It's an unusual way to spend a Friday night on a college campus. But what's at stake is more unusual.
Sixty-four "gamers," long-shots, some dead broke, some financially stable; some didn't even know what hung in the balance. But they were all vying for the same prize: a shot at Vegas and a chance to win $10,000.
It's EA Sport's version of March Madness and it features NCAA Football 2005. This is the tale of the gamers.
It began as a very promising evening for those involved. Around 8:45 p.m. in the HUB-Robeson Center there were only about 25-30 students lined up to play, but the gamers weren't complaining. They knew that the fewer competitors who showed up, the better chance they had of making it to Vegas. "I hope it stays this way," one gamer replied.
It didn't.
Eventually the playing field reached 64 and kickoff was at 9 p.m. There were two rows of video-game stations for gamers to use. There were no memory cards, no aides of any kind and no comfy couches.
It wasn't a dorm; standing room only.
Just two controllers per station and the luck of your creator on your side. The competitors were drawn in a variety of ways. There were those who registered on-line more than a month ago, some who heard about it only a few days prior, and then there were those students walking through the HUB and heard there was a chance of winning ten grand. Which prompted them to register immediately. "What the hell," one latecomer said. "It's worth a shot."
Gamers understood the implications. And the teams they chose to play with reflected this understanding -- everyone used a team in the top 10 nationally.
They knew only one could win and 63 other participants would go home.
Early on it was hard to get a sense of who the contenders were as opposed to the pretenders. It became more evident as the night progressed.
Say hello to Dan Ward.
Ward (freshman-DUS) may be undecided on what career he plans to venture into, but he's certain on his NCAA team. Ward plays with Georgia and he knows he's good. Good enough to go to Vegas? He's not that certain though he breezes through the first two rounds. His strategy for the two-minute quarters is good defense and consistent ball control. Ward advances to the Sweet Sixteen.
Meet Ryan Karkenny.
Karkenny (senior-psychology) heard about the challenge the day of and didn't even plan on entering until he was persuaded by his girlfriend to register. Karkenny doesn't have a playstation or NCAA Football 2005. And when he does play the game, he plays it on X-Box. Good luck. Karkenny plays with Oklahoma and as he begins to have some success, moving past the first two rounds, his girlfriend runs back-and-forth to the car meter depositing quarters making sure their vehicle isn't ticketed -- she later learns that the HUB deck is free on weekends. Oh well. Karkenny makes it to the round of 16.
Then there's Justin Gramkow, a slick-talking sophomore off of exit-160 in Northern NJ. Gramkow wears a Michael Robinson Penn State jersey.
Why not play with Penn State in an event like this? "If they were better in the game I probably would have...no disrespect," said Gramkow. Gramkow plays with Texas. He flies by the first three rounds and into the Elite Eight. He doesn't know his fate in the tournament but he's playing well.
Gramkow will soon find out he'll meet Christopher Dass in the final four. Dass is a serious-minded competitor who, up until the Final Four, showed little emotion after his wins. It's almost like he expected to make it to this point. Dass also plays with Oklahoma.
As players begin to lose left and right, not all of them leave right away, although many are disappointed. They stick around to see who advances to the final four. They recognize something special when they see it.
Gramkow draws Dass in the semifinal round. Karkenny looks unstoppable moving through the event. He looks sharp with Oklahoma mixing the pass in nicely with the run. He's makes it to the final four. Ward had been playing well coming into the elite eight but he hasn't been winning by a lot. In this round he survives, winning 6-0, kicking two field goals and playing lights out defense. It's now the final four.
Ward draws Karkenny and Gramkow gets Dass.
Dass looks poised before the game, passionate, shrugging his shoulders like a prizefighter, ready to do work before a bout. Ward is encouraged; he has a cheering section. Three young ladies. Which one are you taking to Vegas if you win? Ward laughs and points to the left. His girlfriend is standing right next to him. Good choice.
Both games start simultaneously. Dass goes up 7-0 on Gramkow and then Gramkow answers on the next drive with a 35 -yard touchdown pass. "Take that," said Gramkow. He's pumped.
Meanwhile Ward and Karkenny are knotted at zero midway through the second quarter. Ward kicks a field goal and goes up 3-0 at the half. Dass and Gramkow are now in the fourth quarter, Gramkow is up 14-10 with 37 seconds left. Dass has no timeouts left. Realizing it's virtually impossible that he'll win the game, Dass quits. Unlike earlier short comers who hung around to see the results, Dass leaves devastated. You'd think he paid ten grand to enter the way he left. Ward is still in a tight one with Karkenny. He adds another field goal and hangs onto win 6-0. A dejected but graceful Karkenny congratulates Ward and walks away with his girlfriend. It's Ward vs. Gramkow in the final. UGA vs. Texas. Gramkow goes deep on Ward early, testing Georgia's secondary, but Ward bats everything down.
Georgia has All-American quarterback David Greene, but Ward doesn't use him -- he prefers a faster, more run oriented quarterback. Ward has a game plan. They're tied at three at halftime.
It's now 12:30.
Late night Penn State partygoers stumble into the HUB. Some sober, some not, they stop to watch with the crowd huddled around the last two. Ward and Gramkow are both jittery, like pre-schoolers waiting to go to the bathroom. They continue on and Gramkow scores a touchdown to lead 10-3 going into the last quarter. One of these two is one quarter away from Vegas. Ward has been chewing the same piece of gum throughout the entire tournament. Flavorless now, he doesn't want throw it away. "My girlfriend gave it to me," Gramkow said. Any help he can get.
Inspiration seems to be on Gramkow's side. Last January Gramkow lost his good friend Travis tragically and unexpectedly. Travis's wore No. 9 in football and Gramkow was given wristband No. 9 as the ninth player to enter the tournament.
Ward ties the game at 10 with 55 seconds left and they go to overtime. On a night when national college powerhouses Miami and Florida State went to overtime, Ward and Gramkow would not be out done. Both players scored equal amounts in overtime resulting in a second OT. After Gramkow strikes first in the second OT, Ward's girlfriend becomes visibly nervous standing behind him. Fiddling her hands in every which way, kind of like the Cubs Nomar Garciaparra before an at-bat. But Ward answers the call and sends the game into a third OT. He scores first on a 24-yard fade to his receiver, putting all the pressure on Gramkow.
It's now 1:55 a.m. and people are still camped around these two Vegas hopefuls waiting to see who'll take the trip. With immense pressure facing Gramkow, he scores a touchdown bringing him within two points of sending the game into a fourth overtime. NCAA rules state that both teams have to attempt a two-point conversion after the second overtime. Ward knows he's one play away from Vegas and Gramkow knows he's one play away from extending the game. Gramkow drops back to pass, but his receiver drops the pass after a hard hit by Ward's defensive back. The game is now over.
Gramkow drops to his knees in anguish while Ward jumps for joy as the HUB faithful cheer. They both hug and shake each other's hands. One of them accomplished his goal on this evening. The other fell a bit short. Still, you could feel the love in the room.
