Texas Tech Brilliantly Recreated LaDainian Tomlinson’s ‘This Is SportsCenter’ Commercial

Imitation truly is the sincerest form of flattery, as the Red Raiders and running back Tahj Brooks showed in their inspired video.

Sports fans have long revered ESPN’s classic This Is SportsCenter commercials. The famous ad series has featured iconic athletes such as Tiger Woods, LeBron James and Alex Ovechkin and has established its legacy in the sports world. 

So it’s only fitting to pay tribute to the incredible set of commercials, as the Texas Tech football program did in a clever clip posted this week.

The Red Raiders put together an incredible reprise of LaDainian Tomlinson’s “You’ve Got Mail” ad, swapping in star senior running back Tahj Brooks to play the role that the Hall of Fame ballcarrier once portrayed. In the commercial, Brooks is helping out in the Texas Tech athletic department mailroom … or at least attempting to help.

Take a look:

It's always Brooks Time.@just_tahj | #WreckEm pic.twitter.com/mjw3MZ4ovv

— Texas Tech Football (@TexasTechFB) October 5, 2023

Here’s a refresher on Tomlinson’s commercial, which featured the former NFL MVP showing off his acting chops while hilariously trying to sort mail while looking through his tinted visor.

Needless to say, fans who made the connection between Texas Tech’s video and the This Is SportsCenter clip loved it.

🤣🤣🔥 https://t.co/0BumLFyoc5

— Tahj Brooks (@just_tahj) October 5, 2023

The old "This is SportsCenter" commercials remain among the greatest non-sporting event content ever shown on TV. https://t.co/GkJrEKjdm0

— Aaron Baxter (@pixel5_) October 5, 2023

Outstanding https://t.co/tRiT4skVDH

— Jimmy Sanderson (@Jimmy_Sanderson) October 5, 2023

#WreckEm🌵 https://t.co/3gLGg4eXL0

— Joey McGuire 🌵 (@JoeyMcGuireTTU) October 5, 2023

This is soooo good! #brookstime https://t.co/yGJMhiEnXD

— Lauren Matter (@LaurenMatter) October 5, 2023