Cherry Hill Dog To Compete In Puppy Bowl XX

CHERRY HILL, NJ — A rescued shelter pet in Cherry Hill will ruff it out with the top dogs in the pantheon of pooches: Puppy Bowl XX.

Jake "Cronut" Waffles was adopted by Cherry Hill's Sevick family from the Shar-Pei Rescue of Virginia in Chesapeake. He's become somewhat of a celebrity around the neighborhood, according to NBC10 Philadelphia.

Cronut, a 9-month-old shar pei, is among 131 "players" in the Puppy Bowl, which will air at 2 p.m. on Feb. 11 — Super Bowl Sunday. The three-hour program will be simulcast on Animal Planet, Discovery, TBS, truTV, Max and discovery+.

Animal Planet got an exclusive interview with Cronut — a member of Team Fluff — ahead of the big game:

Puppy Bowl organizers say this is the biggest year yet for the Puppy Bowl, which features 131 puppies from 76 shelters and rescue groups in 36 states and territories. Adoption is the ultimate goal of the Puppy Bowl, a raucous competition between Team Ruff and Team Fluff.

Leading up to the Puppy Bowl and after it airs, Warner Bros Discovery, Animal Planet’s parent, is partnering with Best Friends Animal Society, a leading national animal welfare organization, to help the animals find loving homes. The organization will match donations to cover adoption fees for their pet lifesaving centers nationwide from Feb. 7-14. To adopt an animal, text PUPPY to 707070 or visit PuppyBowl.com/donate to double your impact or find a shelter near you.

The all-important "Adoptable Pet" segment features puppies — and a few kittens — from 14 shelters and rescues across the country. They’ll be introduced by country singer Miranda Lambert, whose nonprofit MuttNation will feature a senior dog seeking a forever home.

With the "Lombarky" trophy and MVP (most valuable puppy) award at stake, the program is rife with Super Bowl puns. An Underdog Award will be awarded, too. To celebrate 20 years of the game, four previous Puppy Bowl players return to be inducted into the all-new Puppy Bowl Hall of Fame.

The competition kicks off with the starting lineup for teams. They include Dash, a Pomeranian/pug, and Maggie, a chow chow/American Staffordshire terrier representing the U.S. Virgin Islands for the first time, who are leading Team Fluff.

Tater, an Australian cattle dog/German shepherd, and Peanut Pretzel, a pug from Los Angeles, will look to bring Team Ruff to victory. As the game progresses, it will be revealed which puppies take home the MVP and Underdog trophies.