Tennessee football fans react to early release of 'EA Sports College Football 25' video game

For the first time in more than 4,000 days, college football fans are able to watch their favorite teams play — virtually, that is.

The newest edition of "EA Sports College Football 25" is gracing the realm of console gaming, coming more than 10 years after the previous release of the series, "NCAA Football 14."

All 134 Football Bowl Subdivision teams are included in the game, and with the new NIL-friendly NCAA rules, fans will be able to play using their favorites athletes and potentially reach new heights with a national championship.

Though the game doesn’t officially release until July 19, fans who preordered the deluxe edition were given three-day early access to play the game. More than 700,000 gamers were on the servers for early access.

Vols fans were able to play under the lights of soldout Neyland Stadium more than a month before the first official real-world home game versus Chattanooga.

Fans were able to sort through different uniform combinations, score touchdowns and even participate in one of the greatest traditions that Tennessee football has — running through the "T" pregame.

Here’s how Vols fans are reacting to the game:

Lawrence Goss is The Tennessean's sports intern with the Sports Journalism Institute. Contact Lawrence at lgoss@gannett.com. Follow Lawrence on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @iamlgoss.