| Genre: | Reality TV |
| Language: | English |
| Num Seasons: | 4 |
| Num Episodes: | 32 |
| Runtime: | 30 Min. |
| Network: | ESPN2 |
Madden Nation is an American reality television series, created as a joint effort between EA Sports and ESPN Original Entertainment to take viewers inside the world of Madden NFL, a popular video game with over 10 million players worldwide. The series premiered on December 6, 2005 and is currently off the air.
The eight episode series featured the nation's top Madden NFL gamers—along with real-life NFL player sponsors— playing against each other in elimination-style tournaments. Throughout the competition, the players traveled across the country in the Madden Nation Bus making their way to New York City for the tournament finals and a chance to win the $100,000 grand prize. The final game of every season was held in Times Square on the ABC Super Sign.
Coach Cam is a mechanic used during Madden Nation as a tool to provide insights into the minds of the players. Before certain plays, the gamers would reveal play selection to the television audience. Often, this mechanic would set expectations and provide a deeper understanding of the players’ strategies for the viewer.
Madden Nation season 1 debuted on December 6, 2005 and ran for 8 episodes. Rob Taylor, a.k.a. Duka (d. July 2, 2007). defeated Sherman Jameson a.k.a. Sherm Sticky to become the champion of Madden Nation Season 1.
The competition started in San Francisco, California where EA hand picked eight of the country's best Madden 06 players to play for a grand prize of $100,000. These elite gamers were not alone. Each one represented an NFL superstar that had their back. The gamers traveled city to city on a tour bus playing against each other in Madden competitions with two people losing their way into the jeopardy game. The loser of the jeopardy game must then play a free agent-gamer for the right to remain on the bus. In the end, the two best gamers of the bus played one game on the big screen in Times Square for $100,000.
| Contestant | Nickname | Gamer Tag | NFL Representative | Results | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rod Lane 37, Dover, NJ | NJ Madden baller | ROD79 | Jevon Kearse | Eliminated in episode 1 | |
| Christopher Jackson 20, Atlanta | ActionJackson | Byron Leftwich | Eliminated in episode 2 | ||
| Raymond Goode 33, Waldorf, MD | Shopmaster | Shopmaster | Shaun Alexander | Eliminated in episode 3 | |
| Eugene Williams 21, Philadelphia, PA | Big Gene | Ahman Green | Didn't show up for free agent game | ||
| Rod Wynn 29, Ingelewood, CA | Reality | RealityWynn | Dwight Freeney | Free agent;eliminated in free agent game | |
| Daniel Grundei 27, Cincinnati, OH | Clark Kent | Ben Roethlisberger | Eliminated in episode 6 | ||
| Justin Chow 20, Great Falls, VA | Chow | Tony Gonzalez | Eliminated in episode 7 | ||
| Kyle Hustek 24, Detroit, MI | The Gift | Roy Williams | Eliminated in episode 7 (disqualified) | ||
| Charles Smith 25, San Diego, CA | Solution | Donnie Edwards | Eliminated in episode 7, got on the bus Episode 1 | ||
| Dan Bertholomey 40, Portland, OR | Packwolf | Packwolf | Ashley Lelie | Got on the bus in episode 3, eliminated in episode 7 | |
| Antoin Williams 23, San Antonio, TX | Pretty Boy | Larry Fitzgerald | Got on the bus in episode 2, eliminated in episode 8 during the semi-finals | ||
| David Grant 26, St. Petersburg, FL | Dred | Michael Vick | Eliminated in episode 8 during the semi-finals | ||
| Sherman Jameson 20, Midland, TX | Sherm Sticky | Chad Johnson | Lost to Duka in the finals during episode 8 | ||
| Rob Taylor 24, Youngstown, OH | Duka | Ed Reed | Champion; Got on the bus in episode 6 |
Billy Wolf, a.k.a. Da Secret, defeated Frederick Amponsem, a.k.a. Fred Dizzle, to become the champion of Madden Nation Season 2.
In its second season, Madden Nation once again documented the high drama of eight professional Madden NFL 07 players as they competed for a cash prize of $100,000. Again, each player represented an NFL superstar, but this time, the gamers began their journey at the EA Sports studios in Orlando. Unlike last year the contestants were paired in teams and forced to support each other or face elimination. On the 12-city tour, they battled each other for the right to stay in the game until the ultimate finale in Times Square, New York City.
