The First Down Line

By: Connor Lenahan

Given historical trends, tomorrow night’s Super Bowl 50 will be the most viewed television program in history. That means that all over the world hundreds of millions will be enjoying one of the most underrated technical advancements in sports history.

After all, how exactly do they get the yellow first down line on screen?

Thanks to Vox, who produced the following absurdly interesting short on the topic, you need not wonder anymore.

Not only is it way, way, way more complicated than I thought, but it’s genuinely fascinating the level of detail that goes into it. We are talking color sampling, 3D graphical models, and way more.

It’s awesome, and I am not doing this justice. Just enjoy the video and go into Super Bowl Sunday feeling like a genius with the new info you’ve gained.