College football returns in late August, and the mythical town of “Fansville” is getting ready to roll out a new batch of 30-second Dr Pepper television commercials.
Almost everyone in Fansville roots for “State” and against the rival team, “Tech.” Lives of the townspeople clearly revolve around enjoying the refreshment of Dr Pepper soft drinks…and the intricacies of college football.
The
advertising campaign debuted in 2018 and is produced for Dr Pepper by Deutsch
LA, a full-service agency based in Los Angeles.
“When you think about it, college football is like TV drama,” said one of the Deutsch LA creative directors. “It has highs and lows, it has a season-long story arc; it’s episodic – audiences tune in every Saturday during the fall season.”
“Fansville” is like a comedic soap opera series with an array of storylines. The most recent plot, introduced in a Dr Pepper commercial that aired during the 2024 Super Bowl, dealt with the turbulence of college football’s transfer portal.
During the offseason, a powerful vortex sucked in much of State’s defensive line, and the starting quarterback is also in peril. The quarterback is holding on to a lamppost to resist the force.
The Fansville tailgate grill master (played by actor Jay Reeves) attempts to make a left-handed rescue…but when the quarterback asks for his right hand, too, the grill master explains that he’s not turning loose of the Dr Pepper can that is a permanent fixture in “his Dr Pepper hand.”
Alas,
the quarterback is swallowed up and disappears. The dialogue acknowledges that
“quarterbacks are replaceable,” but Dr Pepper is not.
Two of the leading characters in the Fansville commercials are former college football stars.
Brian Bosworth (shown below), who plays the town sheriff, was an All-American linebacker at the University of Oklahoma from 1984-86. He played two seasons in the National Football League before retiring due to an injury.
Eddie
George (shown below) portrays the town doctor while wearing a Dr Pepper “thirst-aid helmet.”
He was a running back from 1992-95 at Ohio State University and won the Heisman
Trophy in his senior year. George played in the NFL from 1996-2004.
In
one clever encounter, parents approach their teenage son about a magazine that they
discovered in the boy’s bedroom. Here’s a bit of it:
Mother: “We found this, under your mattress.” (She holds up a magazine entitled “Gooaaalll.”)
Son:
“Soccer. Everyone was really into it this summer.”
Father: “It’s a gateway sport, you know. First, you’re watching soccer; the next thing you know, you’re gonna watch lacrosse.”
Mother: “Look, it’s perfectly natural to experiment with other sports at your age. I even drank other sodas.”
Son: “There’s other sodas?!”
“It’s not enough to just show up as an advertiser,” a Deutsch LA spokesperson said. “You can be there and just be a sponsor of the game, but we want to be an insightful brand. I think fans appreciate brands that demonstrate a passion and understanding of the game.”
Dr Pepper is totally invested. It continues as the presenting sponsorship of the College Football Playoff National Championship Trophy.
There’s even a commercial about the Fansville sheriff solving the mystery about the convenience store manager who stole the trophy and was hiding with it atop the canopy over the gas pumps during an electrical storm.
What’s next? Could a romance between the rivals ensue?
The Fansville series is likely to include active college football players, now that NIL (name, image and likeness) rights have been extended to National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) student athletes.
Conference realignment is another likely subject for the creative minds associated with Dr Pepper. We’ll have to watch and see.
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