Alabama, Texas Lead College Football 26 Ratings for Top 10 Teams, Offenses, Defenses

Alabama and Texas are among the highest-rated teams in the upcoming College Football 26 video game.

EA Sports released lists of the top 10 schools in terms of overall rating, offensive rating and defensive rating in the game on Friday.

Alabama leads the way with an 89 overall rating, followed by Texas, Ohio State, Penn State, Notre Dame, Georgia, Clemson and Texas A&M at 88:

Rounding out the top 25 overall teams are Miami (86), Florida (86), Texas Tech (86), Arizona State (85), Michigan (85), Ole Miss (85), Oklahoma (85), Indiana (85), SMU (84), Tennessee (84), Missouri (84), Auburn (84), Duke (84), South Carolina (82) and Illinois (82).

The Crimson Tide also boast the best defensive rating at 96, while Texas and Penn State are tied for second at 94:

As for offense, the Longhorns are tied at the top with Penn State, Ohio State and Arizona State with a rating of 91:

Last year, Alabama went 9-4 and missed the College Football Playoff in the first year under head coach Kalen DeBoer following the retirement of legendary head coach Nick Saban.

With quarterback Jalen Milroe making the leap to the NFL, there are some question marks surrounding the Tide's offense, including who will start under center.

Ty Simpson, who has only 50 career passing attempts in three seasons at Alabama, looks to be the favorite, meaning a largely unknown entity could be leading the offseason.

However, sophomore wide receiver Ryan Williams is returning after a spectacular freshman campaign, and as usual, Bama is expected to have one of the top defenses in the nation.

With linebacker Deontae Lawson, cornerback Zabien Brown, safety Bray Hubbard and defensive tackle Tim Keenan III leading the way, Alabama will be a tough team score on in College Football 26 and during the 2025 season.

On the heels of falling to Ohio State in the College Football Playoff semifinals last season, Texas may be set to take a huge step toward national title contention in 2025.

The biggest reason why is the advancement of quarterback Quinn Ewers to the NFL, paving the way for Arch Manning to take over as the starting quarterback.

Manning was one of the most-hyped recruits to arrive on the college football scene in recent memory. After showing flashes of brilliance in limited duty last season, he may be poised to enter Heisman Trophy contention next season.

Two other schools ranked highly in terms of overall, offensive and defensive ratings are Big Ten rivals Ohio State and Penn State.

Both the Buckeyes and Nittany Lions reached the CFP semifinals last season, and OSU went on to win the national championship.

Ohio State's 14 players taken in the 2025 NFL draft were the most of any team, but they reloaded with quality recruiting and transfer classes, and the pieces are in place to potentially repeat.

Wideouts Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate are back, possibly giving Ohio State the best receiving tandem in the nation. That could be huge for the development of freshman quarterback and likely starter Julian Sayin.

While Penn State lost superstar pass-rusher Abdul Carter and tight end Tyler Warren to the NFL as first-round picks, they are bolstered by the return of quarterback Drew Allar and running back duo Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen.

If the Nittany Lions can dominate with their ground game much like Michigan did two seasons ago, they could possibly win their first national title since 1986.

College Football 26 is set for a worldwide release of July 10, but those who purchase the MVP Bundle or Deluxe Edition will gain three days of early access, meaning they can play as early as July 7.