Once a Black Bear. Always a Black Bear.

By: Laura Reed
There is a lot you can say about the Maine football team right now. There’s no point for me to write about the lengthy list of accomplishments from the season. Two of my favorite highlights are the return of the Brice-Cowell Musket to Orono and winning the outright CAA Championship.

When you’re part of an athletic team at UMaine, you become part of the Black Bear family. The family bonds are strong. The players who came before had a hand in building the program, and they feel the pride and excitement when the team excels.

I could not help but smile as I read tweets of former Black Bear football stars, who are all at different points in their life today. One thing that they all have in common is that they were pretty excited and proud of the performance of the Black Bears this season.

Here is what a few of the former Black Bear standouts had to say on Twitter this past week:

“CAA champions!!!! @BlackBearsFB!!! Proud Alum! On to the playoffs!” – Mike DeVito, former NFL veteran and fellow Sports Chowdah columnist.

“Welcome to life as a Black Bear! We do more with less, we are tougher then you, more competitive, molded and tested by adversity, elements, receive less resources, longer travel trips etc… GOOD! It’s make you better. Congrats on the Championship. WE ARE PREDATORS! HUNT!” – Phil McGeoghan, wide receivers coach for the Los Angeles Chargers.

“Couldn’t be happier for my dogs back east! Congrats @BlackBearsFB” – Marcus Wasilewski, Assistant Director of Athletic Performance for football at Minnesota and Maine quarterback in 2013 when the Black Bears won their last CAA title.

“Family !! !! !! congrats H” with a retweet of the Maine Football tweet saying ‘Congratulations to @CAAFootball Coach of the Year, @MaineCoachH’ – Trevor Bates, who plays for the Detroit Lions.

“Good luck to @BlackBearsFB as they play today to be the outright @CAAFootball champions!!!” – Pat Ricard, current Baltimore Raven, who sees time on both offense and defense.

“So proud of my gang up north! CAA Champions!! You can make it in Maine you can make it anywhere! @BlackBearsFB @UMaine”- Jamil Denby, who has seen time in the NFL.

I hope that these former Black Bear standouts have a lot more to be proud of this season!

Jeff Solari

About Jeff Solari

Jeff Solari is the president and founder of the Sports Chowdah, Maine’s only free, weekly sports e mail newsletter. Recently, the Mount Desert Island native was the co-host of "The Drive" on 92.9 FM in Bangor.