Colts Dungy, Rhodes Have Their Day in the Sun at Disney World

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (Feb. 7, 2007) -- It was a blue blue day Wednesday at Walt Disney World Resort: sky blue and Indianapolis Colts blue.

Two days after the launch of a television commercial showing Colts Coach Tony Dungy and running back Dominic Rhodes gleefully professing, "We're going to Disney World," they were in the Magic Kingdom for a hero's welcome celebrating their team's triumphant march to victory in Super Bowl XLI.

Adoring fans lined Main Street, U.S.A. for a parade in which Dungy and Rhodes rode in a convertible while being showered with cheers and blue, red and silver streamers.

Dungy and Rhodes also participated in a brief game of football in the shadows of Cinderella Castle with a group of children who normally participate in NFL Youth Football leagues around Central Florida. For the first time in history, a football field was constructed on Main Street, U.S.A. near the theme park's gleaming royal icon to accommodate the fun.

The television commercial in which Dungy and Rhodes appeared was the 37th installment of a series that is one of TV's longest-running spots. The first commercial, featuring New York Giants quarterback Phil Simms, aired in early 1987 following Super Bowl XXI.

The catchy commercial created an immediate "buzz," partly due to the timeliness of the spot on the day after the Giants' victory and partly due to the genuine emotion of the triumphant moment captured in the spot.

Since the first ad in 1987, stars from Major League Baseball, the NBA, NHL, Olympics, World Cup and more have been featured. While household names from professional sports have filled many commercials, there have been notable exceptions -- including Miss America and Santa Claus.

But the Super Bowl remains the most popular of the "I'm going to Disney" spots, featuring champions and heroes from 20 NFL championship games.

A common misconception is that the MVP of the Super Bowl automatically is chosen for the commercial. In fact, eight of the 20 Super Bowl spots have featured someone other than the MVP, bringing an additional element of surprise to the campaign.

This year marked one of those occasions after Dungy became the first African American head coach to hoist the Vince Lombardi Trophy as Super Bowl champion, while Rhodes alone rushed for 113 yards -- against a Chicago Bears team that had yielded an average of 98.5 yards per game prior to Sunday -- and scored the touchdown that put the Colts ahead for keeps.