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Newton to toss 500 footballs at Super Bowl

Sammy SportfaceCam Newton will toss 500 footballs into the Levi's Stadium grandstands during next week's Super Bowl.

While his Carolina Panthers teammates play defense, the team's quarterback will heave the official NFL footballs, priced at $500 each, into the stadium crowd.

The balls will be housed along the Panthers sideline in a yellow moon bounce. So throughout the game fans can watch the 500 footballs bounce up and down like popcorn in a popcorn popper, view Newton sticking his head into the bounce, grab one ball at a time, and throw them short and low and far and high into the night. He will toss about half into the lower deck and attempt to rifle the rest into the upper deck, though that may be unrealistic because NFL football stadiums are big.

"I figure during those defensive possessions I have time to spin about 25 balls into the stands," he said this morning while flying to San Francisco, the site of this year's annual Freak Show. "With all the commercials during the Super Bowl taking up much more time than action on the field, I figure I can get most of them out of the moon bounce and into fans' hands by halftime."

The novel idea was hatched this week in the NFL's headquarters office, which sits atop Manhattan's skyline. Newton has been handing a football to one person in the stands after every touchdown he has scored this season and it's being well received by the public at large.

"We figure the Super Bowl is going to be a snore so wanted to do something different to make the fan experience worth the $25,000 we charge per ticket," the league said in a prepared statement.

On conference calls this week with Newton and NFL suits, there has been quite a bit of discussion about where Newton should throw the balls so that as many fans throughout the stadium can have a chance to catch one.

They settled on this scenario. From the Panthers sideline he will throw a hundred or so to fans on that side of the field.

But this is where it gets tricky. From the sideline while the Panthers are hitting Peyton Manning as he heaves fluttering ducks, Newton plans to chuck the ball across the field, over the heads of the Broncos players and, if he has enough arm power, into the lower deck of fans behind their bench.

There are two challenges with this that have yet to be resolved. The first is that receivers and defensive backs may get distracted by two balls flying through the air at the same time in perpendicular directions. This will create confusion in the passing game.

The second challenge is that if Cam doesn't throw the ball far enough he may hit Broncos players - or even coaches - standing on the sideline. Or his throws might be so short they would hit Peyton Manning in the head or back or something like that.

However this gets resolved, Newton's goal of 500 passes will be achieved because the league and Newton have committed to do this and don't want to stain their credibility. They have an overwhelming desire to bring novelty and less boredom to the Super Bowl.

Being fair to everyone, Newton will save the last 100 balls for special purposes. He will show respect to fans in the end zones by firing 25 at each of the two sides of the field.

The end zone hurls will be timed either for when the action is taking place on the opposite side of the field so as:

a) not disrupt action;

b) to give fans something to watch besides commercials and dull and disruptive football; or

c) during extra point kicks that are made 93 percent of the time so lack dramatic tension.

During the half-time show, Newton will fire 50 at the featured band, "Cold Play." At least half of them will be aimed at the drummer's biggest drum because he may be able to puncture it and mess up the concert.

"It will be a cold play on my part," Newton admits.

Priced at $500 each, the total outlays to buy the 500 balls will be something like $50,000. The NFL insists Newton pay for the balls because it is a dictatorship more focused on gauging prices of this upcoming event's 30-second ads, upping the price today from the usual $5 million to $10 million.

As long as it can display its logo, the NFL did agree to pay for the moon bounce rental cost of $100.

- Sammy Sportface

Sammy Sportface is possibly America's best blogger. He is only mildly interested in the truth. To read his new book, Wipe That Smile Off Sammy Sportface, go to Amazon.com.

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