In one of the most anticipated games of the season, the Ogden Park Vikings shut out the Lindblom Park Ravens 25-0 in the 73rd Annual Mum Bowl youth football game on Friday, October 21, at Soldier Field.
The two teams from Englewood represented the Chicago Park District Junior Bear Football Program, partners of the Chicago Bears of the National Football League. The organization has been in business for 73 years across the city.
According to the Chicago Park District, the Junior Bear Football Program is a tackle football program consisting of two divisions, the 8-10-year-old Pee Wee division and the 11-13-year-old Varsity division.
The season normally runs from August to October, as players participate in opening ceremonies, clinics, and league play, along with the championship game and closing ceremonies.
This season, the Mum Bowl was held in October, and the Ogden Park Vikings would dominate the contest following the opening kickoff.
In the first quarter, the Vikings scored 14 points and jumped out to a 25-0 halftime lead. In the second half, both teams went scoreless but 25 points were all the Vikings needed as the team pulled off a huge victory over their neighborhood rivals.
The Vikings were crowned the 2022 Mum Bowl Champions after overpowering Lindblom on the lakefront. The team was awarded the Tom “Coach” Mitchell Championship Trophy following the game.
Final Score: Ogden Park 25, Lindblom 0.
The Junior Bear Football Program is coordinated and administered by the Chicago Park District’s Athletics department, and partially funded by a grant from Bears Care, the charitable arm of the Chicago Bears.
Other participating parks included the Ada Park Bears, Altgeld Park Saints, Carver Park Steelers, Chopin Park Colts, Clarendon Park Cardinals, Fosco Park Chargers, Fuller Park (Pee Wee program only), Jackson Park Raiders, Kelvyn Park Hurricanes, LaFollette Park Wildcats, Lindblom Park Ravens, Ogden Park Vikings, Taylor Park Falcons, Washington Park Redskins, and the Willye White Park Wolverines.
Joseph Phillips is the Sports Editor for the Chicago Crusader Newspaper. He is a Chicago native, who has been a sports writer for over 17 years. He also hosts the SC Media News and Sports Network Q&A radio show on WHPK 88.5 FM Chicago.
