NCAA Football 14’s tired playbook leaves it short of the end zone (review)

While college football has evolved with instant-replay booths, high-scoring spread offenses, and — gasp — an actual playoff to determine a true national champion, EA Sports’ yearly digital installments of its NCAA Football franchise have had difficulty keeping things fresh.

The multiplatform NCAA Football 14, coming out tomorrow, follows the series’ solid-yet-standard formula. It has the modes you’re used to — exhibition, season, the team-building Dynasty mode, the create-a-blue-chipper Road to Glory, etc. It has the pseudo-ESPN presentation. And it has enough playbooks to make a freshman quarterback wish he was still back in high school.