College Football 26 Title Update Arrives Wednesday (8/6)

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A major Title Update will be available for College Football 26 on Wednesday, August 6.

Among the noteworthy improvements additions: coverage updates, blocking improvements, playbook adjustments, Dynasty additions/improvements, Road to Glory fixes, Ultimate Team fixes, adjusted neck & helmet fit on players, new/updated uniforms, audio updates, new mascots, updated field art (IE: Kansas), and more.

Continue on to see the full patch notes from EA.

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Gameplay

Coverage

• Hard Flats Behavior: Defenders now stay closer to the line and recognize swing routes as threats in the flat.
• Cover 2 Tampa: The middle defender now gets deeper, maintaining better leverage position against deep threats, especially from 3x1 formations.
• Cover 3 Match (incl. Buzz Mable & Zone Blitz 3): Logic improvements for Defenders when reacting to Slot WRs attempting to outleverage the defense on deep routes.
• Cover 2 Match (incl. Cover 6/9/Zone Blitz 2): Logic Improvements for defenders guarding inside and vertical routes, especially in formations like bunches and stacks. Improved defense against outside throws and motion-heavy offenses.
• Cover 4 Quarters: Against 3x1 sets Corners and Safeties pick up the appropriate vertical threat to ensure that the #3 Receiver is covered on deep routes.
• Cover 4 Palms & Cover 6: Corners won’t press by default on the trips side, reducing chances of one-play touchdowns.

Blocking

Pass Block/Pass Rush

• Pre-Play: Resolved issues where QB animations prevented players from making protection adjustments blocking the RB.
• Protection Menu: Now closes automatically after making an adjustment.
• Visual Feedback: Fixed display issues with pass block lines after hot routing the HB.
• Blocking Logic Enhancements:
  
  • Improved recognition of stunts and loops across base, empty, and slide protections.
  • Base protection is less effective against stunts, reflecting its man-on-man nature.
  • Blockers are better at identifying late blitzers and avoiding premature handoffs that lead to free rushers.
  
  
• Pocket Behavior:
  
  • Tuning to decrease the likelihood of pass blockers staying in double teams unnecessarily.
  • Reduced frequency of illegal man downfield penalties.
  • Edge rushers now better recognize when they’re being out-leveraged by scrambling QBs.
  
  
• Difficulty Tuning:
  
  • Increased pass rush effectiveness on Heisman and All-American.
  • Decreased pass rush effectiveness on lower difficulties.

Run Block/Run Shed

• Targeting Fixes: Resolved issues where blockers missed or switched targets in open field, including on RPOs and core blocking schemes.
• Run Game Enhancements:
  
  • Added logic to allow users to be able to untarget defenders on run plays using the ID Mike system.
  • Fixed bugs causing double teams to split too slowly, preventing blockers from reaching the second level.
  • Lead blocker logic and HB targeting in under-center formations have been improved to target the biggest threat in the open field.
  
  
• Engagement & Shedding Logic:
  
  • Defenders’ leverage now appropriately affects block outcomes.
  • Defensive linemen shed blocks more realistically in short-yardage situations.
  • Edge players no longer disengage inside or take unrealistic inside angles.
  • Reduced defender control on Block steering interactions.
  
  
• Animation & Ratings Logic:
  
  • Defenders with big ratings advantages now trigger “super win” animations correctly.
  • Fixed issues where edge rushers didn’t respond properly to scrambling QBs.

General Blocking Animations

• Resolved multiple animation issues causing failure to match engagements, frozen players, players stuck in disengages, impact blocks, and animations playing in the wrong direction.

Run Fits and Pursuit

• Tuning to improve effectiveness of QB contain defenders vs. play-action bootlegs.
• Tuning to improve man coverage effectiveness vs. Jet Motion, specifically for the defender to continue following the motion through the snap.

