The WVU Collegiate Madden Showcase continues Saturday (April 8) after two weeks of qualifying events to narrow the field of competitors down to 16 representing schools across the United States and Canada.
This first tournament hosted by WVU Esports was open to any current, full-time college student with the competitors playing for their share of the $10,000 prize pool. Saturday’s bracket will cut the field in half before the finals on April 15 which will determine the inaugural champion for the event.
WVU Esports will be streaming the event at 1 p.m. Saturday (April 8) on Twitch. Watch here.
Twelve of the 16 competitors remaining in the tournament earned their spots through the qualifiers, with four players voted on by professionals in the Madden circuit to receive automatic bids through to the Round of 16.
Those players include WVU sophomore Noah Johnson, who was the 2021 LevelNext Madden National Champion.
“Being able to rep the WVU brand is an awesome experience that I will never take for granted,” Johnson said. “It’s great to be part of this tournament and I hope it will continue and keep growing in the future.”
This weekend’s bracket will pair all the competitors against each other based on their records throughout the tournament and how they’ve performed until the field is narrowed down to the eight quarterfinalists who will move on to the finals.
The tournament includes students from Northwood, Rutgers, Minnesota, Vanderbilt, Washington State, Towson, Albany, Clarke, Northeastern, Illinois State, Wisconsin Green Bay, Fort Valley State, Lehigh Carbon Community College. Also in the field is a competitor from Canada’s Brock University, located in Ontario.
WVU Director of Esports Josh Steger said he hopes this tournament and the large variety of competitors will draw more eyes to the growing WVU Esports program and its future goals.
“I’m really excited to host the event and help continue to grow the Madden scene while allowing our students to gain hands-on experience,” Steger said. “This is our first event, so we are in the testing stages of what is to come in the future.
“Who knows, maybe we will be hosting more Madden and college football events in the next few years on a grander stage.”
To get more updates about WVU Esports, follow the program on Twitter at @WVUEsports and watch live events from the varsity esports teams at twitch.tv/wvuesports1.