The draw of Andrew Luck

There’s a name about to explode out of the world of sports.He’s been called the most hyped amateur athlete since LeBron James.

He’s a lock to be the first player picked in the National Football League draft this spring.He’s smart, and well-spoken. He turned down pro riches last year to finish up his architecture degree at Stanford University and hang with his buds on campus for another year.In other words, he’s a marketer’s dream.His name is Andrew Luck.He plays quarterback, the glamour position in American sports.  Even if you don’t follow sports closely, you’re going to hear a lot about Andrew Luck in 2012.Ironically, the guy he’s likely to supplant as quarterback of the Indianapolis Colts, Peyton Manning, was the last person to come into the NFL with such a Madison Avenue-friendly pedigree. Luck, like Manning,  has a goofy charm and a cannon for a right arm.  Like Manning, his dad was also an NFL quarterback.  And, like Manning, Luck is white, which still matters to marketers.Luck actually did not win the Heisman Trophy, given to the year’s best college player.  But, make no mistake, Andrew Luck is the football player everyone will be talking about in 2012.