Playbooks

• Adjusted Wildcat and Flexbone plays, including QB Power Swing, Direct Snap, and FB Dive logic.
• Split Flexbone FB Toss into two types: FB Sweep (Pin-Pull) and FB Zone Toss (Outside Zone).
• Fixed blocking issues on rocket toss, Buck Sweep, and Pistol PA HB Wheel plays.
• Improved motion consistency across play sets and fixed alignment issues in no-huddle formations.
• Disabled Playmaker flip on Flexbone FB Dive to prevent broken handoffs.
• Added new content to Army, Navy, Air Force, and Option Generic offenses, including new Flexbone and Wingback formations.
• Introduced GoGo Generic Offense and expanded Air Raid Generic Offense.
• Updated play call suggestions to avoid duplicate play types in the same row.
• Added Goal Line set to UTSA and made Singleback Spread default to 4WR.
• Fixed pitch man behavior on option plays and improved backside edge blocking on RPOs and Play Action.
• Synced Play Action Bootlegs with their paired runs and gave all PA Walk plays Inside Zone fake blocking.
• Improved deep PoCo route to better sell the Post.
• Reduced snap delay on Reload and Dbl Mtn plays (where QB/HB swap).

Dynasty

• We’ve added two new awards, which are both available in the Trophy Room
  
  • The Shaun Alexander award was added, which is given to the best Freshman of the Year.
  • The Jet Award, which is given to the best special teams returner.
  
  
• To help players make better decisions when determining who to target in Transfer Portal, Career Wear and Tear is now shown in the Player Module while viewing the Transfer Portal spreadsheet.
• Corrected an issue with lighting and game times. Now, in-game times properly reflect local time. This means that a 9pm Eastern Time game in Hawai’i will correctly be at 3pm local time.
• Added new scheduling rules for non-Eastern time teams to ensure their games start at the correct times locally.
• Added additional rules reflecting the limitations on day games in Arizona in the early fall months.
• Added the team uniforms to player portraits on full screen notifications.
• Tuned Ability Pre-requisites to better align with positional archetypes.
  
  • Pocket Disruptor for Pure Power and Power Rusher no longer requires Power Moves
  • Pocket Disruptor for Speed Rusher no longer requires Finesse Moves
  
  
• Updated Skill Groups for many archetypes to ensure they have access to every ability for their archetype, especially Toughness.
  
  • Exception for the Dot! ability on Gadget Receivers for balance purposes. In rare situations, a Gadget Receiver can still be generated with Dot!.
  
  
• Multiple fixes to Playing Style Grades across various archetypes.
  
  • Updated Box Specialist to use Defensive Rush Yards Against Per Game
  • Update Signal Caller Playing Style Rank to use the correct ordering
  
  
• Increased Speed and Acceleration for Safeties in Recruit Generation, especially 3 and 4 Star Coverage Specialists and Hybrids.
• The Pro Potential My School grade now properly updates after Draft Results and before the start of the Transfer Portal.
• Increased the number of players in the Transfer Portal who start in the Open Status.
• When in the Records Screen, switching between National/Season/Game tabs will now maintain your current filter allowing you to easily view a team or conference’s career, season, and game records.
• Updated Boise State rushing TD Record, Big Ten rushing yard record, CUSA receptions record, and Missouri State rushing TD records.
• SuperSim
  
  • Reduced the number of pass attempts for AI teams.
  • Increased Yards Per Catch for teams with elite WR1s.
  • Increased designed QB Run Plays to ensure that running QBs more closely align to their real-world Rush Attempt averages.
  
