SuperBowl Commercial

The Super Bowl is approaching, with the actual game between Pittsburgh and Arizona a questionable match up. But while many expect that the Super Bowl might be a blowout, there will still be some suspense during the broadcast. As usual, whenever the Super Bowl isn't that competitive, people will still watch for the Super Bowl commercials. Once more, major companies are shelling out millions for big Super Bowl commercials and major exposure.

Super Bowl commercials are notorious for being just as big as the Super Bowl nowadays. People may bet on which company has the best Super Bowl commercials as much as they bet on the game itself. Super Bowl commercials have been legendary for about 20 years and beyond. The big rush of Super Bowl commercials technically began in the late 80's. But a select Super Bowl commercials were famous long before that, like the Mean Joe Green Coca-Cola ad, and Apple's legendary 1984 parody. Now, even more products are in on the act on Super Bowl Sunday, ranging from beer, soda and Internet websites.

Traditionally, Budweiser and Pepsi have had the biggest commercials. Pepsi has had Cindy Crawford, dancing bears and more icons over the years, while Budweiser has had the Bud Bowl, the Budweiser frogs, lizards and clydesdales, and Wassup guys. McDonalds also had Michael Jordan and Larry Bird providing nothing but net. This year, the Super Bowl commercials have already made news before the game. For the first time in 10 year, none of the Big 3 automakers will have Super Bowl commercials.

In addition, traditional Super Bowl advertiser FedEx has no spots, as the economy even hits the Super Bowl. The economic troubles may even be reflected in some of the ads themselves. Most controversial of all, PETA had a Super Bowl ad blocked by NBC. The ad promoted veganism by having hot women get...sexually excited with their vegetables. NBC nixed the ad, which is already on the Web.

Still, Super Bowl commercials sold for a maximum of $3 million for a 30 second spot. Budweiser, Pepsi and other big brands will once again have several chances to steal the Super Bowl with their ads. And a few summer movies will get to show some trailers while they're at it.

30 NBA draft prospects

Ready for the 2009-2010 NBA season? Many of these players may be. Here is a list of the top 30 NBA draft prospects if the college season ended today. We could call it a mock draft but not knowing which teams will get what picks it makes it rather hard. But I digress, here is the list and maybe some of your favorite college teams have a few players you should be looking for to play in the NBA in the coming years.

30. Dejuan Blair- Pittsburgh Power Forward

29. James Johnson-WakeForest Small Forward

28. Josh Heytvelt- Gonzaga Power Forward

27. Wayne Ellington- North Carolina Shooting Guard

26. Sam Young- Pittsburgh Small Forward

25. Austin Daye- Gonzaga Small Forward

(30-25) The best pro out of the group could turn out to be James Johnson with all his athletic ability and court vision but he is still a raw talent that needs to improve his game

24. Tyler Hansbrough- North Carolina Power Forward

23. Tywon Lawson- North Carolina Point Guard

22. Omri Casspi- Israel Small Forward

21. Darren Collison- UCLA Point Guard

20. Eric Maynore- VCU Point Guard

19. Stephen Curry- Davidson Shooting Guard

(24-19) Are you a believer in Stephen Curry? I am the best pro out of this group will be Stephen Curry who should turn out to be a star in the NBA with his character and shooting ability.

18. Patrick Mills- St. Mary's Point Guard

17. Tyler Smith- Tennessee Small Forward

16. Gerald Henderson- Duke Shooting Guard

15. Demar Derozen- USC Shooting Guard

14. Jeff Teague- Wake Forest Point Guard

13. Patrick Patterson- Kentucky Power Forward

(18-13) Watch out for Jeff Teague who is bound to be a star in the NBA. Teague is the next great point guard to come out of Wake Forest and could end up being a great NBA point guard just like Chris Paul.

12. Chase Budinger- Arizona Small Forward

11. Earl Clark- Louisville Small Forward

10. Dajuan Summers- Georgetown Small Forward

9. Greg Monroe- Georgetown Power Forward

8. Damion James- Texas Small Forward

7. Gani Lawal- Georgia Tech Power Forward

(12-7) Budinger has not done much in college to improve his game but was once a lottery pick in the NBA. Look for him to improve his game in the NBA and rival Greg Monroe for the best out of this l ist.

