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Michigan QB Bryce Underwood the only freshman on cover of EA Sports College Football 26

clayton-sayfieby:Clayton Sayfie•about 11 hours•

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On3 image
(Photo by Bryce Underwood / Instagram)

For the second straight season, Michigan Wolverines football will have a cover athlete for EA Sports College Football. Running back Donovan Edwards, now an NFL Draft prospect, was featured on the 2025 version, while freshman early enrollee quarterback Bryce Underwood will appear on the front of the EA Sports College Football 26 game.

An early look of the video game cover reveals that Underwood is one of nine college football players to appear.

The other players on the cover are: Florida quarterback DJ Lagway, LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier, Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love, Alabama wide receiver Ryan Williams, Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State safety Caleb Downs, Arizona State quarterback Sam Leavitt and South Carolina EDGE Dylan Stewart. Multiple coaches are also on the cover.

That makes Underwood the only freshman athlete to be featured.

Per On3, a “legends” cover is also in the works, with former Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson and Florida quarterback Tim Tebow participating in the photoshoot.

No official release date has been announced for this year’s video game. Last year’s version was released in mid-July. Edwards was on the cover along with Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers and Colorado wide receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter.

Underwood will begin spring practices with Michigan next Tuesday (March 18). The former five-star+ prospect was the No. 1 overall recruit in the 2025 class, meaning the Wolverines landed the nation’s top prospect for the first time since defensive lineman Rashan Gary in 2016.

During the winter training cycle, Underwood already impressed teammates and coaches.

“He has been tremendous — his work ethic, his maturity, his commitment to the process,” an anonymous source told On3.

Second-year Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore joined the Crain and Company podcast recently and discussed the quarterback competition.

“You got [Fresno State graduate transfer] Mikey [Keene] you got Bryce and you got [sophomore] Jadyn Davis, and Jadyn Davis is no slouch, either,” Moore noted. “He’s a kid that came in highly touted, super competitive. Love his spirit, love his ability.

“Right now, we got those three guys that are really in the thick of the battle. And then, we’ll bring in another high school player, Chase Herbstreit, in the summer, and we’ll probably have another guy here, so we’ll have a total of five. So, those three are really in the thick of the battle.

“It’s unbelievable to have the talent that we have here right now in that position, and we just want to build it and continue to build it for years and years.

“But the process is going to be pretty simple: who completes the most passes, who’s the best leader, who can help the team win the most. Those things can sometimes be answered in the spring. Those things can be pushed out throughout the summer, through workouts, and then most of the time it happens when you gotta get to fall camp and make a decision.”

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