The Curse of Dr Pepper Rides Again

With Halloween being on Friday, I present to you the Dr Pepper Curse. The curse of Dr Pepper has been ravaging college football and the National Football League (NFL) throughout the 2020's.

How did this curse start?

The curse of Dr Pepper began in 2021 when the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) changed their policy and allowed for college athletes to make money off of his or her name, image, and likeness (NIL).

Dr Pepper was the first major corporation to take advantage of having college athletes endorse their product with a commercial involving then-Clemson Tigers quarterback DJ Uiagalelelei in 2021.

At the time, Uiagalelelei appeared to be a can't miss prospect. In his freshman season, he had to fill in for starting QB Trevor Lawrence in 2020 for a couple of games. Due to his good play, Clemson ended up making it all the way to the College Football Playoffs Championship.

Coming into 2021, Uiagalelelei was seen as being the frontrunner to be that season's Heisman Trophy winner. However, after doing the commercial, he went on to have an abysmal year of only 2,248 passing yards with 9 touchdowns and 10 interceptions.

His college football career went downhill after that. He transferred to Oregon State and had a couple of mediocre years. Finally, he transferred to Florida State and broke his leg midway through the 2024 season. He went from being the #1 high school quarterback in the country to not even being drafted into the NFL. He is currently a backup QB on the Los Angeles Chargers as an undrafted free agent.

For 2022, Alabama Crimson Tide QB Bryce Young was in the Dr Pepper commercial.

He won the Heisman Trophy in 2021, and he was being predicted to be the second person to win the award in consecutive years (Archie Griffin - Ohio State).

However, he went from making it to the National Championship Game to not even being in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Championship Game in 2022. He had a good season, but he threw for 1,500 less yards and for 15 less TD in comparison to 2021.

His pro career has been abysmal with the Carolina Panthers. He won two games as a rookie in 2023 and four games in 2024. He was benched last year for two games for Andy Dalton.

However, he has the possibility to break the Dr Pepper Curse this season because the Panthers are 4-4 so far. He will be seeking to return from an ankle injury to start for Carolina on Sunday. If he can lead the Panthers to the NFL Playoffs, then the Dr Pepper Curse will be broken.

For 2023, USC QB Caleb Williams was in the Dr Pepper commercial. It appeared that the Dr Pepper Curse would finally be broken after Williams won the Heisman Trophy in 2022. However, he threw for 900 less yards and 12 less TD's in 2023.

Nevertheless, he appeared to be a can't miss #1 pick for the Chicago Bears in 2024. After starting out 4-2, the Bears went on to lose ten straight games that led to a 5-12 season.

For this season, Chicago began their season again at 4-2, but they just lost to the Baltimore Ravens last Sunday without Lamar Jackson playing. The last time the Ravens won a game without Jackson playing was when they defeated the Bears four years ago.

However, Williams has some time to lead the Bears to the NFL Playoffs. If Chicago makes the playoffs, then the Dr Pepper Curse will be broken. Williams also has to deal with the curse of Chicago Bears QB's as well because no Bears QB in history has thrown for 4,000 yards in a season.

Last year's Dr Pepper commercial had a cameo appearance from Texas Longhorns QB Quinn Ewers. Texas lost for two seasons in a row in the College Football Playoffs semifinals with Ewers as starter.

The Dr Pepper Curse has broken down so many players that no college football player was included in the Fansville commercial series. As mentioned earlier, Young and Williams have a chance to break this curse once and for all. However, the Dr Pepper Curse is riding high like the Madden Cover Curse during the 2000's.