Gus Johnson's unpredictable intensity has made him an ironic favorite of many. The CBS broadcaster has done some voice over work for a Madden video, raising hopes we'll hear him losing his shit as the game's new play-by-play man.
The video in question is on this Facebook page teasing Drew Brees' selection as the Madden NFL 11 cover athlete. It's not Gus doing gameplay audio, but he was definitely brought in by EA to talkabout Madden - it wasn't something lifted from another call, in other words.
Johnson - you can get a solid understanding of his work through this excellent sound board - debuted for EA Sports in this year's NCAA Basketball 10, and he's also the voice of CBS' Strikeforce MMA broadcasts, and Strikeforce is the licensing partner for EA Sports MMA. So Johnson's already been in an EA booth and they already have a working relationship.
I emailed EA Sports to ask about Gus and was told they're going to start talking about Madden presentation later in May. Neither confirmed nor denied, but let's be restrained, unlike Gus, and emphasize the former.
While anyone would be an improvement over Tom Hammond's robotic call, Johnson is an opportunity because of his existing strong appeal to a key Madden demographic. Many play-by-play guys are loud - Johnson is loved not only because he's so eminently quotable ("He's in shape!"), but also because he comes by the emotion honestly. And when I think about the infinite number of ways I've won and lost Madden on utterly unbelievable plays, it only makes sense that we'd have Gus screaming and ranting his disbelief in the living room with us, too.
Gus Johnson Possibly in Madden 11 [Pasta Padre]