Defense Tips - Option Defense

How to Defend the Option in College Football 26

The option and RPO game is a huge part of college football — and if you don’t prepare for it, it can tear your defense apart. Thankfully, College Football 26 gives you tools to control exactly how your defense reacts.

What is option defense?

When your opponent runs option plays — like zone read, triple option, or RPOs — the offense is trying to put your defenders in conflict. But you can fight back by telling your defense exactly how to respond.

How to adjust your option defense

Go into your coaching adjustments during a game. You’ll see four settings that directly impact how your defense plays against options and RPOs:

• Option Read Key – Tells read key defender to play quarterback or running back.
• Option Pitch Key – Tells pitch key defender to play quarterback or pitch man.
• RPO Read Key (new this year) – Tells read key defender to play quarterback or running back
• RPO Pass Key (new this year) – Tells pass key defender to fill run gap or defend pass option

You can set each to either Conservative or Aggressive, depending on how you want your defense to prioritize the QB, the handoff, or the pass.

When to adjust option settings

Use these adjustments if you know your opponent loves option-style offense. Adjust on the fly if you’re getting burned by read plays or RPOs.