What has your experience been for those who dropped from All American to Varsity?

[SaintDemure]

I've always been an AA guy but I'm struggling with interceptions big time. Some are my fault, (I'm not the best at reading defenses), and some are the annoying type where the CB runs the route better than my WR, or the open WR fails to react to the pass altogether. I'm currently 2-4, which is fine, but some of these losses are too cheesy.

I'm also having issues where the moment my WRs are touched, they drop the ball. I had 15 dropped passes last game due to contact.

I'm thinking of making the switch to Varsity, but I still want a challenge. I'm playing with a 71 overall team so for my first year a .500 record would be a success. I'd hate to switch and then start dominating.

I'm summary, for those who made the switch, how did you find the contrast in difficulty levels?

[Nicasdream]

Re: What has your experience been for those who dropped from All American to Varsity?

I switched to classic passing because I find revamped passing pointless

But the Madden passing mode seemed okay just kinda wonky at times

[jello1717]

Re: What has your experience been for those who dropped from All American to Varsity?

I played AA pre-patch and have since made the switch to varsity. A lot of the BS that bothered me on AA post-patch (but not at all pre-patch on AA) seems gone on varsity. My tests with my 2024 ODU team (74 OVR) felt really good. I won half of the games, and they all felt realistic.

In season 2 my ODU is now an 80 OVR and most of my opponents are within a few points of my team. I started with 3 straight road games (which should be a challenge). I’m 5-1 with my only loss coming @ #7 Virginia Tech.

I’m getting pretty worried that I won’t lose often enough on varsity (I’ve already changed the sliders to make them tougher) and that’s with an 80 OVR team. I’m really worried what it’d be like once I’m coaching teams closer to 90 (or above).

[GKEnialb]

Re: What has your experience been for those who dropped from All American to Varsity?

I was throwing a ton of interceptions in AA, switched to vanilla Varsity and threw 4 in the first game, switched to Armor's Varsity "Average Joe" Sliders for Varsity and things got MUCH better... Not too easy but many fewer INTs.

[stlstudios189]

Re: What has your experience been for those who dropped from All American to Varsity?

I moved to varsity as well with Toledo.
Finished year one 9-3 regular season
Won the MAC championship 28-24
Won the Myrtle Beach bowl 32-28 finished ranked
Gleason finished with 3800 yards 31 TDs and 9 Ints
Had the 89th ranked class

Year two lost my opener to Kentucky 49-7

[Collegefbfan]

Re: What has your experience been for those who dropped from All American to Varsity?

I was throwing a ton of interceptions in AA, switched to vanilla Varsity and threw 4 in the first game, switched to Armor's Varsity "Average Joe" Sliders for Varsity and things got MUCH better... Not too easy but many fewer INTs.

What this guy said. Let me first say that I never tried AA. I tried the game out on Play Now when I first got it. Okay, too easy. Moved to dynasty and tried default sliders for varsity. I was winning, but dang it was a headache at times. My SDSU team beat Oregon State pretty badly, then had the toughest time in the world watching teams like Eastern Michigan, FCS Royals, and a host of others put up 400 yards passing on us while we won in a ton of shootouts by 3-12 points. Very few punts. The thing is/was I wasn't throwing that many picks. It was that the CPU offense found EVERY SINGLE OPENING IN THE ZONE ALMOST EVERY SINGLE TIME. Made the change to a good set of sliders and been pretty happy about it.

[NoleFan]

Re: What has your experience been for those who dropped from All American to Varsity?

I can’t believe I just tossed 5 picks in a Sun Belt game on default Varsity. Never have I ever…but, now that I know it can happen I know it’s ok to stay right here Of course the sim engine allowed my opponent’s offense to dog walk us. Lost 35-14 to fall to 5-6 on the season

[AOBlitz]

Re: What has your experience been for those who dropped from All American to Varsity?

Varsity feels better after the last patch to me, obv EA needs to add / fix some things before next year. I haven't tried a real AA run after patch but Varsity I'm happy with on 10 min / 20 accel. Any slider tweaks that are needed don't need to be too significant for my exp. anyway. Passing too easy, Ints too easy, cpu run game a little too weak. But getting total plays on par with the cpu simmed games and the scores are good. So I'm happy with it, even though I should adjust as I'm having a little more success than my team should. Still lost to 74 overall NM ST team with my 80 overall so that's good.

[Playmakers]

Re: What has your experience been for those who dropped from All American to Varsity?

I've always been an AA guy but I'm struggling with interceptions big time. Some are my fault, (I'm not the best at reading defenses), and some are the annoying type where the CB runs the route better than my WR, or the open WR fails to react to the pass altogether. I'm currently 2-4, which is fine, but some of these losses are too cheesy.

I'm also having issues where the moment my WRs are touched, they drop the ball. I had 15 dropped passes last game due to contact.

I'm thinking of making the switch to Varsity, but I still want a challenge. I'm playing with a 71 overall team so for my first year a .500 record would be a success. I'd hate to switch and then start dominating.

I'm summary, for those who made the switch, how did you find the contrast in difficulty levels?

I love varsity gameplay

I have two sets of User vs CPU Varsity sliders but both sets are geared towards providing a challenge that might actually rival any AA set on these forums. QB play is way too easy in CFB25 so my set may not be for guys who are used to playing with a high setting. As you get deeper into Dynasty mode you get better at the game and higher accuracy imo just makes all levels of CFB too easy to pass after awhile

I operate from the lower end of the slider scale in order to keep completion% in check

[MrArlingtonBeach]

Re: What has your experience been for those who dropped from All American to Varsity?