  
• Added Weekly Summary Notification to alert when a player is visiting that week.
• Fixed an issue where non-user coaches could appear as “Vacant” in the Schemes & Playbooks screen.
• Fixed an issue where you would be unable to change a player's position after viewing their player card.
• Fixed an issue where team win percentage did not include bowl games. This also fixes a related issue where the winning seasons coach stat was not incrementing properly.
• Setting the Player Edit Permission setting to Commissioner no longer allows non-commissioner users to edit the height and weight of their players.
• When exiting the auto subs screen, you will now be prompted with a popup asking if you want to save your changes
• Updated team’s Athletic Facilities and Brand Exposure My School grades.
• Fixed an issue causing TeamBuilder My School grades not to align with website grades late in the season.
• Add the Strategist archetype icon to the Player Module Dealbreaker sub-panel when a player’s dealbreaker has been lowered due to the Lower The Bar ability.
• Fixed an issue where FCS teams showed under the ACC filter when selecting an opponent in Custom Schedules.
• Fixed an issue in Staff Moves where the coach module would display the coach’s record with their new school as their record with their previous school. It now correctly shows 0-0.
• Fixed an issue in Custom Conferences where you could add a school to the conference they are already in.
• Custom Schedules now show the correct location for neutral site games.
• Added a counter to Formation Subs displaying the total number of subs that have been made.

Road To Glory

• When adding a school to your Top Schools List, you will now see if that school has offered you a scholarship regardless of whether or not they are in your Top 10.
• Fixed an issue where offers would be given or revoked when advancing to Signing Day.
• Reduced the amount of test readiness needed to pass your exams to more closely align with Scrape By. Note, if you already have a low GPA, you will still need to get higher than “Scrape By” in order to stay eligible.
• Reduced the amount of Wear and Tear damage Incurred from Training.
• Medal Thresholds for Gap Drill for Cornerbacks have been reduced.
• Player Grade Widget and Pause Menu Stats Screen now show Total Touchdowns.
• Added Player Feedback Notifications when exiting High School Games.
• Added new Sponsorship Deals to be earned via NIL.
• Fixed an issue where you could not graduate in 3 years if you redshirted your first season.
• Fixed an issue allowing you to spend energy points on leadership and brand even when the meters were already full.
• Fixed an issue where your current school appeared as one of the schools you could transfer to in the transfer portal.
• Fixed an issue with MIKE linebacker not displaying properly in the Trophy Room.

Ultimate Team

• Fixed an issue where the Event rules screen was not displaying properly.
• Fixed an issue where upgraded items were missing the BND tag until you back out and re-enter the My items .
• Fixed an issue where Event: Prerequisites: House Rules were not displaying properly.
• Fixed a navigation issue in Team Select: Line up: In Event Requirements.
• Fixed an issue when looking to upgrade Keldric Faulk using the tokens, all items are present instead of just the usable items.
• Fixed an issue where Users wallet disappeared after viewing the rewards for a field pass.
• Fixed an issue in Challenges where Spamming the 'Select' button prompts an error message and leads the User back to the Main Menu.
• Fixed an issue where sections tabs were missing from the lineup screen.
• Activating a X-factor ability after flipping items in the Lineup menu now will not reset the flip.
• Fixed an issue where users were returned in the challenge category selection screen after exiting from the milestone screen.
• Pack Helper will recommend set completion over lineup improvements when the user has an empty lineup active.
• Fixed an issue where players that are contributing to team requirements did not display their position and depth.
• Fixed an issue where the scoring drive banner showed the wrong time during UT challenges.
• The difficulty bonus percentage now is not cut off on the study hall progress screen.
• Fixed an issue where the 'BND' & 'LTD' badges were both black with white text.
• Fixed an issue where the 'Lineup Needs Editing' dialog box was not visible in Events with long lists of Team Requirements.
• Fixed an issue where event rewards were not being displayed for Gauntlet
• Fixed an issue where the Generate best lineup for special teams did not put a player in at kick off specialists.
• Fixed an issue when entering the substitution screen from team OVR requirements available players did not populate.
• Fixed an issue where items were loading very slow when switching between all tabs from the "Item Manager/My Items" screen.
• Fixed an issue where No Coin Image would appear in "Rewards" when user Earns them in the field pass
• Fixed an issue where arrows were not shown correctly in the challenge info screen.
• Fixed an issue where the "Getting to know the basics" Challenge Text overlaps.
• Fixed an issue where no rewards would appear in Online H2H when pressing Progress & Rewards button
• Fixed an issue where the player image will appear blank on the Level 50 Field Pass for Season 1 item 87 OVR BDN Xavier Scott.
• Fixed an issue where accepting an invite from UT Play a Friend squads lobby to a Head to Head squads lobby.
• Two RS callouts are now present in the Progress & Rewards screen when having at least 6 games in the Results box.
• Fixed an issue where users received "You lost the auction" pop up when an auction expires even if the user didn't bid.
• Fixed an issue where the game would crash after leaving a MUT Challenge Lobby.
• Fixed an issue where the user could not navigate between Team Pass tabs after accessing the Team Pass menu while inside the Compare screen in Ultimate Team
• Fixed an issue where the Team Pass Objective screen would refresh 3-4 times before the user can function when accessing from a player card customization item.
• Fixed an issue where Pack Helper options were not displayed when receiving Jerome Baker after completing a challenge.
• Fixed an issue in "The Run" Game 2, the CPU automatically starts with 3 points, which incorrectly deducts 40 points from the player's leaderboard score.
• Fixed an issue where invited players received an error pop up and were removed from lobby when pressing ready while being transitioned to lobby UT Play A Friend.
• Game history is now shown in the Season Rewards screen in Progress & Rewards.
• Multiple UI elements now disappear when the user returns from the Progress & Rewards screen.

