Once again taking place at Disney's ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Kissimmee, Florida, in conjunction with Sunday's Pro Bowl, Day 2 of the Madden Bowl on Friday saw the ground game take center stage as the final four competitors claimed their spots in the single-elimination playoff bracket. Here's how the action broke down:
Group C
Eli "Trueboy" Clayton (2-1)
Chris "Dubby" McFarland (2-1)
Jordan "Canes" Powell (2-1) (first Championship Series event)
Jet Steele (0-3)
In contrast to the action that took place on Day 1, Day 2 featured a plethora of games centered on a dominant rushing attack and lock-down defense. Trueboy set the tone for the afternoon, sacking his Game 1 opponent, Jet Steele, five times in the first quarter, while also returning two interceptions for touchdowns in the first half en route to a 28-0 victory. That win propelled him into the playoff portion of the bracket, as Trueboy quickly handled his Game 2 opponent, Canes, riding a strong performance from Le'Veon Bell.
Needing a win and a bit of help to earn his spot in the single-elimination bracket, Dubby squared off against the aforementioned Trueboy in Game 3. This time it would be Dubby's ground game that would have the last laugh, as the Philadelphia native relied on huge plays from David Johnson to keep the game close throughout. After a back-and-forth first half, Dubby would finally break away for the win, returning a strip sack for a touchdown to lock up the 28-17 win.
Group D
Lavar "Mr. Hollywood" Gayle (3-0)
Eric "Problem" Wright (2-1)
Michael "Duke" Crandall (1-2)
Gerard "Evil O" Schaefer (0-3)
While being situated in a group with arguably the greatest Madden player of all time, Problem, it would be Mr. Hollywood who would put together one of the best showing of the entire group stages, thoroughly dominating his competition. It would start first with his heavyweight matchup against Problem in which the Bronx native would jump out to a commanding 21-3 lead at the half. Buoyed by a devastating aerial attack, Mr. Hollywood would survive the inevitable Problem comeback, capping off the 31-16 win with a long touchdown run.
Impressive as the win may have been, Mr. Hollywood put together an even stronger performance in his second matchup, this time against Duke. Despite being lauded as one of the most intelligent players in all of Madden, Duke could do nothing to figure out Mr. Hollywood's impeccable defense, as Duke would go on to register fewer than 50 total yards of offense through the first three quarters. A late touchdown by Mr. Hollywood's Ricky Williams would provide all the scoring he would need in the 17-3 win, locking up his spot in the single-elimination playoff bracket.
Despite losing his first matchup of the day against Mr. Hollywood, Problem would find himself in a win-and-get-in Game 3 against Duke. With each team taking a conservative approach in the first half, the second half would see Duke grind his way down the field, parlaying a fantastic user catch by Mike Evans into a 10-7 lead. With little time remaining on the clock, Problem methodically marched down the field, relying on a mix of runs and short passes to get in the red zone. Content to play at his pace, Problem would run the ball on the goal line multiple times before kicking the field goal and taking the game into the first overtime of the group stage.
Duke wouldn't have a chance in the extra frame, as Problem would once again methodically march down the field, opting to use Johnson, who had more than 100 rushing yards in the contest, almost exclusively. That would turn out to be a wily move, as Duke would respond by sending all of his efforts to stop the run, only for Problem to then turn around and complete the game-winning touchdown pass, earning the final spot in the single-elimination playoff bracket.