NCAA saturated by Vitaminwater

MIAMI — Thought filling out the perfect bracket was difficult? Here’s another task for all March Madness enthusiasts: For the second round of the NCAA Tournament, predict how many times you see the Vitaminwater logo.

I’ll stick to picking games than guessing a triple-digit number.

At every NCAA Tournament site this season, all sideline cups, jugs and coolers have purple Vitaminwater logos visible in almost every CBS camera angle.

While the fresh logos are new to the NCAA in 2009, it’s still a Coke brand on the sidelines: The Coke-owned Vitaminwater replaces Coke-owned Dasani’s sideline sponsorship this season after Coke acquired Glaceau for $4.1 billion in 2007.

According to the Sports Business Journal, Coke is in its sixth year of a top-level NCAA Corporate Champion sponsorship — a contract that extends through 2013.

Just how extensive is this big sponsorship deal? While student-athletes and coaches are provided with Vitaminwater cups at press conferences and during timeouts, even members of the media must drink all beverages — aside from coffee — out of a Vitaminwater cup.

Whether it’s water, juice or soda — doesn’t matter. Unknowingly, I grabbed a Sprite from the drink station and began walking back to the media room before hearing “Excuse me sir! Excuse me!”

One of the workers hurried over to me with a Vitaminwater cup, and said, “You have to drink that out of this.”

Since we’re allowed to bring the beverages out into the arena, it’s crucial that those cups are Vitaminwater. Just incase that CBS camera catches us.

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