When I downloaded the early release of NCAA Football 14 this year, I was quite a bit more excited than usual about playing this year's game thanks to the demo which left me enthusiastic about this year's title.

However, the folks at EA had a cruel trick planned for me: this wasn't the same NCAA I'm used to, and if you make the same mistakes I did when you pick up your copy tomorrow, you'll find that truth out the hard way too.

This year's game has a few key differences which you need to be aware of before you jump in. Yes the game is good, but it's also different. Here are three things I wished I knew three days ago:

1)Recruiting is hard. The simplification of recruiting has left me bumfuzzled, bedazzled, and befuddled. I find myself second guessing what point total to assign to a recruit, when to go all in on someone, and when to back off. Seriously, the cerebral aspect of recruiting has left my brain spinning in circles wondering what the heck just happened. Is that up? Or down? What NCAA's recruiting will do to you is make you second guess every click of your thumb and whether having a recruit visit that early was really worth it. It's really not fair...and that's all before you get to the offseason with 8 targets. 'Good luck.'

2)The Coordinator Camera is Not A Fix All. After the demo, I couldn't help but praise the coordinator camera -- it felt like a revolution in how we play EA Football. But after a few games, I can say the emperor indeed has no clothes. Coordinator cam is a great new view, but I've noticed some FPS hiccups and the angle gets quite uncomfortable and unwieldy close to the goal line. Just say no to coordinator cam unless a fix is brought in.

3)The new run moves will make you look silly. The combo moves are a great and fun thing, the new blocking is awesome...but when misused the combo moves really do make you into a fool quickly. Someone who has already mastered the sticks needs to get on a strategy guide for run game moves STAT. I am pretty much useless as I try to relearn how to control my ball carriers in the open field again.

What about you? Have you felt any of the differences in NCAA and learned any hard lessons? Share them here!