Okay, so I’ve been messing around with this game, NCAA 25, and I got curious about what happens when you decide to jump ship to the NFL. Let me tell you, it’s a whole process. I started my player out as a sophomore, just to have some time to build him up, you know? I played through a couple of seasons, racking up some decent stats, and then I got to the point where I had to make a choice: stay in college or declare for the NFL draft.
The game makes it clear that once you declare, that’s it. You’re burning that bridge, no turning back to college ball. So I saved my game, just in case I wanted to go back and try the other route later.
I decided, let’s do this, let’s go pro. I went through the in-game menus, found the option to declare for the draft, and held my breath. The game simulated the rest of the college season, and then boom, it was draft time.
Now, I’d heard that the deadline for underclassmen to declare is in January. I guess the game is trying to be realistic, then I saw my player’s name on a mock draft board. It was kinda cool, but also nerve-wracking. I had no idea where I’d end up.
- First step: Play a few seasons and up your game.
- Second step: Make the big decision – stay or go pro?
- Third step: Declare for the draft (no going back!).
- Fourth step: Watch the draft unfold.
The game simulated the whole draft, round by round. The first round went by, and my name wasn’t called. Okay, no big deal, I thought. Second round… nothing. Third… fourth… it kept going. My heart started sinking a little. I mean, I wasn’t expecting to be the number one pick or anything, but I thought I’d at least get drafted!
Finally, in the seventh round, my player’s name popped up. Whew! I got drafted by a team, I won’t mention them, I was too caught up in the moment to remember, the game announced my player’s signing and that was that.
What did I learn from this little experiment? Well, it’s pretty clear that even if you’re a decent player in college, making it to the NFL in the game is no cakewalk. It’s a gamble, just like in real life, I guess. You gotta be prepared for anything, even going undrafted or waiting until the very last round.
And I saw that in real life, there’s also a combine you have to go through. First, you are invited to a regional combine, then if you do well, you move on to the national combine. And if you really impress them, you get to be in the draft. High school players need to play at least 3 years of college football before they can enter the combine.
My Takeaways
- Going pro in NCAA 25 is a commitment. Once you declare, there’s no going back to college.
- The draft is unpredictable. You might go early, you might go late, or you might not go at all.
- It’s a simulation, but it gives you a taste of the real-life pressures and uncertainties of trying to make it in the NFL.
Anyway, that’s my story. I’m gonna go back now and see what happens if I stay in college for another year. Maybe I can boost my draft stock even more. Who knows? That’s the fun of these games, right? You get to explore all these different paths and see what happens. You can find lists of players online, and mock drafts, and all sorts of stuff. I saw some names, like Travis Hunter and Drew Allar. It’s fun to see who people are excited about. There’s a website, I think it’s called Drafttek, that has a big board of prospects. I’m going to check that out.
