Semiotics and Media Myth ID

Flipping through channels one day, I came across a TV show on ESPN called the Madden Challenge.  The Madden Challenge is a series where people compete against one another in a video game tournament playing Madden NFL 2009 on XBOX 360.  At first I did not think that there was a myth to the show, but as I started watching and seeing through my "Rudd Glasses" as I like to call them, I started to see how the entire series is based on the myth of the Value of a Challenge.  The competitors go on through this tournament and everyone goes into their match-ups as the underdog.  Think about it, each player is playing as an underdog, there are no favorites.  The prize for winning the tournament is a hefty check for 100k.  Seeing that the name of the tournament and the myth have a common word, challenge, it works out because there is a goal trying to be reached.  The sign within this myth is the name Madden.  The video game took its name from famous Super Bowl champion coach John Madden.  1988 was the first year the game went into production.  I remember as a young boy growing up and playing versions of the game on my Sega Genesis, Super Nintendo, and Nintendo 64.  By then, "Madden Fever," had already hit.  When seeing the name Madden, they see it as a sign/symbol for video games, though it has a lot more meaning to it.  The Madden franchise has given the EA Games Corporation a popular reputation in the world of sports, movies, and television.  The name Madden is also synonymous with ESPN because the tournament is filmed and aired over the course of two months on the ESPN family of networks.  John Madden established his name as one of the greatest coaches in NFL history, so when older folks hear his name you might think of three Super Bowl Championships with the Raiders, or the first coach to ever take a Punter in the first round of the NFL draft because it was the best choice for the team.  For the more contemporary, comedy viewing crowd, John Maddens name can also be heard in punch lines by voice impressionist Frank Caliendo.  I never knew that one name as a sign could cut across three different mediums of entertainment and carry the same weight through all three.