Bench must be finalized before the Roster Lock Date, as listed in Section 3.4 Roster Submission of the league’s Competition Rulebook.

1.2.2 Substitutions

College Football is a solo esports title, meaning there may only be one Active Player in a match at any given time.

However, teams needing to adjust their roster due to their unique competitive situation can utilize the one (1) bench spots should roster changes need to be made. Substitutions must be made before confirming competing players for a given match. Once a game of record is established, the starting player may not be changed.

1.3 Game of Record

A Game of Record (GOR) in College Football is established under the following conditions:

1.3.1 Any player kicks the ball off.

1.3.2 The clock ticks for at least one (1) second.

Once GOR is established, game restarts will only be allowed under limited conditions as listed in Section 7.4 Game Restart of the league’s Competition Rulebook.

1.4 Stoppage of Play

During any pause or stoppage, players may not leave the match area unless authorized by their coach. Coaches should communicate any disconnections or pauses inside PlayVS’ Match Lobby chat.

1.4.1 Directed Pause

At any time and at their sole discretion, league officials may order the pause of a match. Teams may complete the current game and finalize the results before pausing, if necessary.

1.4.2 Player Pauses

Pauses are bound to the features & limitations inside College Football. Excessive pausing is subject to penalties at the sole discretion of league officials.

1.4.3 Game Disconnection

The game will automatically close if a player disconnects from the online match. The connected player must capture the score & time remaining in the match when the disconnection occurred.

Once the player can reconnect, the online match must be recreated. Players will subtract the time completed in the previous match and then complete the remaining time of the original game with the newly created online match. Once the remaining time has lapsed, players will add the total scores of the two games to determine the winner.

For example:

  • Player A disconnects in the 2nd quarter of Game 1, with 1 minute remaining. Player B confirms the score of 20-13, with Player B in the lead.

  • There are still 11 minutes of in-game time left in the match, so the game is recreated with the same teams as in Game 1, and the players complete the first and second quarter of the recreated Game 1 (10 minutes of in-game time). After a minute has passed in the third quarter, the game is stopped, and the score of 21-17 with Player A in the lead is logged.

The players combine the scores of both games for an overall score of 37-34, with Player B having the overall higher score. Player B has won Game 1, and the match continues to Game 2.

1.5 Match Format

  • Format: Best-of-one (Bo1) games

  • Team Size: 1 Player

  • Game Settings

    • Fatigue: On

    • Injuries: Off

    • Even Teams: On

    • Quarter Length: 5 Min

    • Game Skill: Heisman

    • Accelerated Clock: 20 sec

    • Weather: Off

  • Cross-Play Settings

    • Cross-Play: On

1.5.1 Phase Details

All competitions will share the same Match Format as listed above, regardless of phase.

For a detailed breakdown of each phase available for the league, see section 5.2 Phase Details of the league’s Competition Rulebook.

1.6 Special Rules

1.6.1 Onside Kicks

Onside kicks are not allowed in the first half. A competitor may attempt an onside kick at any time in the 2nd half.

1.6.2 Excessive Offsides

Neither the offense nor the defense should purposefully go offsides with the intent of delaying the game nor exhibiting unsportsmanlike conduct. Intent is at the sole discretion of league officials.

1.6.3 Improper Audibles

Competitors may not use audibles from the QB Kneel, Wildcat, Field Goal, or Punt formations.

1.6.4 Custom Playbooks

Competitors may not use custom playbooks for any PlayVS matches. A custom playbook is any offensive/defensive playbook that consists of plays from multiple teams or custom-created plays.

Players may still select unique teams for their in-game roster, offensive playbook, and defensive playbook. For example, a player may select:

  • The Team of Texas

  • The Offensive Playbook of Alabama

  • The Defensive Playbook of Multiple

1.6.5 Stadium Selection

A neutral stadium must be used, meaning the chosen stadium for the match may not belong to either of the competing teams.

2. Player Equipment

2.1 Equipment

Each player on the Starting Roster must have access to school-provided equipment or must be permitted by the school to provide their own equipment in the following categories:

2.1.1 Playstation 5 or Xbox Console (X|S)

2.1.2 Monitor/Television

2.1.3 Headsets, Earbuds and/or Microphones

2.1.4 Compatible Controller

2.1.5 Online Subscription/Stable Internet Connection

2.1.6 Copy of College Football 25 for either Playstation 5 or Xbox Console (X|S)

2.2 Cross-play

Cross-play will be available for players on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. Teams may elect to use either of the two platforms to compete and players must enable Cross-play in their in-game settings.

3. Match Process

3.1 Pre-Match Setup

Teams must adhere to Section 6.2 Pre-Match Setup in the league’s Competition Rulebook as they prepare to join their match.

3.2 Match Lobby Setup

For all matches, players must add their opponent as a Friend to send game invites.

3.2.1 Add Players Using EA Connect

  1. From the main menu, open EA Connect.

  2. Navigate to the Player search tab.

  3. Enter your opponents EA ID.

    • The EA ID is shown in the upper-right of the EA Connect page.

  4. Select Add Friend to send an Invite.

    • Accept the invitation through the pop-up, or under the Friend Requests tab.

3.2.2 Create Lobby

  • Open College Football 25.

  • Select Play a Friend.

  • Confirm the Game Settings are correct as listed in Section 1.5 and proceed.

  • Select your opponent’s in-game name to send the invite.

3.2.3 Team Selection

Players will select from any Current Collegiate team and play. Players may choose a different Collegiate team for each game they play. Both players can also choose the same team. Alternative teams are not allowed.

3.3 Match F.A.Q.

3.3.1 Spectating

In order to avoid giving any team an advantage, spectators should be removed from spectating unless both coaches have agreed to allow for a spectator by following section 7.7 Match Spectating from the league’s Competition Rulebook.

3.3.2 In-Game Content Updates

College Football 25 is a live-service multiplayer game that may release new content patches with updated team rosters while competition is occurring.

Any players or teams currently disabled in-game by Electronic Arts will not be available for use during official PlayVS matches. All PlayVS matches will occur on the most up-to-date patch, and any team is eligible for use in PlayVS matches unless otherwise stated by league officials.

4. Post-Match Process

4.1 Results

If the match is completed using the PlayVS Match Assistant tool, then in-game statistics and results will be recorded at each game's conclusion.

In the event that the PlayVS Match Assistant cannot be used, then statistics will not be tracked, and the match results will need to be submitted manually within 1 hour of match completion. Players should take screenshots of the match results and share those with their coaches.

In the event of an error, coaches must contact PlayVS directly.

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