The votes (over 12 million of them) have been tabulated. There are no hanging chads, although Chad Ochocinco may be hanging out somewhere other than Cincinnati next season. There will be no re-vote and no appeal. The EA Sports Madden 12 Cover Boy is Peyton Hillis.
Hillis beat out Michael Vick by garnering 66% of the vote (click here for the post that looked at that match-up). What will this mean for sales? My guess is nothing. EA Sports could put a photo of some unknown Carolina Panther practice squad player snapped from the knees to the toes on the cover and still sell a boat load of games. That exclusive NFL license is kind of a big deal.
On August 30th, 2011, when the game is released we’ll all be lining up for our copy. But will Hillis already be feeling the effects of the Madden Curse?