Finally! First Look at WVU's Glossy Helmets in the College Football 26 Video Game

The gloss is IN THE GAME.

WVU Athletics Communication

EA Sports' College Football 26 has been out for nearly a month now, but it wasn't until this morning that the game included West Virginia's blue glossy helmets. They didn't have them at the game's launch because WVU hadn't revealed the return of the gloss when they submitted everything to the game's developers.

So for the last month, Mountaineer fans have been playing with the blue matte lids, which don't look bad, but man, the gloss hits different.

Shortly after the game was updated this morning to include the new features, I quickly grabbed a handful of pictures to show what the glossy helmet looks like in the game. Yes, I know, my photography skills aren't the greatest, but you can still tell the difference.

Pick uniform screen

College Football 26

RB Jahiem White

College Football 26

QB Nicco Marchiol

College Football 26

QB Nicco Marchiol

College Football 26

The shine is a thing of beauty. It brings folks back to the days when Mountaineer football was fun and exciting. The program first introduced the matte look in 2013, and I don't think it's a coincidence that they went 4-8 that season. No, the record has nothing to do with the helmets or uniforms, but I do think it's worth noting that WVU had five losing seasons during the matte helmet era.

As of now, it appears the blue lid is the only one switching from matte to gloss, however. The white and coal rush will remain matte in 2025. As far as the gold is concerned, well, no one really knows because there haven't been any pictures posted by players where the gold is shown, leaving some to believe they could ditch it completely, potentially being replaced by the 1965 Old Gold throwback, which does have a shine to it.

Other features are supposed to be updated in the game, such as the fans going along with the Coal Rush theme and True Blue. I'm not sure what triggers that unless the computer just decides for you, as it currently does with Stripe the Stadium and Gold Rush. I picked the Coal Rush look in a "play now" game versus Pitt, and the crowd was still decked out in gold and blue.

But hey, at least the glossy blue lids are finally...IN THE GAME.

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