When the NCAA opened the door for college athletes to partner with brands, most ads fell flat - treating players like props with awkward performances that fans quickly forgot. SONIC set out to change that. After cracking the code on how to create the burger America deserves, they realized they couldn’t run the risk of debuting ads that subjected football fans to subpar performances. And you can’t sell the best burger with bad acting. Before we featured football players in our ads, we created “The Terry Crews School of Acting for Athletes,” where a former professional football player turned Hollywood actor would coach our SEC college athletes to deliver performances as bold and memorable as the SONIC Smasher itself. What began as a comedic pre-season training session became the kickoff to SONIC’s football season campaign - entertaining fans, elevating athletes, and reinforcing the quality that sets the Smasher apart. By merging football credibility with Hollywood-level charisma, SONIC gave fans advertising that was as watchable as the game itself. They cemented the Smasher as the burger football season deserves, and raised the stakes of athlete acting - possibly even beyond the collegiate level.