College Football 26 is a fairly straightforward game at first glance. Pick a team, pick a play to run, and do your best to reach the touchdown line, right? However, that misunderstanding quickly dissipates once you enter a match. From super-specific offensive playbooks to a multitude of on-screen icons, it can be confusing, especially as a new player.
You’ve got icons above players from both teams, and different ones on the field as well. Each icon is unique, but how do you determine its meaning? There are around 20 on-screen player icons in CFB 26, ranging from position icons to ability and intent icons.
Types Of Icons And Their Meaning
We mentioned how icons appear all over the field. You’ll see some over your players, some over the opposing players, and others scattered above and under player avatars. To make things easy, we’re going to split them up into three categories:
- General
- Offensive
- Defensive
This should give you an idea of what each icon represents according to which player it’s on. Since they’re quite small, they can often be mixed up, leading to players calling out incorrect plays. Make sure you follow along, since things might get a bit complex.
General On-Screen Player Icons
| Icon | Meaning |
 Blue Circle |
Controlled Player (You) |
 Diamond |
Game-suggested player to switch to |
 Star |
Team captain/ playmaker/ star player |
 Speech Bubble |
Coach prompt (Road-to-Glory) |
 Yellow Line (on-field) |
First down marker |
|
Blue Line (on-field) |
Offensive Line of Scrimmage (LOS) |
 Red Line (on-field) |
Defensive LOS or blitz depth |
 Ball icon |
Pre-snap line/ ball position |
Those are all the general on-screen player icons you should know about. They’re pretty straightforward to understand, and you’ll know exactly what they mean when you see them on-screen. Next, let’s move on to offensive player icons every CFB 26 player should know.
Offensive On-Screen Player Icons
| Icon | Meaning |
   Controller Icons |
Possible actions in a play (pass/run) |
|
Red Triangle |
Primary receiver on the play |
 Motion Icon |
The player has automatic motion command post-snap (only for auto-motion plays) |
 Hot Route Bolt |
A custom hot route has been set for this player |
 Eye Icon |
Key defender QB is reading for RPO |
 Bootleg Arrow |
QB is set to roll out |
 Ice Cube Icon |
‘Ice in the Veins’ QB Trait (clutch time) |
When calling a play, you’ll see these icons in different scenarios. The controller icons will appear on almost every play to indicate which players you can pass the ball to after the snap. However, the triangle is reserved for the primary receiver on the play, who is most likely to gain the most yards.
If you’ve chosen an auto-motion play (plays with MTN in the name), any player with an auto-motion command will have the motion icon above their head. The same goes for hot route icons. If you’ve set a custom hot route for a receiver, a bolt icon will appear above their avatar. The eye icon is a particularly important icon to know if you call a lot of RPOs in CFB 26. While this will tie into the R and P defensive icons later on, your QB will be reading the defender with the eye icon on them.
Defensive On-Screen Player Icons
| Icon | Meaning |
| 𝐌 | ‘Mic’ defender |
| 𝐑 | ‘Read’ defender |
| 𝐏 | ‘Pitch’ defender |
|
C (red triangle) |
‘Cutback’ defender |
 C (blue triangle) |
‘Check’ defender |
| 𝐅 | ‘Force’ defender |
 Flame Icon |
Defenders without blocking assignments |
 Green Check Mark |
Defenders close to the LOS |
|
Blue Dots |
Pass rush moves available |
|
Red Bars (under offensive linemen only) |
Efficiency of pass rush moves (side-based) |
We’ve gone over 2/3rd of the icons, but these require a bit more explanation. The defensive on-screen player icons are essential to read the defense pre-snap and call your play accordingly. Here’s a short breakdown of what each icon means:
- Mic Defender: The middle linebacker of the formation, responsible for calling plays, and regarded as the defensive leader. Identifying him is crucial as protection and blocking assignments are made around him.
- Read Defender: Read and Pitch defenders are who QBs look at during RPO plays. If the Read defender comes towards you, you hand off the ball. However, if he waits for the run near the bubble, you can keep the ball and run.
- Pitch Defender: Similar to the Read defender, you’ll need to keep an eye on the Pitch defender to make the correct play. If the Pitch defender goes for your WR, run with the ball, or pass to the other side. If he comes towards the QB, pass the ball to the WR.
- Cutback Defender: The Cutback defender is there to stop the ball carrier, regardless of the path he takes. If you try to run back and change sides with the ball carrier, it is his job to stop the run as soon as possible.
- Check Defender: Check defenders aren’t that common, and are usually seen on a play with a check-and-release route. If these defenders blitz, your RB/TE is responsible for blocking them. If the Check defender stays, your RB/TE will run the route.
- Force Defender: Similar to Cutback defenders, the Force defender’s job is to contain the ball carrier. Whenever the ball carrier is trying to make a run, the Force defender will try to stop his run.
- Flame Icon: Paying attention to defenders with a flame icon is crucial when calling plays. These defenders don’t have blocking assignments in CFB 26, meaning you can’t predict their pathing. If they blitz you, you’ll need to make a quick decision or risk getting sacked. Since they aren’t marked by the offensive line, they can get through easily compared to the rest of the defense. They only show up if close enough to the LOS on snap.
- Green Check Marks: This doesn’t require a lot of explanation. In CFB 26, whichever defenders are close enough to the LOS will receive a Green Check Mark icon on top of their heads. This is so you don’t miss any surprise blitzes.
- Blue Dots: The blue dots on defenders indicate pass rush moves available. These are moves to avoid/disengage from the offensive linemen to reach the backline. If you have 1 blue dot, it means you can attempt a pass rush move once. If successful, it replenishes. Subbing in new defenders also refreshes the blue dots.
- Red Bars: The red bars under offensive linemen are the complete opposite of blue dots. These red bars fill up as you perform pass rush moves on the linemen. Over time, they will recognize your plays, making it harder to pull the same move twice. Depending on which side you use the pass rush move on, the bar will fill up more. Switching out defenders or using pass rush moves on the opposite side will reduce this bar.
And that’s pretty much it for your on-screen player icons. We’ve covered all three sections: general, offensive, and defensive, leaving very little to still be understood. Make sure you practice recognizing these icons on the fly before going into real matches, since they can be confusing at first.
