HATTIESBURG — Southern Miss University football is rated 76th overall in the EA College Football 25.
The highly anticipated video game was released to the public for the first time in 11 years on Monday, and the Golden Eagles offense was rated 71 points overall and their defense was rated 72 points.
Southern Miss' overall score of 76 is tied for fifth in the Sun Belt Conference. Texas State, Appalachian State, Arkansas State and Louisiana State are the top four teams in the conference. The rating is EA's way of measuring the skill level of each player and team in the game. The highest individual rating EA has given is 96, with Georgia's highest at 95. EA said it will change the ratings based on performance during the season.
Notably absent from the game is Ethan Crawford, who is competing for the starting quarterback position. Players who wanted to participate were paid $600 and given a free copy of the video game.
Last February, we predicted four players who would be the top recruits at Southern Miss, and we were wrong. Drake Clark, who replaced Frank Gore Jr. as the Golden Eagles' starting running back, leads the way with a rating of 81. Here are the top three players at each position:
Southern Miss University's highest rated players in EA College Football 25
Quarterback
Tate Roadmaker (79)
Alex Winkler (70)
John White (66)
Run back
Drake Clark (81)
Chandler Pittman (77)
Kenyon Clay (68)
Wide Receiver
Ty Mimms (80)
Larry Simmons (73)
Dakota Thomas, Keyshawn Buckley (73)
Tight End
Kirin Heath (76)
Justin Reid (73)
Terron Bedford (72)
more:Southern Miss University sports ratings for 2023-24: Baseball leads, what did football get?
Attacking Line
Will Saxton (80)
Zach Conti (77)
Greg Nunnally and Gabe Cavazos Jr. (73)
Defensive Line
Jalen Williams (78)
Demeko Rowland (77)
Kristin Booth (75)
Linebacker
Jahlil Clemons (78)
Dezmin Baker (77)
Jalen Sims (77)
Cornerback
Braxton Myers (77)
Michael Caraway Jr. (75)
Ques McNeill (75)
safety
Dylan Lawrence (74)
Jay Jones (73)
Elijah Sabatini, Jordan Johnson (72)
Kicker
Andrew Stein (73)
Connor Gibbs (60)
Punter
Bryce Lofton (69)
Andrew Stein (67)
Sam Sklar is the Southern Miss reporter for the Hattiesburg American. Email him at ssklar@hattiesb.gannett.com and follow him on X at @sklarsam_.
