Amateurs do it again.

In case you haven't heard, for the second year straight, an amateur took one of the top prizes during last weekend's Superbowl Parade of Ads. Last year's title in the USA Today "Ad Meter" went to two pals who entered a commercial during a Dorito's contest. Their entire commercial cost less than $2K to produce.

As industry tracking mechanisms go, the Ad Meter is one of the best. It tracks second-by-second consumer response to the commercials aired during the Game. Madison Avenue called it a fluke, and promptly spent months retooling.

This year's top honor went to Mars-Snickers for their (hilarious) commercial starring Betty White. The silver medal went to another amateur who entered the Dorito's contest (the "dog shock collar" commercial). The total budget to make this year's commercial was $200 and the featured dog belonged to a friend.

It's no small feat when Superbowl advertisers notoriously pull out all the stops to rank high on the Ad Meter. It's refreshing to see that good old-fashioned talent can still upstage glitz, glamour and celebrity endorsements.

Frankly, I was disappointed that the screaming chickens, compliments of Denny's, didn't score higher. It's apparently really hard for me (and those watching the game with me) to resist :30 of screaming chickens. To see how you're favorite commercials fared, check out the Ad Meter.