It is one of the biggest fan days in the year for college football, and not for the reasons you would expect. It has nothing to do with a win or a star commitment, and it’s not even during football season.
It is the day you get to build your favorite school’s football team yourself: through an Xbox or Playstation.
“NCAA Football 2012,” an EA Sports product, is scheduled to be released on July 12. While the message board chatter for the game has already begun and shows no signs of slowing down, the debate for which athlete will star on this year’s cover is coming to a close.
EA Sports announced that it will hold the first-ever fan vote to decide who will grace the cover of “NCAA 2012.” The four athletes who are in the race are Auburn defensive tackle Nick Fairley, Washington quarterback Jake Locker, Oklahoma wide receiver DeMarco Murray and Alabama running back Mark Ingram.
The winner of the fan vote will be on the cover of this year’s edition of the game for the Xbox 360 and the Playstation 3.
“We decided to let the fans have a bigger voice in our games a few years ago,” Randy Chase, senior marketing manager with EA, said.
Chase also had high praise for Ingram.
“Mark was an obvious choice for us,” Chase said. “He was the obvious choice, having won a Heisman trophy and the national championship. We wanted to have someone from Alabama in there.”
Ingram’s case for the NCAA cover is strong. He rushed for 3,324 yards and 42 touchdowns in three years at the Capstone. He also had 670 receiving yards and four touchdowns in his career. He has been highly regarded among the NCAA Football staff, receiving a 98 overall rating in “NCAA Football 2011.” The 98 rating was the highest on the Alabama team in that year’s game, beating Julio Jones’ 97 overall rating.
Chase feels that Ingram has a very good chance to win the vote-off.
“[Ingram] comes from a program with such a great fan base,” Chase said. “He’s a very recognizable name, needless to say with his Heisman trophy.”
When asked if he had a prediction for the winner, Chase declined to comment. EA is remaining neutral to the results of the vote and will be happy to work with whoever wins, Chase said.
Students on campus, however, have no problem siding with Ingram.
“He’s got to be the best athlete that’s left in the running,” Hannah Franklin, a freshman majoring in elementary education, said. “I mean, Fairley wasn’t heard of until his junior year, but Ingram won the Heisman as a sophomore. Plus he did it all against Southeastern Conference defenses, much better than the defenses Locker and Murray saw.”
If Ingram receives the most votes, he will be the second Alabama running back to earn the cover of NCAA Football. Shaun Alexander was on the cover of “NCAA 2001,” coming off of a 1,383-yard and 19-touchdown season the year before.
The vote is being hosted through Facebook. Fans can go online and like the EA Sports NCAA Football page, then register to vote. Voting closes on April 4, with the winner being announced on April 19.
