"You’re on the spot, Mike Norvell": SMU HC Rhett Lashlee challenges Florida State HC to a fiery game of EA Sports College Football 25
Mike Norvell vs. Rhett Lashlee in College Football 25: How about some friendly off-season competition for head coaches? That's what SMU Mustangs Rhett Lashlee had in mind when he decided to challenge Florida State's Mike Norvell to some friendly games of EA Sports College Football 25 on Monday.
During the ACC media days, Rhett Lashlee revealed challenging his fellow head coach by stating:
“I challenged Mike Norvell to a game of College Football [25], I don’t know if he’s going to do it, but like that would be that would be great TV, right? And maybe that decides who wins the [coin] toss or something on September 28. You’re on the spot, Mike.”
EA Sports College Football 25 has already been a huge hit. The video game sold a whopping 2.2 million copies of its Deluxe Edition during an early access campaign. That meant $200 million in revenue for the publisher even before the official release date for the game.
Having personalities like Norvell and Lashlee would only bring more publicity to what is already an outstanding success for the video game company. The SMU Mustangs are headed for their first ACC season, after leaving the American Athletic Conference during last year's conference realignment.
Rhett Lashlee reflects on SMU's jump to the ACC
The Mustangs had long been touted for a move to a Power Five conference, and that's exactly what they did in 2023. Their new home is the ACC, a conference that was looking to add some schools after the Big Ten, SEC, and Big 12 significantly increased their commercial appeal by adding new teams for the upcoming season.
The ACC wasn't going to be left behind, looking to avoid a Pac-12-style fate, and it added SMU, California, and Stanford to its members. In terms of competitiveness, it is a step up for the three schools, especially for the Mustangs who come from a non-Power Five background. Here's what Rhett Lashlee said the move implies for the school, during the ACC media days:
"It's a jump, we are moving up in weight class. We are going to learn a lot about our program and where we stand. We are excited about that. I do feel like we can compete, and I will be very disappointed if we don't."
The Mustangs open up the season on the 24th against Nevada but face their first ACC challenge on September 8. In Week 4 they host the reining ACC champions, the Florida State Seminoles, in Dallas's Gerald J. Ford Stadium.