Full Sail Stories

Over the past two years, Full Sail has become the home of the Madden Championship Series (MCS), hosting qualifiers and special events while providing students with real-world production experience inside a live esports environment.

That partnership – and what it takes to pull off a large-scale competitive broadcast – took center stage during a recent campus panel titled What It Takes to Produce a Live Esports Event, following the Last Chance Qualifier hosted on January 21, the day after the MCS 26 Zero Chill Challenge took place on campus.

Moderated by Bennett Newsome, Director of Esports Growth and Development at Full Sail, the discussion featured Spinks Edwards, Senior Product Operations Manager at Electronic Arts, and Kerry Boyd, Live Producer at UK-based production company Whisper.

Spinks, Kerry, and Bennett pose for a photo in the EB Auditorium ahead of the panel.

Together, the panelists pulled back the curtain on the logistics, storytelling, and rapid-fire problem-solving required to bring MCS events to life, while also highlighting the role Full Sail students and production teams play in the process.

During the panel, Kerry detailed Whisper’s creative process, which begins with a season-long brief from EA before evolving into show concepts, player profiles, and broadcast formats.

“We get a brief from EA at the start of the season on what they want, and then we go away and come up with ideas, how we want to present the show, and go back to them and get feedback, and then turn the concept into reality,” shares Kerry.

From EA’s side, Spinks outlined how the Madden Championship Series is structured across an NFL-style calendar, with kickoff events at the start of the season, monthly competitions throughout the year, and a championship finale at Madden Bowl – where more than $1 million is on the line.

“Making Full Sail our home for the last two years has been great,” says Spinks, noting that the campus has played a key role in hosting qualifiers and helping bring the league’s broadcasts to life.

“I think Full Sail has been amazing; there aren’t many facilities like this,” adds Kerry, noting that roughly half of the MCS on-site crew comes directly from Full Sail’s Live Event Production crew.

For the many students in attendance, the panel also doubled as a career roadmap.

During the panel, both Spinks and Kerry spoke candidly about breaking into esports, freelancing, and working your way up from entry-level roles, as well as the importance of curiosity, adaptability, and speaking up on set. Both encouraged students to take advantage of on-campus opportunities, connect with professionals on platforms like LinkedIn, and lean into every production environment they can.

As the 2026 MCS season wrapped up its final on-campus event, EA continued spotlighting Full Sail’s Sportscasting talent through its secondary stream for the Zero Chill Challenge, where students have been rotating in monthly to shoutcast live from the campus.

Sportscasting students Will Barbera and Max Mesman have served regularly on those broadcasts, with classmate Ethan Coulehan also stepping into the role this season. And in the days following the Last Chance Qualifier, EA selected Will to move from the secondary stream to the main broadcast desk – calling him up to shoutcast the semifinal round live on the primary MCS channel.

A sportscasting student shoutcasting for the main broadcast.

During the 2026 season, Full Sail hosted multiple MCS competitions, including:

• Kickoff Challenge – September 10, 2025
• Most Feared Challenge – October 15, 2025
• Zero Chill Challenge – December 10, 2025
• Last Chance Qualifier – January 21, 2026

With the Madden Championship Series continuing to bring nationally recognized competitions to campus – and students already stepping onto national broadcasts – Full Sail remains positioned as both a production partner and training ground, giving students a chance to contribute to live events while learning directly from the professionals shaping modern esports.

“Anyone can truly win, and every month is a new chance,” says Spinks. “That’s what makes the Madden Championship Series so exciting, and why these events matter so much to the community.”