Started on AA, and dropped down to stock Varsity due to throwing INTs all the time. I did tweak fatigue and injury sliders because it seemed Wear and Tear is almost non-existent at times in Varsity for me?

Anyway, I still throw more picks than I should on Varsity, but they're mostly my fault. I still get some defenders who make Herculean breaks on the ball, but they are fewer and farther between. I have also gotten a bit better at passing, taking my time, and reading defenses a bit more carefully.

I have mostly played Offense Only as the OC at Ball State, and could score points, but would still have games where I'd struggle to run, pass, or both. Case in point: I lost the MAC Championship in my second season to Akron 42-23.

I am now HC at Colorado State in the third season of my Dynasty, playing both sides of the ball. In my first game, on the road at Indiana, I threw 4 INTs, got down early 24-3, but then battled back to even have a chance to tie the game at the end, only to ultimately fall to the Hoosiers 24-16. I actually felt that the INTs I threw were a combination of bad passes on my part, but also the fact that the Hoosiers were simply a higher rated team.

I am really enjoying the game on Varsity. It's still challenging, but plays more "organically", IMO.

[TheSteelDad]

Re: What has your experience been for those who dropped from All American to Varsity?

Started out on AA with Louisiana. Like many of you the INTs were nuts. I dropped down to Varsity, used some sliders I found here (apologies for forgetting whose they were) and things have been better. But I still have a serious issue with the 'spider-man like' abilities of DBs.

I'll throw a corner route with some nice air on it yet a DB who is 12 yards underneath the WR will leap into the air to pick it off. Very troubling....

As for the change in levels, I've come to grips with my age and the fact that I just don't react as quickly as I need to so the VAR level suits me well. I have very competitive games and while I've made the CFP three times I advanced once to the title game and that's it.

[Locke888]

Re: What has your experience been for those who dropped from All American to Varsity?

Started at AA. Found out AA seemed like Heisman. I’m on varsity now. Was still getting beat but now am more comfortable and I am winning games with West Virginia. This is my “tuning dynasty” so I will continue to tune until I feel results are most realistic. I lost to #1 Bama by 15 at home. Won 42-7 to fcs. Feels good but I will get better and will have to adjust. I am honestly a bad player. If I were in an online dynasty with 11 other players in same conference I’d be 2-7 in conference play.

[ZekeRoberts]

Re: What has your experience been for those who dropped from All American to Varsity?

My "tuning" dynasty has me ready to drop to Varsity. I played default Varsity with Michigan in the first season and went 13-0, so I turned up sliders a bit in the playoff and lost my first game. 2nd season I also started undefeated and felt it was getting too easy so went to AA and I haven't been able to recover after nearly two full seasons. The INTs are borderline game-breaking. I think maybe revamped passing is broken or not coming off as intended, because I feel like I can't control the trajectory of the pass unless I use L1, which is out of control in most spots as well. I have turned down the INT slider and the pass coverage and reaction sliders for CPU on AA, and I'm still throwing to psychic defenders. I about broke a controller late in the 4th at UCLA today because a CB in the flat with his helmet turned suddenly spun around to pick off my fairly open TE corner route. I feel like I could only lob it ahead to where he's out of bounds, or throw the regular pass and boom, pick-6.

So yeah. Everything else about the game is fantastic. But I'm going to need to play om Varsity, because the passing is just stupid. In 2027 I have the highest rated team overall at 92-92-92. I can barely squeak out wins against teams in the 80-84 range, and I just got crushed at #5 Penn St (90-90-90). I mean I had no chance. I guess it is what it is. AA is the new Heisman (unless you know all the OP plays and can drill 8 pre-snap adjustments in 5 seconds, I guess)

[RyanLeaf16]

Re: What has your experience been for those who dropped from All American to Varsity?

For those of you moving down to Varsity from AA, is passing too many INTs the only issue you are having or is it a number of other things including the INTs?

I really only pass 10-15 times a game. I mainly run out of my flexbone set or I'll run out of pistol or shotgun if I want to use the shovel option, but I'm not throwing a ton of INTs on AA...that said, I'm also not pushing the ball downfield very much when I do pass. Just trying to get an idea of what everyone is experiencing with passing.

[MrArlingtonBeach]

Re: What has your experience been for those who dropped from All American to Varsity?

For those of you moving down to Varsity from AA, is passing too many INTs the only issue you are having or is it a number of other things including the INTs?

I really only pass 10-15 times a game. I mainly run out of my flexbone set or I'll run out of pistol or shotgun if I want to use the shovel option, but I'm not throwing a ton of INTs on AA...that said, I'm also not pushing the ball downfield very much when I do pass. Just trying to get an idea of what everyone is experiencing with passing.

That was my issue specifically, yes.

My experience: I could throw passes on AA that I thought were going to be definite completions, only for a DB to read my mind, change directions, and step in front of the pass just in the nick of time. And it was always INTs, too...never deflections or anything like that. DBs never dropped picks, either.

On Varsity, I see more DB deflections, and still throw INTs when I make poor reads. But open receivers I target properly will actually get a chance to catch the ball.

Otherwise, I feel the game on Varsity is fun and still challenging. I just lost at home to New Mexico State, playing as Colorado State, 44-42 on a last second field goal. That happened just after I scored a TD to take a 42-41 lead with 23 seconds left. Was an amazing game.