A commercial for Fiat cars in which a little blue pill energized a car earned the top grade in the Michigan State University Department of Advertising and Public Relations’ list of best commercials aired during this year’s Super Bowl.
This marked the 18th consecutive year the MSU faculty have rated the Super Bowl commercials.
Taking second place was a BMW spot that brought together former Today Show hosts Katie Couric and Bryant Gumbel.
“It was a good game with good commercials,” said advertising instructor Robert Kolt. “The first-half ads were much better. The early-game ads cost the most, but that’s where we saw the best spots.”
Third through 10th places for ads included:
- Doritos, in which a plane passenger used the snack to attract a pretty woman to the seat next to his.
- Carnival Cruise, which featured the voice of former President John Kennedy.
- Coca Cola, in which a Coke spilled into a server spread happiness around the world.
- Dove that featured men being “strong” by playing with their children.
- Snickers that included Mike and Carol Brady along with “Marcia” and “Jan.”
- Budweiser that brought back the special relationship between a horse and puppy.
- Avocados from Mexico in which God oversees a creation draft day.
- Skittles, in which two over-muscled men arm wrestle for the last piece of candy.
Using a five-point grading scale, the 20 voting faculty members rated each commercial based on creativity, production and overall quality.