1)NCAA Football 09 is going to be a great title this year.

T.J. Cutini-Fact. I'm as optimistic as ever that we're finally going to see the type of game we hoped for when this generation of consoles was born. Taking a look at the feature list, there's a ton there that people have been clamoring for, for a long time.

Patrick Williams-Fact. With the foundation that has been put down in terms of a gameplay patch, that made 08 a solid title in my eyes, and improved atmosphere, NCAA Football 09 should be a solid game.

EA takes a while to get everything included in games, and with the 3rd installment of this game they should have things working pretty well. This is my hope at least, but I have been wrong before.

Wil McCombs-Fact. I'm an admitted NCAA homer, but this year's NCAA should be great. All of the reports point toward EA Sports fixing some of the most glaring issues, and we should see the debut of the online dynasty. It won't be perfect, but it will be great, and it will surpass Madden in terms of overall quality.

Dave Branda-Fiction. I think from mediocre to great is too big a leap for one year. I am hoping we'll see a good version of NCAA this year - something EA can then build upon next year and perhaps start tickling the "great" area.

2)The atmosphere in NCAA Football 09 will be on par with earlier PS2 versions.

T.J. Cutini-Fact. Maybe it's due to dead brain cells but I really have a tough time remembering what was so great about the atmosphere in the early PS2 versions of NCAA and how they were so much better than what we have today. The mere fact that EA is promising an upgrade to the atmosphere and we're going to see the return of home field advantage tells me that we're going to like what we see come July.

Patrick Williams-Fact. I assume that it shouldn't be hard to replicate the atmosphere on the old games. I guess if that was the case it would have been done already, but EA always sites time as the restraint on these things. Well 3 years is enough time I would think, let's get these digital stadiums rocking!

With games like MLB the Show and 2k's series of sports, EA can still look to other games to see what their game is lacking in atmosphere. They also know what they want to get in these games just from having so much in there before. I just hope the crowd meter isn't overdone.

Wil McCombs-Fact. Considering EA made it a point to make atmosphere one of its marketing points, I'd say that it's a safe bet that the atmosphere will be back, and in a big way. The lack of atmosphere was such a hot-button issue, there's no way that it won't be one of NCAA 09's strong suits.

Dave Branda-Fact. You would hope the fact they are bringing this back from years gone by means EA realized what people liked about the feature in the first place - keeping the essense of that original feature intact.

3)We will see create-a-team in NCAA Football 09.

T.J. Cutini-Fiction. Who cares, really? I know a lot of people enjoy this feature but to me, it's a waste of time. Why would I want to create a fictional college football team when I have over 115 real ones to choose from? Nobody will ever be able to convince me that create-a-team is worth putting into a game like this. Sorry.

Patrick Williams-Fiction. Being that we haven't seen it mentioned yet in the features list is a bad sign. EA doesn't add features this late in the production of their games. They will pull features, but not add them.

I wouldn't look for this to make it, it doesn't bother me much as I rarely used it ever, but it should be in regardless.

Wil McCombs-Fiction. While I'd like to say fact, I think that we would have heard about it by now. Games seem to develop (or re-develop) slowly these days, and I think that create-a-team is going to be too much to hope for come July 15th.

Dave Branda-Fiction. If this was in the game, EA would be touting the hell out of it. The fact we didn't see it on EA's laundry list of features for 2009 isn't good for create-a-school fans.

4)Backbreaker will be a well received game.

T.J. Cutini-Fiction. Like so many others have said, it's a tech demo, nothing more. Now, if one day a certain company that owns the exclusive license to create football video games based on the real NFL decides that the engine used in Backbreaker might look nice in their game? Then I'd say Backbreaker was worth making.

Patrick Williams-Fact. I think the public will be excited to see what is possible for football physics and engines. I would assume that it will put pressure on EA to make a better product. It may not be a great game even, but if it has groundbreaking technology, well then that won't go unnoticed.

Wil McCombs-Fiction. Backbreaker will be a highly anticipated game. And it should be. It looks amazing, graphically. If I had to guess, however, I'd say it will be a one-trick pony, and not possess much replay value. There will be plenty of "Holy Crap" moments, but those moments won't be enough to keep us playing after the first couple of days.

Dave Branda-Fiction. I know a lot of folks have some high hopes for this game, with many thinking it'll be the title that pushes Madden much like the NFL 2k games did. Personally, I haven't seen enough about the game aside from its tackling engine. Sure those hits look great, and the new physics engine they've created looks like it'll produce a lot of “oohs” and “ahhs”. But an entire game built around cool tackling animations? Sorry - doesn't seem like enough to me.