How Come Real Life Ain’t Ever Good Enough for TV Commercials?
I saw a post on CNN's web page last week about old alums from rival high schools in the Lehigh Valley getting back together to settle an old football score.
The official story goes: In the fall of 1993, Phillipsburg (NJ) and Easton (PA) played to a 7-7 stalemate in their regular season-ending game, which has been held every Thanksgiving for more than a century.
Guys from the two blue collar towns, which are just across the Delaware River from each other, have been beefing over who should have won all these years.
Only a few players from that game ever suited up again after high school. And since, as Al Bundy taught us all, life after high school football is never as good, a tie was a lousy way to end things.
So, the old teams had reformed and were going to go at it once more.
That's a story line that will make millions of lousy old high school players weak in their already feeble knees.
So I started reading articles about the game from the Lehigh Valley papers.
The real story, alas, isn't anywhere near as heartwarming. Turns out the event was totally controlled by Gatorade. The sports beverage marketers conceived the idea, which is brilliant, for their Mission G advertising campaign.
And by the time the game was played yesterday, before 10,000 fans in Easton, damn if Gatorade hadn't taken things way too far.
From when the thirtysomething players began practicing again months ago, Gatorade demanded that even the local papers submit question for approval before interviewing the hometown players. (Gatorade did, however, provide Valley reporters access to pro players to talk about high school, and one of those, Eagles great Brian Westbrook, admitted he's never gotten over his last game for DeMatha, a 27-26 upset loss to MacNamara in the 1996 WCAC finals after a late extra point miss.)
Peyton and Eli Manning — both sons of New Orleans, not the Valley — were brought in as honorary coaches and to wear Gatorade towels.
Fans weren't allowed to bring any video devices into the game.
And, to top it off, the star of yesterday's game, a Phillipsburg QB who threw for over 300 yards and will no doubt be coming soon to TV commercials near you, didn't even play in the original game.
But, again, the idea is genius. So look for replay games, not Replay® games, to start popping up all over once the ads start airing, with no camera or media restrictions and no NFL vets walking the sidelines.
Doctors and lawyers, get ready.
12:38 pm
Mr. McKenna,
I know its your job to stir the pot and inject some negativity into even the most positive stories, but I believe you would have a difference take if you were at the event or were one of the players. Lets keep in mind that Gatorade made this possible for a reality-tv like series and this was not simply a football game. That being said, the players will tell you that everything was done first class, from the access to athletic training assistance and facilities, to the media coverage and hype created around the game.
Skeptics were plenty but this event outlived the hype. The players look well conditioned and sharp (even in temperatures approaching 100 degrees on the turf) and they executed extremely well. As a football fan, I must say I was skeptical but was pleasantly surprised to see a very good football game. Sure Gatorade had their agenda, but everyone is a winner here: the towns, the fans, the players and families, and of course Gatorade.
The real story here is the players and the dedication and pride they showed throughout this 8-9 week long event. Congrats to both schools/players and Gatorade for making this event a huge success.
1:37 pm
This was the plot of the 1986 movie "Best of Times," starring Robin Williams and Kurt Russell. Pretty amusing, too.
1:42 pm
Mr. Real Truth:
so Gatorade can put on a show. but, come on -- what kind of replay, or, rather, Replay®, is it if the star of the makeup game didn't even play in the original? if this is all about second chances and nostalgia, as billed, what's the second chance if there wasn't ever a first chance? how can you be nostalgic for something you didn't experience?
how phony is that?
and why control media access to local saps like they're Britney Spears? why ban loved ones from taking video of the game? let me answer: SO THE REAL STORY WON'T GET OUT!
after reading the local clips about what really went on, i could only think of Johnny Rotten's last line as a Sex Pistol: Ever get the feeling you've been cheated?
i feel cheated, Mr. Real Truth. But glad you liked the game.
And thanks for Playing the Feud!®
2:19 am
Actually, the "star" of the game was Joe Luke, the running back who scored the only touchdown for P'burg in the original game and then racked up over 200 yards and was named Offensive Player of the Game for the replay.
And according to local papers, the original starting quarterback was one of several players who had to switch positions due to physical realities of 15 years of aging, and chose to withdraw from the game. The new starting QB was on the team for the first game, just not the starter.
And finally, yes, they didn't allow cameras, because they'll be bradcasting the game and accompanying docu-commercial on ESPN2. And yeah, they probably didn't want a player to say something offensive or controversial about a game plastered with their logo. The NFL attempts the same sort of message control, so you'd better condemn all pro sports as a sham as well.
The players and locals I spoke to were to a man overjoyed at the opportunity and the way things turned out. Nice try, but there's really not that much to be cynical about here.