In a 9 a.m. Instagram story by Metallica and EA Sports on Jan. 30, Metallica’s Robert Trujillo announced the winners of its 3rd Annual Metallica Marching Band Competition – Collegiate Edition. The Carolina Band was named grand-prize winner in the Division 1 category.
The win brings the Carolina Band the opportunity to record both a Metallica song and the “Campus Clash” opening scene theme song for an upcoming edition of the EA Sports College Football video game. The band will also receive $50,000.
EA Sports will send a recording team to the university this spring to capture the band’s performances. Both recordings will also be released on Spotify.
The Carolina Band’s entry was a recording of its halftime performance during the Oct. 18, 2025, home football game versus Oklahoma. Though its 2025 season shows were set in early 2025, Carolina Band leadership adjusted to prepare a Metallica-themed performance for submission.
The band’s performance included “Master of Puppets” and “Lux Aeterna,” pre-arranged for marching bands by Metallica, plus an arrangement of “Enter Sandman” by USC School of Music graduate assistant Ben Pouncey.