Your "I'm addicted to NCAA Football" moment

[gator3guy]

We've all had that moment (or moments) where we popped the game in, got lost for hours, and finally reemerged back into the real world with that "WTF did I just do!" feeling. I didn't have too many of those moments in the PS3/360 days, but the PS2 days of NCAA football? Wow. A good chunk of my teenage years are left in some of those games.

My first moment was back in 2001. Got a PS2 for Christmas along with NCAA 2002 marked with the great Chris Weinke. After spending the rest of Christmas day fooling around with the system and Madden, I woke up the next day, at the *** crack of dawn, ran down the basement, and popped in that NCAA disc (which needed to be buffed for 10 minutes to actually work btw). I then proceeded to play the entire first season of a dynasty with the EJ Henderson-led Maryland Terrapins. After winning the ACC and Orange Bowl all in one sitting, I finally snapped back into realty. Walking up the basement steps, still wearing my PJs from the night prior, I noticed the sky had gone dark again and it hit me. I was a junkie. I was hooked.

There was also the time where I spent half of my 10 day South Florida vacation inside a Holiday Inn Express playing NCAA 07 that had just been released as I was on the trip. I played game after game. Not to mention I had to take my PS2 as a carry-on and buy an AV adapter just to get the old tube television to function.

And then there's the whole "mailing your memory card" adventure (hard to remember memory cards were actually a thing) just so you wouldn't have to see HB #2. But that was only the beginning for me. Then I had to edit the equipment of guys, and not just the QB or RB, it usually turned out to be every guy I saw. It got so bad I was taking notes of what guys wore and also inputting changes as games were on-going. It was bad. But you couldn't let anyone see you what you were actually doing for fear that they might think less of you as a person (as if they didn't already). It was a top secret mission each time I did it.

So those are just some of the moments I remember. As I get older, I don't know if its possible for me to have these moments again, but any time I recall them, I can't help but smile. NCAA was an awesome franchise for those handful of years. Hopefully NCAA can get back to that level some day. If not for me, some other kids.

What are your moments?

[Cheese2121]

Glory days my friend, glory days. I remember many days spent with my cousin in my parents' "rec room" spending countless hours playing NCAA 04-07. We would have two TVs set up side by side so we could play our separate franchises while hanging out together at the same time. We also had a mini-fridge that we filled with Mountain Dew. I am pretty sure we made a diet out of Mountain Dews and Pringles for those summers. Some of the best times of my life hanging out with him and our madden/ncaa projects.

These days, don't really have time for that anymore. I am a full time veterinary student along with holding part times jobs and research on the side. I still keep two active franchise projects going though (see links below if you are interested) and every once in a while I get that rare day that i curl up on the couch, kick back in sweat pants and an old tshirt and just relax immersing myself in my reporting, playing, watching games, having OS pulled up on my laptop all day. It is a part of me, I don't ever plan on letting go and luckily my girlfriend (hopefully someday wife) is completely supportive of it. She'll occasionally hang out as well and ask questions. Doesn't get any better than that.

Life is good.

[Miles Perry]

NCAA Football 98 on PS1. I was like 5 years old at the time, but I played it all the time. I've been a college football but since birth. I think the first time I really got emerged in the game was 2003. My friends and I would always have sleepovers and play our multi team dynasty we had going. My friends and I discovered OS in high school and just used the sliders for our ODs. We spent countless hours with those over the years, and still do. I was actually able to keep up with my friends from high school through NCAA during college. And now that I live in Houston (most of them are in DFW) we still use NCAA to keep up.

[StoneCalf]

That first moment where I realized I was all in was in 2002 when I went to Office Depot and bought my first hardback record book to record all my stats, game results and notes, rosters, settings, etc. for NCAA 2003.

I had played NCAA FB regularly since PS1, but making the commitment to record every relevant detail of my dynasty marked the moment where I crossed over into addicted territory.

122 Dynasty seasons, 13 years and 6.5 300 page record books later and I'm still truckin' at full steam. Over the years, many other games have came and went, but the NCAA series endures.

[Cheese2121]

Quote: Originally Posted by StoneCalf

That first moment where I realized I was all in was in 2002 when I went to Office Depot and bought my first hardback record book to record all my stats, game results and notes, rosters, settings, etc. for NCAA 2003. I had played NCAA FB regularly since PS1, but making the commitment to record every relevant detail of my dynasty marked the moment where I crossed over into addicted territory. 122 Dynasty seasons, 13 years and 6.5 300 page record books later and I'm still truckin' at full steam. Over the years, many other games have came and went, but the NCAA series endures.

Holy cow that is impressive my friend. I wish I had kept track of what I was at. I remember filling countless notebooks before i discovered 'chising while I was sitting in the Detroit airport waiting on a connecting flight, it was an OS Buffalo Bills report with Willis McGahee. I was a silent lurker for a longtime reading them until about my sophomore year when I started posting and then tried my hand at a report on Madden '10. I have been hooked ever since.

[goillini03]

Quote: Originally Posted by StoneCalf

That first moment where I realized I was all in was in 2002 when I went to Office Depot and bought my first hardback record book to record all my stats, game results and notes, rosters, settings, etc. for NCAA 2003. I had played NCAA FB regularly since PS1, but making the commitment to record every relevant detail of my dynasty marked the moment where I crossed over into addicted territory. 122 Dynasty seasons, 13 years and 6.5 300 page record books later and I'm still truckin' at full steam. Over the years, many other games have came and went, but the NCAA series endures.

It would be cool to see your season/career leaders that you have controlled over the years.

[Clemsonpanther]

Well one time i played a whole season of clemson in a day.

I had my wisdom teeth taken out, and was on pain medicine (the kind that impairs your functioning. I laid in my bed for three days (the tv got moved to the foot of my bed) playing ncaa 14 because it had just came out.

I dont know what ill do in college because i love ncaa so bad but theres two of us and one ps3...

Praying they dont disconnect support for ncaa.

Wishing you had the time to do 125 dynasties (1 per team)

[StoneCalf]

I have been keeping up with my career leaders in rushing and passing in NCAA '14, but haven't done all time yet.

For '14, my top 2 rushers miraculously ended up tied! I inherited T.J. Yeldon when I began my dynasty, and with him came my one and only Heisman Trophy. Many years later I took the HC at Oregon State and accepted a FR transfer from Stanford (73 ovr) named Joel Ratliff. After sitting a year, I rode him hard for the next three years, and he ended up with the same exact rushing yards as Yeldon. What a coincidence!

Their career stats:

#4 T.J. Yeldon

5432 Yds on 925 attempts, 5.87 ypc, 67 td, 4 fmb, best game 224 yds, 34 100 yd games, 4 200 yd games, 42 20+ yd runs, 76 long, best season 1917 yds, dynasty years '13-'15, 99 ovr, 6'2" 223.

#22 Joel Ratliff

5432 Yds on 893 attempts, 6.08 ypc, 48 td, 6 fmb, best game 323 yds, 27 100 yd games, 8 200 yd games, 40 20+ yd runs, 80 long, best season 2132 yds, dynasty years '34-'37, 97 ovr, 5'11" 214.

In real life looks like that would put them tied for 9th all time.

T.J.'s real life YPC at Alabama was 5.77, so my virtual T.J. hit that really close.

Quote: Originally Posted by goillini03

It would be cool to see your season/career leaders that you have controlled over the years.