If TCU is a repeat champion, then its College of Fine Arts is a new draft pick. For the second year in a row, Texas Christian University was included in the USA Today Ad Meter School Spotlight program. Sixteen higher education institutions rated national Super Bowl commercials, evaluating what resonated, what they liked most and what fell short. USA Today then publishes the results in a post-game story.  

Last year’s participation of students from TCU’s Neeley School of Business and Bob Schieffer College of Communication was a resounding success. This year, the College of Fine Arts joined the team.  

“Super Bowl commercials represent the highest level of creative and strategic storytelling in contemporary media,” said Charles Freeman, professor and chair of fashion merchandising and director of research and creative activities for the College of Fine Arts. “Through this initiative, students analyze how visual design, narrative, sound and brand strategy converge at scale to shape consumer behavior and cultural impact.” 

Schieffer College also expanded its involvement. In addition to the new media class that participated last year, the college added students from introductory advertising and capstone classes.  

“I thought it would be a good opportunity to get more of our students involved in this big advertising event,” said Catherine Coleman, professor and chair of strategic communication. “Students have an opportunity to have a behind-the-scenes look at how the Ad Meter – long a measure of Super Bowl advertising success – works and to have a voice in the ads that are elevated to the top.”  

Engaging Across Disciplines 
In addition to creating a structure and venue for advertising analysis, Coleman, said the interdisciplinary opportunity is always welcome.  

“When students engage with peers across different disciplines, they are bringing different perspectives, analytical lenses and vocabularies to the conversation,” Coleman said. “This can expand students’ understanding, generate creative interpretations and unexpected insights can emerge. It also encourages students to improve their skills in communicating ideas and integrating new ideas.” 

She also points out the great networking opportunity and is thankful for the leadership of TCU Neeley faculty.  

“Much of the credit goes to Kevin Smith in the Neeley School,” she said. “Last year, he reached out to me to see if I’d be interested in collaborating with him.”

C. Kevin Smith, a Neeley adjunct professor and former FOX Sports executive, brought this opportunity to campus last year and elevated the project in Year 2. With help from TCU Athletics, he took the  classroom experience to the sports field a few days before Sunday’s big game. The students got in the sportss mindset at TCU’s Sam Baugh Indoor Practice Facility and Cox Field by trying on football helmets, shoulder pads and uniforms before transitioning to the football team room to watch some of the Super Bowl commercials that had been  released early.

“This experience allows us to connect academic frameworks with the realities of corporate decision-making,” Smith said. “By evaluating Super Bowl commercials, our students apply industry-relevant practices in brand strategy, consumer insight and creative execution. In doing so, they are practicing the same skills companies rely on when making high-stakes marketing investments.”

‘You Can’t Look at Advertising the Same Anymore’
The class discussion included analysis and insights from Katelyn Ackerman ’17, a client strategist at USA Today Co. and LocaliQ, where one of her roles is designing meda strategies through analyzing consumer behaviors. She also started her professional career after being a Neeley marketing student and taking Smith’s Sports Entertainment Marketing class. 

Ackerman described Ad Meter as a way for students to get real-world experience of looking at and understanding advertising differently.

“It’s a fun dive into the ad’s purpose with a peek behind the scenes of creating and placing them,” she said, “looking at the actual pieces marketing/advertising professionals and brands care about and what real ad success means.”  

Commercials and advertising are all about the audience the company is trying to reach and analyzing the numbers to see if the ads hit their mark. With Super Bowl commercials  reaching an all-time high of $10 million for a 30-second spot, recognizing which commercials did well and which failed is serious business. 

Since its debut in 1989, USA Today  Ad Meter has become a leading authority on Super Bowl advertising, addressing how the brands and spots drive sentiment and conversations related to sports, pop culture and the world of entertainment. 

Fitting that TCU would integrate business, communication – and now fine arts – into the conversation.  

“For our fashion marketing and sports merchandising students, the Super Bowl context highlights how athletics operates as a global entertainment and branding platform, where media, commerce and fan engagement intersect,” Freeman said. “This collaboration reflects the College of Fine Arts’ commitment to applied creativity, innovation and interdisciplinary learning. By engaging students with industry-defining work, the initiative positions them to critically examine the creative standards shaping today’s media and commercial landscape.” 

It’s a winning collaboration.  

Read more on Super Bowl advertisement trends from Schieffer College.