Bears End Hibernation and Go South Today
The Super Bowl-bound Chicago Bears took Sunday off before leaving for the New Orleans Superdome, a place that holds mixed memories for the NFC champions.
The Bears, coming off three days of practice inside Memorial Stadium’s bubble in Champaign, will leave for New Orleans today to prepare for the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XX.
The game will mark the Bears’ fourth at the Superdome, home of the New Orleans Saints. Two of the games were regular-season contests, one an exhibition. Chicago is 2-1.
“For me, the memories are good because I caught three touchdown passes there,” said Willie Gault, the Bears’ fleet receiver. “However, we lost the game.”
In one of Coach Mike Ditka’s most bitter defeats, the Bears fell, 34-31, to the Saints in overtime on Sept. 18, 1983. It was one of three overtime losses for the Bears that year.
Security arrangements for the Bears at the dome will be extremely tight, even for Super Bowl standards. The club will not have a curfew until Wednesday night, when they’ll have to be in at 11:30, but there will be little chance for fans to get a peek at the Bears.
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