Much like EA Sports took to the fans to decide the cover athlete for Madden 12, they are looking to them again to decide which five players will start the virtual Madden season with a 100 rating in five distinct categories. Partnered with ESPN and SportsNation, EA Sports wants fans to turn out in the same numbers they did to select Peyton Hillis as the Madden 12 cover athlete to decide who will the five newest members of Club 100.

Starting Monday August 22nd with Throw Accuracy and ending Friday August 26th with Speed, this fan-determined vote will provide five candidates who are deserving of a 100 in said player category in Madden 12 and allow the fans to decide who actually receives it. All are arguably worthy, but only one will end up with the rating.

Once all of the five categories are decided, EA Sports will then make those adjustments to Madden 12 -- along with implementing all of the whirlwind roster changes that have occurred over the past couple weeks -- in a title update. Unfortunately, if you plan on picking up your copy of Madden 12 used, gaining access to this rating update — and potentially all of the roster changes — won’t be possible without the EA Sports Online Pass, not to be confused with their recently announced Season Ticket.

Curious to know who is up for each category and when you can vote? Check out the full schedule below:

Date

Category

Athletes

Mon, Aug 22

Throw Accuracy

Tom BradyDrew BreesPeyton ManningPhilip RiversAaron Rodgers

Tue, Aug 23

Elusiveness

Jamaal CharlesLeSean McCoyAdrian PetersonRay RiceDanny Woodhead

Wed, Aug 24

Hit Power

James HarrisonRay LewisClay MatthewsRey MaualugaPatrick Willis

Thu, Aug 25

Spectacular Catch

Dez BryantBraylon EdwardsLarry FitzgeraldCalvin JohnsonBrandon Lloyd

Fri, Aug 26

Speed

Jamaal CharlesJacoby FordDevin HesterDeSean JacksonChris Johnson

Many of the athletes that will be available for this fan vote are expected choices — quarterback Drew Brees, running back Adrian Peterson, and no-longer-rookie wide out Dez Bryant -- but with the inclusion of  a defense category it gives players a chance to roung out a couple of their favorite teams. It’s your chance to make last year’s MVP, Tom Brady, a superstar in the world of Madden or to give Aaron Rodgers that competitive edge to help him capture another Super Bowl.

Realistically, if there were enough Kansas City Chiefs fans who were also Madden players, they could make Jamaal Charles an unstoppable force, with him being available for a 100 score in both elusiveness and speed. While, given the popularity of the other athletes, I wouldn’t hold my breath for that scenario, but it could be interesting.

The vote itself starts Monday on ESPN.com; so keep an eye out for exclusive Club 100 content all over SportsNation.

Which players would you select for each category? Do you think that EA Sports should be relying on a popularity contest for something that should be accurately reflecting performance on the field?

Madden 12 releases August 30, 2011 for the PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, and PS2.