The Madden Championship Series (MCS) had its third major tournament final last night. The MCS Ultimate Wild Care tournament saw all the best Madden NFL players in the world battling it out in the final major tournament before the Ultimate Madden Bowl. The tournament’s top seed, Henry, ended up taking home his fourth individual and fifth overall MCS championship belt, cementing his status as the GOAT of the MCS.
Henry vs Cole Semifinal
It was not an easy road for Henry to earn his record breaking fifth title belt. In his semifinal matchup with 24 seed Cole, both players threw interceptions on their first offensive possessions. After getting another interception on defense, Cole decided to go for it on 4th and 17 form his own 3-yard line. Cole failed to convert but was able to hold Henry to just a field goal on the ensuing possession.
Cole would be the first to find the endzone thanks to a beautiful pump fake that allowed Calvin Johnson to get open for a big touchdown catch. Henry would answer with a 10-yard scramble from Tom Brady that got into the endzone to regain the lead. Cole would get one more score before halftime though as he found Adam Thielen on a wheel route for another touchdown throw. After Henry hit a field goal to end the 2nd quarter, Cole had a 14-13 lead on the top player in the world at halftime.
Cole didn’t slow down to start the second half as he found Taysom Hill for his third passing touchdown to take a 21-13 lead. Henry immediately drove down the field and found CeeDee Lamb for a score. Henry followed this up with a 2-point conversion to tie the game at 21-21.
Midway through the 4th quarter it looked like Cole would be able to hold the ball and kick a game-winning field goal. However, Antonio Cromartie was able to jump a slant route to give Henry the ball with just under 3 minutes left. Henry was able to hold on for a last-second field goal to advance.
Dez vs Mr. Football 88 Semifinal
In the other semifinal matchup, MCS Ultimate Thanksgiving Champion Dez went up against the 8 seed Mr. Football 88. Like the other semifinal, this was a great game that came down to the final seconds.
Dez wasted no time getting things going. On 4th and 6, he found Plaxico Burress over the middle for the first touchdown of the game. No to be outdone, Mr. Football 88 handed off to Earnest Byner on 4th and 1 and took it 38 yards to the house.
After this, Dez would find Herman Moore for two receiving touchdowns. A 48-yard Earnest Byner touchdown run would keep Mr. Football in it as he trailed 21-17 going into halftime. Mr. Football got down to business to start the 3rd quarter. He hit Calvin Johnson on 4th and 1 to take the lead 24-21.
Dez settled for a field goal from inside the 5-yard line on his next drive that made it 24-24. Mr. Football went right back to Calvin Johnson in the red zone for another touchdown and a 31-24 lead. Dez tried to answer, but threw an interception on 4th down that sealed the win for Mr. Football.
Henry vs Mr. Football 88 Final
Now we come to the grand final. Henry was able to get a touchdown on his opening drive. He followed this up with an interception to get the ball back. However, Henry would end up turning it over on downs to give Mr. Football good field position. Mr. Football was able to turn this into a field goal to make it 7-3.
Henry made up for his mistakes on the next drive. He marched right down the field and hit CeeDee Lamb on a corner route to take a 14-3 lead. Shortly before halftime, Mr. Football was able to have Calvin Johnson come down with a very impressive, contested catch for a touchdown. This made the score 14-10 with Henry leading at halftime.
Mr. Football would start the second half with a laser to Taysom Hill on a streak up the middle for a touchdown and the lead. Henry would get a field goal to tie things up at 17-17. Mr. Football had the ball at the start of the fourth quarter. With 4:16 remaining in the quarter, he threw a deep pass that ended up getting intercepted by Henry. Mr. Football would never see the ball again. Henry drove all the way down the field and kicked a 37-yard field goal as time expired to capture the MCS Ultimate Wild Care Championship!
MCS GOAT
This win builds on Henry’s already impressive resume. The 19-year-old now holds a record 5 overall MCS belts and 4 individual MCS belts. Henry also takes home another $75,000, which adds to his more than $500,000 in total MCS winnings in his career. At this point, it is hard to argue that Henry isn’t the greatest competitive Madden NFL player of all time. The fact the he has accomplished so much at such a young age is incredible to say the least.