| Contestant | Nickname | Gamer Tag | NFL representative | Results | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richard Thomas 30, Brooklyn, NY | DJ Rhude | DJRhudeRT30 | Michael Strahan | Left in episode 2 due to family matters | |
| Federico Williams 29, Wilmington, DE | Rico/Rico Hollywood | RicoHollywood | Vince Young | Walked off in episode 2 | |
| Michael Southam 29, Adelaide, South Australia | Aussie | Blotto Otto | Antonio Gates | Eliminated in episode 3, replaced Young Jarvis in episode 4, eliminated again in episode 5 | |
| Thomas Tsanadis 25, Orlando, FL | UCF Champ | UCF Champ | Alex Smith(Tampa Bay) | Free agent; eliminated in free agent game (episode 1) | |
| Troy Brown 22, Houston, TX | T-Roy | ALLWORKNOPLAY | Edgerrin James | Eliminated from the final 8 | |
| Robert Warren 18, District Heights, MD | RJ | PeteSlash | Mario Williams | Eliminated from the final 8 | |
| Steven White 27, Washington D.C. | Steve O Baby | SHAAAWTY | Joey Porter | Free agent; eliminated in free agent game (episode 4) | |
| Mukala Sikyala Jr. 28, Riverdale, MD | Coach Muk | COACHMUK | Clinton Portis | Got on the bus in episode 5; eliminated from the final 8 | |
| Michael McAnany 22, Rochester, NY | Mad Dog | MIKEMAC2001 | Vince Young | Replaced Rico Hollywood in episode 2; eliminated from the final 8 | |
| Jarvis Thomas 19, Upper Marlboro, MD | Young Jarvis | HUSTLE247 | DeAngelo Hall | Replaced DJ Rhude in episode 2; disqualified in episode 3 for punching Mad Dog | |
| Tommie Hill 22, Brooklyn Park, MN | Therapist | TommyBears | Reggie Bush | Eliminated from the final 4 | |
| Donald Mazzola 21, Bellevue, WA | DJ | THE DJ LAB | Carson Palmer | Got on the bus in episode 3, eliminated from the final 4 | |
| Frederick Amponsem 22, Washington, D.C. | Fred Dizzle | FredDIZ | Randy Moss | Lost to Da Secret in the finals | |
| Billy Wolf 19, Tampa, FL | DaSecret | DaSecret | Willis McGahee | Champion |
Season 3 of Madden Nation began airing on ESPN2 on October 9, 2007 at 11PM ET. Airing as back-to-back episodes on Tuesdays, the finale, which again took place in New York City's Times Square, was televised Tuesday, Oct. 30, with the Madden Nation winner claiming a $100,000 prize. Tour stops in season 3 include NFL cities Dallas, Kansas City, St Louis, Chicago, Indianapolis, Cleveland, Buffalo, Boston and New York. The show ended in Times Square in New York. It was between Sirus the Virus, the Rams, and Problem, the Bears. The show finished off with Problem being the victor.
| Contestant | Nickname | Gamer Tag | NFL Representative | Results | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steve Williams Sugar Land, TX | Coach | YourboyCoach | Roy Williams - DAL | Eliminated in episode 3 | ||
| Haaruwn Brown Mobile, AL | Houseshoe | Houseshoe251 | Santana Moss - WAS | Eliminated in episode 2 | ||
| Jesse Rhoads Westville, NJ | J-Rhoads | Jonathan Vilma - NYJ | Eliminated from the final 4 | |||
| Brian Delph Sandusky, OH | Delph | Delph419 | Shawne Merriman - SD | Eliminated from the final 8 | ||
| Sheila Barger Fresno, CA | PG-13 | littlebitof pg13 | T.J. Houshmandzadeh - CIN | Eliminated in episode 1 | ||
| Jet Steele Tampa, FL | Jet | Sonic Boom12 | Samari Rolle - BAL | Eliminated from the final 8 | ||
| Charles James Bloomfield Hills, MI | Hollywood | Matt Leinart - ARI | Eliminated from the final 8 | |||
| Van Bernardino Napa, CA | Prodigy | NHFB | JaMarcus Russell - OAK | Eliminated from the final 8 | ||
| Ronnie Casey Louisville, KY | Sirus the Virus | SirusTheVirusTv | Steven Jackson - STL | Got on the bus in episode 2; Eliminated in final round | ||
| Marcus Phillips Oakley, CA | Panoramic | 5starzboss | Larry Johnson - KC | Got on the bus in episode 1; Eliminated from the final 4 | ||
| Eric Wright West Covina, CA | Problem | Snowman | Devin Hester - CHI | Got on the bus in episode 3; CHAMPION | ||
| Rafael Andrada Converse, TX | Raf | SC0rp15 | Reggie Wayne - IND | Free agent; eliminated in free agent game |
On Tuesday, September 16, 2008 at 11:00 p.m., ESPN2 began airing the fourth season of Madden Nation, a reality television series in which the country's top 10 Madden NFL 09 players competed in a cross-country elimination tournament on the Xbox 360 console. Gamers represented top NFL athletes and got the chance to meet their respective pro players along the way. The final tournament was played in New York City's Times Square for a grand prize of $100,000 and the ultimate title of the best Madden NFL gamer in the nation. Young Nephew was the champion after defeating Dynasty in the finals.
| Contestant | Nickname | Gamer Tag | NFL Representative | Results | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dan Brown Troy, MI | Truth | Jeff Garcia - Buccaneers | Eliminated in episode 2 by KStarr | ||
| Anthony Brinson | Young Nephew | Adrian Peterson - Vikings | Champion (beat Dynasty 24-14) | ||
| Ryan Glick Somerville, MA | RG | Braylon Edwards - Browns | Eliminated in episode 6 by Dynasty | ||
| Len Green Philadelphia, PA | Dynasty | Patrick Willis - 49ers | Eliminated in finals (ep 8) by Young Nephew | ||
| Robert Hart Philadelphia, PA | 40 G's | DeMarcus Ware - Cowboys | Eliminated in semi-finals (ep 7) by Young Nephew(won in finals) | ||
| Jovan Lakey | Yomama | Darren McFadden - Raiders | Eliminated in episode 1 by Dynasty | ||
| Toby Merchant Oakland, CA | T Fonk | Maurice Jones-Drew - Jaguars | Eliminated in episode 4 by Dynasty | ||
| David Stepney Pomona, CA | One9 | Drew Brees - Saints | Eliminated in semi-finals (ep 7) by Dynasty | ||
| Patrick Shaw Indianapolis, IN | KStarr | Bob Sanders - Colts | Eliminated in episode 3 by Dynasty | ||
| Eugene Williams Philadelphia, PA | Big Gene | Hines Ward - Steelers | Eliminated in episode 5 by Dynasty |