A Late Reaction to the UK Super Bowl Commercial

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Allow me to quickly recap my favorite parts of the Super Bowl, which I realize was three weeks ago. Give me a break. I spend my days begging firms to give me an unpaid summer internship. Anyways, fave moments:

3. Budweiser puppy commercial. That relationship between the puppy and the Clydesdale is the best friendship since that guy and his lion friend.

2. Bruno Mars half-time show. No wardrobe malfunctions, no skimpy outfits, just good fun.

1. UK Football commercial.

It is strange to say that my favorite football-related thing about the Super Bowl was the commercial for the bottom feeder in SEC football, but the super bowl was a TERRIBLE game. And that one-minute commercial gave me goosebumps (I’m kind of lame). It was well done and served as a great way to reach the average Wildcat fan, the ones who aren’t UK students or avid KSR readers.

I have often found myself feeling embarrassed when UK football plays hype videos. Our hype videos over the last few years have largely been comprised of footage from games that we lost in a terrible fashion, but hey, we made a couple highlight reel-worthy plays. First, we had Operation: Win, which we did not do. Then, our motto was “RISE.” We went 2-10 that year, or maybe that was the 4-8 season. I honestly can’t remember. UK has been promoting a new era for long time, and telling fans that this is the year. But the new commercial doesn’t follow the same old mold. It asks, “Why not?” We know that we were 4-20 over the past two seasons. And we know that there is a long road ahead with the new staff. And we know that we’re playing in the best conference in college football. But why not? Why not support a team that is trying to rebuild? Why not support a new staff who just brought in a historic recruiting class? Why not support your city’s team even though they have struggled?  We are finally recognizing that the program has not been a priority and that we have a team trying to work their way up from the bottom.

The day UK hired Mark Stoops was the first day I got truly excited about UK football. Stoops understands the road ahead of him, and still seems 100% committed to the program, and I think airing a commercial during the Super Bowl is proof of that. Want further proof? See Bradley Dale Peveto getting hired at LSU. See also, Top 20 recruiting class and any 2014 recruit’s Twitter page. Those guys are excited. Many of them even enrolled early because they are just ready to get to work. (Unrelated, but one of them complimented my statement necklace the other day).

I just hope that fans are as committed as Stoops and Co.The team is hyped. They believe. They’re ready for August. I’m excited, too, but I just hope the rest of the fan base feels the same. I hope that attendance stops dwindling the way it has over the past two years.Why not get behind the football team the way that we get behind Coach Cal basketball teams? What else do you have to do on a crisp Fall afternoon? We have all been to Boyd Orchard and Keeneland enough. Let’s go to football games and support a team that has a lot to prove. They’re ready to build a program, and a good program has to have fans.

And in case you need to see it again…