Sun Devil defense gets shut out from EA's College Football 26 top ratings

As EA Sports prepares to release College Football 26, the second installment of the revamped college football video game, they're releasing player ratings to build hype. And while Arizona State's offense, namely Sam Leavitt and Jordyn Tyson, have gotten plenty of love, the defense has been oddly shut out.

Not only were there no Sun Devil defenders in the top 10 defensive players list, but none of them even cracked the top 10 at their respective position. Even worse, the defense as a whole was shut out from the top 10, ranking 23rd overall with a team defense grade of 84.

That's a slap in the face considering Arizona State returns nearly all of their starters on that side of the ball from last season. In 2024, the Sun Devils only gave up 22.6 points per game and had the 16th best run defense among Power 4 programs.

Defensive coordinator Brian Ward's unit rounded into form in the final month, too, allowing just 20.4 points a game over their final five contests. That included giving up 39 points to Texas in six quarters during the Peach Bowl, a game that featured Arizona State holding the Longhorns' top five offense to just 10 points in the final three quarters of regulation.

By all accounts, the Sun Devil defense finished last year as one of the best defensive units in the nation. While they lost starting slot defender Shamari Simmons and frequent rotational players in defensive tackle Jeff Clark and linebacker Caleb McCullough, the Sun Devils have plenty of options to fill those voids.

Kenny Dillingham brought in a pair of Purdue transfer corners in Kyndrich Breedlove and Nyland Green, as well as Washington State safety Adrian Wilson, to compete for the slot role. The defensive tackle position is loaded with talent, led by star CJ Fite, and the linebacker room features the likes of Keyshaun Elliott, Jordan Crook, Zyrus Fiaseu, and others.

In short, there's no reason to expect this defense to take a step back from last year. If anything, conventional logic says they'll be even better, and thus deserving of being much higher than their video game ratings would suggest.

I guess we'll have to wait for the roster updates once the season has started, as the Sun Devils are sure to defy expectations just as they did a year ago.