Tennessee Football's top 10 overall player ratings on EA Sports College Football 25

The early release of EA Sports College Football 25 is set for 4 p.m. Eastern Time Monday, ahead of the game’s public release on Friday. Here’s a look at the top 10 highest-rated Tennessee players on the new game, via Twitch:

95 Overall — James Pearce Jr.

James Pearce Jr. is the No. 4 overall player in the game with an overall rating of 95. He’s has 88 Speed, 85 Strength, 89 Agility, 95 Acceleration and 91 Awareness. The 6-foot-5, 243-pound junior pass rusher is widely projected as a top-five pick in the 2025 NFL Draft after exploding onto the scene last season, finishing with 10.0 sacks, 14.5 tackles for loss and 16 quarterback hits. 

89 — Cade Mays

Cade Mays, the 6-foot-4, 310-pound fifth-year senior, has been Tennessee’s starting center the last four seasons and was a Second Team All-SEC pick by the Associated Press in 2023. On the game he has 87 Strength, 78 Agility, 80 Acceleration and 95 Awareness. Last season he missed the four games after undergoing hernia surgery in August. C

87 — Squirrel White

Squirrel White is Tennessee’s fastest player on the game with a 95 Speed rating. His 87 Overall also included 91 Acceleration and 87 Agility ratings. The 5-foot-10, 167-pound junior has caught 97 passes for 1,284 yards and four touchdowns in 25 career games at Tennessee. Last season he had 67 receptions for 803 yards and two touchdowns.

86 — Bru McCoy

Fifth-year senior Bru McCoy returns from the broken leg that ended his 2023 season last September and is the fourth-highest rated player for the Vols. His 86 Overall rating includes 81 Strength, 87 Agility, 91 Acceleration and 91 Awareness. He has 69 receptions for 884 yards and five touchdowns in 17 games with the Vols, including 17 catches for 217 yards and a touchdown before being injured five games into his redshirt junior season.

86 — Nico Iamaleava

Nico Iamaleava, the 6-foot-6, 215-pound former five-star prospect and No. 1 overall recruit in the country, has an 86 Overall rating that is made up from 85 Speed, 64 Strength, 84 Agility, 86 Acceleration and 84 Awareness. He made his first career start in the 35-0 win over Iowa in the Citrus Bowl, accounting for 178 total yards and four total touchdowns. He passed for 314 yards and ran for 71 yards in five games while backing up Joe Milton III.

we play football this week (ɪɴ ᴀ ᴠɪᴅᴇᴏ ɢᴀᴍᴇ) 🎮@nico_iamaleava8@EASPORTSCollege | #CFB25 | #GBO 🍊 pic.twitter.com/lCi0WxIM3R

— Tennessee Football (@Vol_Football) July 14, 2024

85 — Dylan Sampson

Dylan Sampson is next up for Tennessee at running back, steeping into the starting position vacated by Jaylen Wright. The 5-foot-11, 201-pound sophomore has 96 Acceleration, 95 Speed, 93 Agility and 83 Awareness. The former four-star prospect rushed for 604 yards and seven touchdowns last season. He caught 17 passes for 175 yards and another touchdown through the air. For his career, he has 1,200 total yards and 14 total touchdowns in just 22 games. 

83 — Omari Thomas

Omari Thomas is back for his fifth year with the Vols and has an 83 Overall rating. The 6-foot-4, 325-pound defensive tackle has 94 Strength and 92 Awareness. In 48 career games over the last four seasons, Thomas has 93 tackles, 11.0 tackles for loss and 4.0 sacks. Last season he had career highs in tackles (35) and tackles for loss (4.5).

82 — Chris Brazzell II

Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Chris Brazzell II was one of the headliners of Tennessee’s transfer class, transferring to Tennessee from Tulane. He caught 44 passes for 711 yards and five touchdowns during a breakout season with the Green Wave in 2023. Now he’s one of the highest rated players for Tennessee in the new game at 82 Overall, with 90 Speed, 87 Acceleration, 86 Awareness and 85 Agility. 

81 — Dont’e Thornton

Dont’e Thornton was starting to come into his own late last season before suffering a season-ending injury in the loss at Missouri in November. The Oregon transfer in 13 games caught 13 passes for 224 yards and a touchdown. He’s one of at least five Tennessee players with an 81 Overall rating. He has 93 Speed, 92 Agility, 91 Acceleration and 83 Awareness.

81 — Jourdan Thomas

Junior safety Jourdan Thomas is another 81 Overall for Tennessee in the game. He 91 Acceleration, 88 Speed, 86 Agility and 79 Awareness. He’ll play a much bigger role in Tennessee’s new-look secondary this season. In 15 games over the last two seasons, Thomas has 28 tackles, including 2.0 tackles for loss.

Three other players with 81 overall ratings are senior offensive lineman Javontez Spraggins, junior tight end and Notre Dame transfer Holden Staes and redshirt senior offensive lineman Jackson Lampley.