• by Mark Walsh  @markfwal, February 1, 2008

Three quarters of U.S. Internet users plan to go online on Super Bowl Sunday, mainly to check stats and stories related to the game, according to comScore's annual pre-game survey.

Most will do so before or after the game, with less than one-third going online during the game or at half-time. Besides getting game-day information (17%), people will turn to the Web to look for recipe and party ideas and to visit the sites of Super Bowl advertisers (16%). Another 13% said they planned to watch Super Bowl ads or video clips online.

For many, the costly TV spots during the game broadcast are as highly anticipated as the event itself. Overall, 49% said that the game was their favorite part of the Super Bowl festivities, but more than a quarter (26%) actually preferred watching the ads.

Men were much more likely (65%) to prefer watching the game itself, while women tuned in for the ads. Women were also more likely than men to prefer spending time with friends and family and watching the half-time show.

With brands such as Dorito's and Chevrolet making a splash with consumer-generated ads during the 2007 Super Bowl, people were asked to rate the entertainment value of this year's crop of user-submitted commercials. A quarter expect them to be more entertaining than professionally produced ads, compared to just 12% who thought they would be less so.

But when asked which ads from last year were the most memorable, Doritos rated as the second (23%) behind Anheuser-Busch (40%), which ran several spots for Bud and Bud Light.

Coca-Cola and Pepsi were the brands Internet users were most looking forward to seeing commercials from this year (44%). Spots from racier advertisers, including Victoria's Secret and GoDaddy, were also highly anticipated.

Not surprisingly, nearly two-thirds expect the undefeated Patriots to beat the underdog Giants in the championship game. But only 5% said they would go online to bet on the Super Bowl. That's what the office pool is for, presumably.