Peyton Manning hosted Saturday Night Live 11 years ago, and was a part of this classic United Way commercial spoof in which he repeatedly nailed kids with a football. 

At the Colts luncheon, he re-told the story of how it all went down. 

The transcript via the Indianapolis Star:

“We did this one skit that people ask me a lot about. We did this spoof for the United Way, and we were throwing footballs at these kids, which doesn’t sound very good. Those footballs were Nerf footballs, a Nerf cutout, and were light as a feather, and they put in these sound effects where it looks like you’re knocking these kids out. I remember the director said, ‘Peyton, you’re a charitable guy, this is why it’s going to be funny. And it’s only going to work if you’re all in, and you whack these kids right in the head.’ And I kept saying my mother is going to be so disappointed.

“These kids were all child actors, and their parents were out there watching the whole time, and it was all very awkward and uncomfortable. So I finally told the director, ‘I can’t do it, I can’t do it. I’ll go up to the edge, but this feels over the edge. I’m not comfortable.’ And he said no problem we don’t have to do it, we don’t wanna make you do something out of your comfort zone. And right then, I cannot make this up, one of the parents of the child actors runs out onto the set and tells the director, ‘I want him to hit my kid in the face!’ I said I will do it. I will knock your kid out.”

Peyton was one the rare athletes who could dominate sports, and dominate the stage of SNL. He was a crossover hit, and really embraced the role. We forget just how funny Peyton Manning could be.