6. Al-Farouq Aminu- Wake Forest Small Forward

5. Jordan Hill- Arizona Power Forward

4. Hasheem Thabeet- Connecticut Center

3. Brandon Jennings- International Point Guard

2. James Harden- Arizona State Shooting Guard

1. Blake Griffin- Oklahoma


(6-1) Blake Griffin can dominate a basketball game in college and will eventually do the same in the NBA. Thabeet and Jennings will have a lot of growing pains if they leave for the NBA early and James Harden should be ready to play right away.

Mark Sanchez

It was revealed today that Mark Sanchez, the staring quarterback for the for the University of Southern California, will enter the 2009 NFL Draft. Based on his career at USC, I would question whether or not this is the right decision.

First of all, unlike his predecessors Matt Leinhart and Carson Palmer, he was not even a Heisman finalist. His name never even came up in the talks this year. Now, clearly, it is not necessary to be a Heisman candidate to make in the NFL (ahem, Joe Flacco and Tony Romo, I am looking at you). However, considering where he comes from, Sanchez should have at least been in the running. However, in 2008, the football analysts praised the dominating defensive performance of the USC Trojans. It was a rare moment when anyone even mentioned Sanchez or his play.

In addition, USC has a chance to compete for the national title every year. That's what Pete Carroll does; he prepares his team for the big game. Sanchez has a chance to take USC to the National Championship. This would make his stock in the Draft skyrocket. This year, his team lost to a mediocre Oregon State team to stop their BCS dream in its tracks. Knowing Pete Carroll, this will not happen again.

Finally, Sanchez is a good example of what is wrong with college football today. College is for earning a degree. It should not be a showpiece for talent for the NFL. USC did not pay Sanchez to play football; they paid his way through college. And now he repays that by hurting the graduation rate. I don't want to pick on Sanchez because so many players choose to enter the Draft rather than earn their degrees. What they don't realize is that they are one blown knee from being unemployed and without a degree to assist them.

Sanchez made a selfish choice to enter the Draft; in the long run, he is hurting his team, his school, and his coach. He is, unfortunately, not alone. The mistake is a common one. I just hope his knees hold up.

SuperBowl 43

There are a few playmakers lining up for Super Bowl 43 in Tampa Florida. A playmaker is a football player who can of course make a big play, usually a long scoring play to gi ve his team the momentum. Both the Arizona Cardinals and Pittsburgh Steelers will be fielding several Super Bowl Playmakers in Tampa. The Super Bowl has a history of playmakers stepping up for the big game. Marcus Allen, Lynn Swan, Larry Brown (yes I said it!) and many others have made their place in NFL history.

This article will break down the Super Bowl 43 playmakers for each team with stats from NFL.com. I will exclude the quarterbacks Ben Roethlisberger and Kurt Warner as that is a given.

Super Bowl 43 Playmakers for the Arizona Cardinals

Larry Fitzgerald is the best wide receiver in the NFL at this time, bar none. Fitzgerald has stepped up his game in the NFC playoffs, where the whole word can see him shine. In 3 NFC playoff games, Fitzgerald has caught 23 passes for 419 yards and 5 touchdowns. His amazing 18.2 yards per catch in the playoffs set him up to be a playmaker in Super Bowl 43. In the 2008 NFL regular season Fitzgerald caught 98 passes for 1,431 yards and 12 scores with a long play of 78 yards. His average yards per catch was 14.9 which shows he stepped up his play in the post season.

Anquan Boldin is always a big play threat but has been injured in the playoffs after catching a long touchdown pass in the Falcon game. If Boldin is healthy and over his feud with offensive coaches, he can be a playmaker in the big game in Tampa.

J.J Arrington is a threat to break a play at anytime with his blazing speed. Arrington is used out of the backfield as a receiver or runner. But it is his kick returning ability that makes him dangerous. J.J. Arrington averaged 25.6 yards per kick return in the 2008 regular season. He also added a 93 yard touchdown return.

Dominique Rodgers- Cromartie is the Cardinals big play guy on defense. In the regular season he had 4 interceptions for 157 yards and one touchdown. He is a threat to have a pick six against Big Ben who tends to throw em up to see where they land at times.