FOR THE CAKE:

1. Preheat an oven to 350°F. Spray an 8″ round pan with cooking spray. Set aside.
2. Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl. Beat for 2 minutes or until well-blended. Transfer the batter to prepared pan and bake for 35-40 minutes or until toothpick inserted near center of cake comes out clean.

FOR THE GANACHE:

1. Place the chocolate chips in a bowl and set aside. Put the heavy cream in a small saucepan, and set it over medium-high heat. Once it begins to simmer, remove the pot from the heat and add the vanilla. Pour it over the chocolate. Stir it with a spoon to begin to melt the chocolate. Place a lid, tray, pan or plastic wrap on top and let it melt for a few minutes. Take the lid off and slowly whisk until the ganache is totally melted and combined. (This waiting period allows the hot cream to melt the chocolate while at the same time bringing down the temperature of the cream. Whisking while the cream is too hot could cause the ganache to break, resulting in a gritty final texture.)

TO MAKE THE FOOTBALL CAKE:

1. Once the cake is cooled, place a serrated knife in the middle as if cutting the cake in half. Move the knife 1″ over to the left and cut. Repeat on the other side removing about a 2″ section from the middle of the cake.
2. To cover the cake with poured ganache, the ganache needs to cool just a bit. As it is cooling, set up a wire rack over a baking tray. Set the cooled shaped cake on the rack sandwiching the 2 halves together forming a football. Carefully ladle the ganache over the cake in a steady stream, letting it run over the cake until covered.

TO MAKE THE LACES:

1. Place 1/2 – 1 Cup Cool Whip or whipped cream in a small Ziploc bag and snip the corner off to pipe the lines and laces on the cake.