NFL Stars InvadeNicktoons TurfWith ‘Rush Zone’

Iron Man and Wolverine will have to make
room for some real-life NFL superheroes on
the Nicktoons lineup.

The animation network has partnered with
the National Football League to create a new
animated short-form series dubbed Rush
Zone: Guardians of the Core
. The series will
consist of 22 short videos (two to five minutes
each) featuring a 10-year-old boy tasked to
ward off Sudden Death, an evil villain looking
to destroy humanity by reassembling pieces
of a benevolent life force hidden in each of
the league’s 32 stadiums.

To stop the villain, the boy is given the
physical abilities of an NFL player and has to
work with players and coaches from all 32
teams to learn the value of teamwork and
how to become a true hero, according to
Nicktoons.

New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton
and New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning
are among the footballers lending their voices
and names to the series, the network said.

The series will air weekly on Nicktoons and
online via Nicktoons.com and NFLRush.com
beginning in September at the start of the
2010 NFL season. A one-hour movie special
will air the day before Super Bowl XLV in
February.

R. Thomas Umstead

R. Thomas Umstead serves as senior content producer, programming for Multichannel News, Broadcasting + Cable and Next TV. During his more than 30-year career as a print and online journalist, Umstead has written articles on a variety of subjects ranging from TV technology, marketing and sports production to content distribution and development. He has provided expert commentary on television issues and trends for such TV, print, radio and streaming outlets as Fox News, CNBC, the Today show, USA Today, The New York Times and National Public Radio. Umstead has also filmed, produced and edited more than 100 original video interviews, profiles and news reports featuring key cable television executives as well as entertainers and celebrity personalities.