McMillan

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The late Bob Broeg, the iconic writer for these very pages, would’ve have turned 108 on Wednesday. So it’s fitting to share this tale he once told. On Halloween night in 1946, Washington University held a party to announce its new football coach. Army assistant coach Stu Holcomb had agreed to the job, but on his drive west, he stopped at Indiana’s Purdue University — and stayed to coach there. So at the Halloween party, the guest of honor was a ghost. WashU football had to call an audible. The Bears nabbed Weeb Ewbank, who would later win two NFL titles with quarterback Johnny Unitas and a Super Bowl with quarterback Joe Namath. But before Ewbank’s pro career that got him into Canton, he coached WashU in 1947 and 1948, and that second team started out 7-0 — a streak unmatched by a WashU team until last weekend.

The Bears are back, baby! Undefeated WashU, ranked No. 8 in the national poll on D3Football.com, hosts Denison at 1 p.m. Saturday. Here’s hoping it’s a better Halloween on campus than the one 80 years ago. It’s been a joyful journey over in University City this fall, as the team beat its first Division III ranked opponent (DePauw) since 2018 and then won its first game ever — yes, ever — against a top 10 opponent (No. 8 John Carroll). And now the Bears themselves are No. 8.

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