"Jordon Hudson said no" - CFB fans react as Bill Belichick declines to feature on EA Sports College Football 26 game

EA Sports College Football 26 released on Monday in early access, and fans are excited as the game will feature, for the first time, real coaches. But some coaches opted out, including North Carolina’s Bill Belichick.

Belichick’s absence isn’t entirely unexpected. He hasn’t appeared in an EA football game since Madden NFL 2002, due to his absence from the NFL Coaches Association, which grants EA the rights to use coaches’ likenesses. The New England Patriots were represented by a generic coach in every edition from Madden 2003 through 2025.

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Deion Sanders and Bill Belichick are not in EA CFB 26, per

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Some fans held out hope that Belichick being in college could finally bring him into EA’s game. However, his omission led to disappointment on X.

“I was so f*****g excited wtf,” a fan said.

Some speculated, perhaps jokingly, about why he declined to appear. One fan referred to the situation surrounding his girlfriend, Jordon Hudson, who has become increasingly visible in Belichick’s professional life while acting as a media liaison.

Her presence stirred controversy after an interview on a “CBS Sunday Morning” episode in April, where she cut off a question about their relationship, since the segment was focused on Belichick’s new book.

“Explanation for Belichick: Jordon said no,” the fan wrote.

Meanwhile, others were not surprised at all by Bill Belichick's exclusion.

“Belichick was a Madden holdout basically its entire existence so no shock,” a fan noted.

“Not surprised by Belichick, he was never in Madden,” another echoed.

Some other reactions followed.

“Trying to be different just cause,” a fan said.

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Other coaches absent from EA Sports College Football 26 besides Bill Belichick

In addition to Bill Belichick, several other college football coaches are missing from EA Sports College Football 26. Notably, Colorado’s Deion Sanders will also be absent from the latest iteration of the game. In total, 12 coaches opted out or were not included.

The other 10 coaches are:

• Bronco Mendenhall (Utah State Aggies)
• Bryant Vincent (Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks)
• Charles Kelly (Jacksonville State Gamecocks)
• Frank Reich (Stanford Cardinal)
• Jason Eck (New Mexico Lobos)
• Kirk Ferentz (Iowa Hawkeyes)
• Mario Cristobal (Miami Hurricanes)
• Mark Carney (Kent State Golden Flashes)
• Trent Dilfer (UAB Blazers)
• Tyson Helton (Western Kentucky Hilltoppers)

EA has not provided specific reasons for each coach’s absence, though licensing issues could be a possible factor.