Presentation

Players/Equipment/Uniforms

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• Adjusted neck length and helmet fitment on most all players.
• Adjusted hair helmet on placement for players with longer hair.
• New alternate uniform elements for Ohio, Notre Dame, Boston College, Tennessee, Tulane, Tulsa, Iowa State, Mississippi State, Cincinnati.
• New updated or added Home and/or Away sets/elements for Washington, Liberty, West Virginia, Toledo, Georgia Tech, Houston, Tulane, Western Michigan, New Mexico State, Temple, Cincinnati.
• Adjusted current uniform assets for Central Michigan (Helmet), North Carolina (Numbers), Marshall (Collar).

Audio

Crowd Updates

• Increased crowd reactions to big moments .
• Home Field Advantage pre-play swell tuning for different stadium attendance sizes.
• Updated Crowd Assets for general pregame and RTG First Person runouts.
• Deep Pass anticipation reactions updated to improve timing.
• Tuning on field collision sounds.
• Adjusted UI Sounds across multiple modes.
• New Crowd Themes for the following schools:
  
  • Note: New crowd themes included in this update are exclusive to which schools you are playing against and the time of year.
  • Akron, Appalachian State, Arizona State, Auburn, Baylor, Boise State, Bowling Green, Charlotte, Coastal Carolina, Colorado, Delaware, East Carolina, Eastern Michigan, Florida International, Georgia Southern, Hawaii, Houston, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kansas State, Kennesaw State, Louisiana Tech, Louisville, Marshall, Maryland, Memphis, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri State, Northern Illinois, Northwestern, Oklahoma, Penn State, Rutgers, SMU, Tennessee, Texas State, Texas Tech, UL Monroe, Utah, Utah State, Virginia, Wake Forest, West Virginia, Wisconsin.

Music/SFX/Chants

• Added the Oregon Football Theme.
• Added Mr. Brightside to Missouri.
• Added All Hail Washington State post Washington State Touchdowns.
• Added Music to the VOLS chant at Tennessee.
• Added Pump it Up to Michigan after PAT on First TD.
• Update to Good Ole Song for Virginia.
• Added more chants for Arizona.
• Added SFX for Missouri State Cannon.

Commentary Updates

• Fixes for Fair Catch inconsistency.
• Fixes around PAT follow-ups.
• Adjustments to Commentary Banter frequency.
• Adjustments to Commentary intros around ranked games.

New Mascots

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• Appalachian State - Yosef
• Virginia - Cavman
• UTEP - Paydirt Pete
• James Madison - Duke Dog
• Memphis - Pouncer

Field Art Updates

• Added new Kansas “Waving Wheat” End Zone Design
• Various corrections for other Field Art on other teams.