This article is part of our Madden series.
Thursday marked the start of the second event in the Madden Championship Series, the Madden Bowl, which will see 16 players compete across four days of intense competition for a share of the $250,000 prize pool. Day 1 took place at Disney's ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in conjunction with the 2017 Pro Bowl, and saw four players qualify for the single-elimination playoff bracket in a plethora of thrilling matchups.
Group A
Zach "Serious Moe" Lane (2-1)
Michael "Skimbo" (2-1)
Carlos "Los" Yancey (2-1)
Taylor "SpotMePlzzz" Robertson (0-3)
Dubbed the "Group of Death" entering the tournament, Group A certainly lived up to its billing, as the Madden Classic champion, SpotMePlzz, couldn't even win a single game despite posting an undefeated record in his previous Madden Championship Series event. Relying on a dynamic passing attack buoyed by red zone targets such as Ed McCaffrey and Herman Moore, the reigning Madden 16 Challenge Champ, Serious Moe relied on a bit of good luck and stingy defense to earn his spot in the single elimination bracket, winning over SpotMePlzz in Game 1 before rallying from a late 10-point deficit to defeat Skimbo on a last second field goal in Game 2.
Despite the demoralizing loss, Skimbo still found a way to advance, thanks namely to a strong defensive performance that saw his team lock down SpotMePlzz in his final game and his Game 1 opponent, Los, to a mere combined 20 points.
Group B
Reggie "iG Boogz" (3-0)
Shay "Young Kiv" Kivlan (1-2)
Raidel "Joke" Brito (1-2)
Lionel "ImWild" Roberts (1-2)
While Group B wasn't filled with the same level of accolade-laden players as Group A, they sure made up for it with downright exciting matchups.
Despite earning a 3-0 record on Day 1 of the tournament, Boogz certainly didn't make it look easy. In arguably one of the most memorable competitive matches to date, the pass-heavy veteran jumped out to an early advantage against his Game 1 opponent, ImWild, opening up the score 14-3 late in the second quarter. Following a quick touchdown pass to AJ Green, ImWild would completely flip the table, picking up not one but two pick-sixes with his middle linebacker Anthony Barr to end the first half up 24-14. A visibly flustered Boogz would continue to trade punches with ImWild in the second half before throwing his third pick-six of the game, this time in the fourth quarter, to put the score at 38-28 with 42 seconds left. However a stunning sequence of events which saw Boogz return the ensuing kickoff and recover the subsequent onside kick gave the Detroit native the ball back with 30 seconds left needing a field goal to tie. Looking to move into field goal range, Boogz instead would hit Ed McCaffrey down the middle of the field for a game-winning touchdown, clinching an epic Game 1 win.
Riding the wave of good fortune, Boogz would go on to defeat Joke and Young Kiv to clinch his spot in the single elimination bracket, leaving just one playoff spot remaining. The mercurial Young Kiv would claim the second spot, thanks in part to a Game 2 win over ImWild. Relying on a dominating defensive performance which saw Young Kiv pick off ImWild five times en route to a 27-17 win, the 19-year-old would advance thanks to a tiebreaker scenario despite losing to Boogz in Game 3.
The final four remaining playoff spots will be determined during Day 2 of the Madden Bowl, which kicks off Friday at 3:00 PM EST.
