30. ‘Brian’s Song’

The 1971 TV movie “Brian’s Song” centered on the relationship between Bears running backs Brian Piccolo and Gale Sayers. The Brian Piccolo Award was created after the Bears running back died of cancer before the 1970 season, and guard Glen Holloway received the first honor later that year as the rookie who best exemplified Piccolo’s courage, loyalty, teamwork, dedication and sense of humor. The award was expanded to include a veteran every year beginning in 1992. The movie “Brian’s Song,” starring James Caan as Piccolo and Billy Dee Williams as Gale Sayers, was released as an ABC Movie of the Week in 1971. The Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Foundation was formed in 1970 and has committed more than $8.3 million to research for cancer treatment and cures and has received charitable money from the NFL from fines collected by the league office.

29. Halas steps down

On May 27, 1968, George Halas stunned the Bears and their fans by retiring as coach for the final time, walking away after 40 seasons over five decades with an impeccable 318-148-31 record. He cited a deteriorating hip as a key reason for stepping down. “I have made this decision with considerable reluctance but no regrets,” said Halas, then 73. “There was a strong temptation to continue for another season. Next year is the Bears’ golden jubilee and I would like to have been on the field in 1969 rounding out 50 years as a player and a coach. “But looking at practical realities, I am stepping aside now because I can no longer keep up with the physical demands of coaching the team on Sunday afternoons.” Halas won six championships and the Bears finished with a perfect record twice: 13-0 in 1934 and 11-0 in 1942. They twice won 18 consecutive games under his leadership. Papa Bear insisted this retirement would be final, and it was. “After you lay out a year now, you’re through,” he said. “The game is progressing so fast and there’s too much with which you have to keep up.” Halas was named president of the NFC upon the merger of the NFL and AFL in 1970, and since 1984, shortly after his death, the winner of the conference has been awarded the George S. Halas Trophy.

28. ‘Bear Down, Chicago Bears!’

Composer Al Hoffman, using the alias Jerry Downs, created the Bears fight song in 1941. Interestingly, he had little or no connection to Chicago. Hoffman, who was born in Russia in 1902 and began a music career in New York in the 1920s, is better-known for writing “If I Knew You Were Comin’ I’d’ve Baked a Cake” and “Mairzy Doats,” among other songs. He also did some work for Disney in its early days. After the Bears score at Soldier Field, a version of the song recorded in 1993 by Bill Archer and the Big Bear Band is played.

Bear down, Chicago Bears, make every play clear the way to victory;

Bear down, Chicago Bears, put up a fight with a might so fearlessly.

We’ll never forget the way you thrilled the nation with your T-formation.

Bear down, Chicago Bears, and let them know why you’re wearing the crown.

You’re the pride and joy of Illinois, Chicago Bears, bear down.

27. Champions again

The NFL made a series of significant changes after the 1932 tiebreaker game at Chicago Stadium. One of the most notable was to divide the league into two divisions, creating a championship game between the winners. The Bears hosted the Giants on Dec. 17, 1933, in the inaugural championship game at Wrigley Field, winning 23-21 after Bronko Nagurski completed a 14-yard pass to Bill Hewitt, who lateraled to Billy Karr. Karr ran the final 31 yards to the end zone for the go-ahead touchdown with less than two minutes remaining. Red Grange tackled the Giants’ Red Badgro on the final play to prevent a hook-and-ladder play from working. The crowd of 25,000 was the NFL’s largest since Grange joined the Bears. The victory was the fifth straight for the Bears, who would go on to win their first 13 games the next season. The 18-game winning streak is tied for the third-longest in league history.

26. Indoor activity

On a makeshift 80-yard field inside Chicago Stadium, Bronko Nagurski and Red Grange led the Bears to a 9-0 victory over the Portsmouth (Ohio) Spartans in the NFL’s first playoff championship game on Dec. 18, 1932. The field was 30 feet narrower, the end zones were not regulation and the sidelines were right against the stands. NFL President Joe Carr approved the indoor game after Bears co-owners George Halas and Ed Sternaman petitioned for the move. The Bears had played an exhibition game in Chicago Stadium two years previously and felt it would be a better financial decision to play indoors. The week before, when the Bears defeated the Packers 9-0 to tie the Spartans in the standings, only about 5,000 fans showed up at Wrigley Field with heavy snowfall and temperatures just above zero. The game kicked off at 8:15 p.m., making it likely the first night game in NFL history as well.