It took me a while to figure out what was going on with this commercial the first time I saw it. And I don’t think it immediately dawned on me what the giant rock was doing with all these college mascots.

And then I saw the end of the spot, right about here, and realized what was going on.

These were obviously produced well before anyone had a solid idea of who would be attending tonight Heisman ceremony in New York. And if I’m correct in guessing that this spot, as well as the New York one, were done before the season began, it looks like they had some difficulties getting rights from Notre Dame to allow that little leprechaun guy to appear.

It’s like he vanished. Kind of like Brady Quinn. Coincidence? Hmmm.

The Buckeye, however, is present in both spots, which you can see here as of the time of this post. Look for its appearance in the first one just as the Sooner is looking smug because he’s run somebody over with his wagon.

After watching the New York spot, you have to wonder whether someone at Nissan’s ad agency is psychic or just made a good guess. In the final frames of the commercial, a Cornhusker, a Mountaineer (I’m pretty sure it’s a Mountaineer and not a Volunteer, but I could be wrong) and the giant Buckeye all appear, making one final lunge towards the trophy. Again, if you’re making this in, say, July, you’ve done pretty well to pick the eventual winner for your commercial.

Uh, that’s the Buckeye I’m talking about, boys and girls. The one who wears the No. 10 jersey.