We all know the offseason is slow, boring, and repetitive; I'm already tired of Peyton Manning news and the million different trade scenarios that would get Brandon Marshall to Chicago (would love him here, but ain't gonna happen). So, to prepare ourselves for the greatest month of amateur sports and professional gambling (March Madness, duh) Windy City Gridiron presents to you: Febearary Fever!
The Febearary Fever tournament features thirty-two contestants vying for the title of "Greatest Bear Ever." However, unlike past polls, no Chicago Bears will be participating; instead, we're having famous bears from television, movies, books, and real life faceoff in a poll-crazy month of head-to-head battles to the death. Ever pondered who is better: Yogi or Smoky? What about Winnie versus Staley? Then this is the tournament for you.
Jump ahead to check out the list of this year's participants and how to get your contestant added to the tournament.
We currently have thirty-one of the thirty-two slots for the tournament filled by the bears below, but want to make sure we're not leaving any famous bear off the list. Check over the list and see if we missed any bear, and if so, throw their name out there in the comments section. If you find a bear you would like to see added, rec them and the bear with the most rec's will get added. If we get multiple good choices to add, the tournament committee (i.e. me) will identify the best bear to make the cut.
Again, no Chicago Bears are permitted to participate, but bears from literature, tv, movies, comics, real life, mascots, etc can all be considered. Other than sports teams, we're not going to consider real people for the tournament, guys associated with bears, or with bear-related nicknames like Grizzly Adams. Hey, I take this stuff seriously (not really). So, start racking your brain and find us another bear.
Mascots: Staley (of course), Oski (U. of Cal), Grizz (Memphis Grizzlies), Blades (Bruins), Snuggle, Smoky, Charmin bear, Sugar Crisp bear
Literature: Baloo (Jungle Book), Berenstain Bears, Winnie the Pooh, the 3 Bears (Goldilocks)
TV: Conan O'Brien Bear, Bobo (Simpsons), Sexual Harassment Panda (South Park), Yogi, Boo Boo, Gentle Ben, Fozzy
Movies: Po (Kung Fu Panda), Bald-Headed Bear (Great Outdoors)
Other: Care Bears, Gummi Bears, Paddington Bear, Teddy Ruxpin, the Country Bears, Bruno, Ling Ling, Teddy Bear, Chicago Cubs