UNLV dental student wins $123,000 scholarship in halftime challenge

By Paul Takahashi

Monday, Jan. 17, 2011 | 1:55 a.m.

A UNLV student with a penchant for Dr Pepper won more than $100,000 in scholarship money from the soda company last month.

Casey Vidovich, a first-year dental student from Placentia, Calif., won $123,000 from the Dr Pepper Million Dollar Tuition Giveaway on Dec. 4 during the halftime show at the Virginia Tech-Florida State Atlantic Coast Conference game in Charlotte, N.C.

With about 70,000 fans in the stands watching, Vidovich threw nine of 10 footballs into a 2-foot-diameter Dr Pepper can to beat his opponent.

Despite the finger-numbing, cold weather, “I was super excited,” Vidovich said. “Once I knew I won, I started jumping up and down… it was an amazing experience.”

Vidovich, 23, learned of the contest from his mother, who encouraged him to submit a one-minute video that mentioned Dr Pepper and why he wanted to win the scholarship.

“My mom and I are always looking for ways to pay for my classes,” he said. “I put (the video) off for a few weeks, but then decided to give it a shot.”

It took Vidovich about 30 minutes to film and edit the video on his laptop with a built-in webcam. The idea for his submission, which described the parts of the brain that become stimulated while drinking Dr Pepper, came to Vidovich while studying for his neuro-anatomy exam the following day.

“I just thought it would be original,” he said. “It worked out pretty well.” (He also passed his exam.)

Within a week of submitting his entry on Oct. 15, a Dr Pepper representative called Vidovich with some sweet news.

“I started freaking out,” said Vidovich, who started drinking the soda when he was 4 years old. “I couldn’t believe it. It was crazy.”

Vidovich and his father flew to Charlotte on an all-expenses-paid trip courtesy of Dr Pepper to compete against four other student finalists from around the country for the scholarship money, which will cover about half of the tuition needed to complete the four-year dental program at UNLV.

“The scholarship will really help… It really reduces my stress,” Vidovich said. “I can graduate with a much lower debt. It means a ton to me.”

“I want to serve the community,” he said of his field of study. “Alleviate pain, do cosmetic procedures to make people more confident.”

When asked whether he plans to encourage his future patients to avoid sugary sodas like Dr Pepper, Vidovich replied after a long pause.

“As long as you practice good oral hygiene, you should be fine,” he said. “That’s why you go to the dentist.”