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Dr. Pepper releases new Fansville ad, takes apparent shot at Shedeur Sanders

Danby: Daniel Hager08/21/25DanielHagerOn3
Dr-Pepper-releases-new-Fansville-ad-takes-apparent-shot-at-Shedeur-Sanders
Screengrab via Fansville ad.

Get excited, college football fans. For the eighth college football season, the iconic Dr. Pepper Fansville ads have returned.

Past seasons have focused on mini-story arcs, including Oklahoma legend Brian Bosworth and the introduction of the Transfer Portal. But this season seems to be focusing on quarterbacks sliding in the NFL Draft and once again dealing with everyday activities clashing with football.

The NFL Draft slide bit seems to possibly be a shot at former Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders, who was widely projected to be a Top 10 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. But Sanders fell all the way to the No. 144 pick in the fifth round to the Cleveland Browns.

“There was some foolish stuff that went on, but you know what? That gave them something that they needed,” Shedeur’s father and Colorado head coach Deion Sanders said on the Say What Needs to be Said podcast following the draft slide. “That edge that Tom (Brady) had, that you have, it gave them that edge that I have. Folks said we weren’t going to be nothing. We had to prove that. That gave them the edge that they (referring to Shedeur and his brother Shilo Sanders) needed. Both of them.”

The Fansville ads debuted in 2018 after Dr. Pepper announced that it would be retiring the also hilarious “Larry Culpepper” character, played by television veteran James M. Connor. Connor had been portraying the character since 2014, but the company decided to move in a different direction.

After three years of world-building, Dr. Pepper was finally able to use real collegiate players in their ads following the introduction of the NIL rules in 2021. Former Alabama quarterback Bryce Young and former Clemson quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei became the first active college players to appear in a commercial of that caliber in the 2021 and 2022 seasons. Since then, former Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers has also made a cameo in the commercials.

When the Fansville commercials start rolling out, you know it’s time for college football to begin. The season gets underway on Aug. 23, when No. 17 Kansas State clashes with No. 22 Iowa State in the Aer Lingus Classic in Dublin, Ireland. Kick-off is scheduled for 12:00 PM on ESPN.