Imagine a shirtless Abe Gibron celebrating with his players after a Bears win.
Sorry to put that image into your head on a cold Chicago morning, but I couldn’t help thinking about the beefy Gibron after a shirtless Ben Johnson went viral Friday night following the Bears’ 24-15 win in Philadelphia.
Johnson’s selfless act of exhibitionism triggered another free hot dog day from the fine folks at Wieners Circle, bringing joy to all on a snowy holiday weekend when Friday felt like a Saturday and Saturday felt like a Sunday. Johnson had telegraphed his intentions to the media last month when asked if he would accept the iconic Lincoln Park hot dog stand’s standing offer to feed Chicagoans by removing said shirt during or after a win.
“I’m a man of the people,” Johnson replied. “So time will tell.”
The man of the people stood up for Chicago on Friday, assuring the masses that free glizzies would be theirs, assuming they don’t mind standing in a long line for a hot dog.
Gibron, an XXXL-sized coach without a ton of talent on his roster, was the polar opposite of Johnson. He won only 11 times in his three seasons here from 1972-74, and was more renowned for the ubiquitous “Abe and Melody” TV commercials with actress Melody Rogers that ran during games.
But for boomers, he’s perhaps the quintessential Bears coach of our lifetime. We’ve endured many more Abe Gibrons than Mike Ditkas over the last 60 years, most of which were very forgettable. At least Gibron was colorful.
Still, having a head coach with a great offensive mind and an uninhibited personality is going to take some getting used to for Bears fans. It’s a refreshing change of pace, and we can’t wait to see what he does next Sunday if the Bears beat the Packers in Green Bay.
Meanwhile, here are 13 more observations from the wacky world of sports.
ESPN’s “College GameDay” informed us Saturday morning that Lane Kiffin started his day off with his traditional hot yoga session, and that the whole world was waiting on his announcement about his future — whether Kiffin was staying at Ole Miss or leaving for LSU.
I couldn’t ask the whole world, but I polled my household, and it turns out that no one actually cared about Lane Kiffin or his decision. The relentless Kiffin hype by the network that airs SEC football is tedious, to say the least.
How does a player headbutt a referee, as Michigan’s Jaishawn Barham did early in Saturday’s Michigan-Ohio State game, and not get ejected? I’ll hang up and listen for my answer.
It’s great to see a college basketball doubleheader at the United Center, like the old days at the Chicago Stadium. But having it on Thanksgiving night was a bad idea, and having the Northwestern-Oklahoma State game start close to 10 p.m. was even worse. Maybe a late afternoon, Black Friday doubleheader would draw more eyeballs in 2026.
Word is former LSU coach Brian Kelly is working on several regional accents, just to be ready in case any college calls for his services. The Cajun accent he adopted after leaving Notre Dame for LSU is likely to be retired for good.
Philadelphia Eagles fans are becoming a parody of themselves. Booing players after every play gets a little tiresome, as though they’re only doing it to live down to their reputation. No wonder Jalen Hurts looks so unhappy all the time.
Chicago Sports Network needs to make a commercial from the scene Friday night at the United Center, where a group of young boys sitting near the glass gleefully egged on the Blackhawks-Predators brawl during the second period. It was like a scene out of “Slapshot.”
Former White Sox ace Dylan Cease agreed to a seven-year, $210 million deal with the Toronto Blue Jays, which is a higher annual average value than former White Sox ace Garrett Crochet’s six-year, $170 million extension with the Boston Red Sox.
The combined $380 million is around $379 million more than current White Sox ace Shane Smith will be paid in 2026.
No. 2 Indiana might be the least-publicized 12-0 team in college football history. Too bad the Hoosiers aren’t in the SEC. Maybe coach Curt Cignetti can take up hot yoga.
An NFL playoff without the Kansas City Chiefs means no bombardments of Taylor Swift sightings by Fox Sports, CBS or NBC, and that’s something we can all get behind in the final weeks of the regular season.
Good call by the IHSA to cancel the four high school football championship games that were scheduled for Saturday. The snowstorm would’ve made traveling to Hancock Stadium in Normal difficult. The Class 5A and 6A games were rescheduled for Tuesday at Hancock, while the 7A and 8A have been moved to Huskie Stadium in DeKalb on Wednesday.
With Wrigley Field having already laid down a football field for the two recent Northwestern games, it’s a shame they couldn’t reschedule the games for the ballpark. Of the eight teams in the four games, only East St. Louis, which plays Fenwick in the 6A title game, is not from the Chicago area.
Cheers to Bulls center Nikola Vučević for getting visibly annoyed by the mugging of teammates Jalen Smith and Matas Buzelis while Vučević was being interviewed by CHSN’s K.C. Johnson after a win over the lowly Washington Wizards. Why so many athletes think it’s funny to make faces or throw water on a teammate getting interviewed on TV is one of life’s enduring mysteries.
Now that Michigan has lost to Ohio State, will Fox Sports stop shoving uber-obnoxious Michigan booster Dave Portnoy down America’s throats? His act is played out.
The Grinch in the Walmart commercials that aired nonstop in every football game over the weekend looks like the Cowardly Lion from “The Wizard of Oz” and is even more pathetic than Jim Carrey’s version in the movie.
You’d think at this point in time someone would make an AI version of the OG (Original Grinch) Boris Karloff, who voiced the character in the 1960s cartoon version.