In College Football 25, Proximity to Home is a unique grade that reflects how close a school is to a recruit’s hometown or home pipeline. This grade is individualized for each recruit, based on their geographical location, and is an important factor for many athletes when deciding where they want to play college football. For some recruits, staying close to home provides comfort and the ability to have family and friends attend their games, making it a crucial factor in their decision-making process.
For many college football prospects, proximity to home can be a major selling point when they are weighing offers from different schools. While some players may prefer to go far from home for new experiences, others value the closeness of family support. College Football 25 mirrors this real-world aspect by giving each recruit a Proximity to Home grade that directly impacts how well your school aligns with their desires.
This grade becomes especially important for schools recruiting locally. Programs with a strong home pipeline can often dominate recruiting in their region, using proximity as a key pitch to lure top talent. On the other hand, programs located far from a recruit’s home may struggle to use this factor to their advantage and will need to rely on other strengths like championship potential, academic prestige, or brand exposure.
Proximity to Home is one of the 14 categories that make up your My School Grades, a dynamic system that evaluates the overall strengths and weaknesses of your program. These grades are critical for recruiting and for understanding where your program can improve. Here’s a breakdown of the My School Grades system:
Each recruit’s proximity to your school is automatically calculated based on their home location and how far it is from your campus. This grade varies from recruit to recruit, and for local players, a high Proximity to Home grade can be a significant factor that gives you a competitive edge against other schools. Schools with strong regional pipelines benefit from being geographically close to their recruits, making it easier to sway top talent who want to remain close to their roots.
Recruiting locally is often a smart strategy, especially for programs that might not have the national brand recognition of a powerhouse school. Focusing on nearby states or areas where your school is well-known can help maximize your Proximity to Home advantage. A recruit from a nearby city is more likely to consider your program because they value being close to home, and you can emphasize this during your recruiting pitch.
In College Football 25, coaches will need to strategically balance recruiting locally with expanding their reach to more distant areas. While proximity can be a major factor, especially for schools without the draw of elite facilities or national championships, it’s important to also consider how other grades like Playing Time or Championship Contender align with a recruit’s priorities.
You can keep an eye on how Proximity to Home is influencing your recruiting success by accessing the My School screen from the Recruiting Hub. This screen provides a detailed overview of all your school’s grades, including Proximity to Home, and shows how well your program aligns with each recruit’s priorities. By focusing on improving other areas, such as Athletic Facilities or Program Tradition, you can counterbalance a low Proximity to Home grade for distant recruits.
The weekly My School Report gives you real-time updates on how your actions are affecting your grades, including Proximity to Home. If your grades are slipping, especially in relation to your proximity to key recruits, this could be a warning sign that you need to adjust your recruiting focus. On the other hand, seeing a boost in Proximity to Home can mean you’re on the right track, particularly with local talent.
While Proximity to Home can be an important factor, it’s rarely the only one. Recruits often weigh several different aspects when making their decision, from playing time and championship potential to the school’s academic offerings and exposure to NIL (name, image, and likeness) opportunities. Schools with lower Proximity to Home grades may need to emphasize other strengths to win over recruits from farther away.
For schools that are far from a recruit’s home, focusing on areas like Brand Exposure, Pro Potential, or Stadium Atmosphere can help make up for the distance. By leveraging these strengths, you can still attract top talent even when proximity isn’t in your favor.
In College Football 25, Proximity to Home is a key factor that affects how recruits perceive your program, especially for those who value staying close to their families and hometowns. A high Proximity to Home grade can give your program a distinct advantage, particularly when recruiting locally. By understanding how this grade works and balancing it with other recruiting priorities, you can develop a successful recruiting strategy that maximizes your program’s strengths.
Ultimately, building a program that recruits well both locally and nationally will depend on how well you manage your My School Grades, and Proximity to Home is a critical piece of the puzzle for attracting top-tier talent.