25 Years And Four Presidents Later, The 1985 Bears Will Finally Visit The White House

The '85 Chicago Bears are one of the most iconic championship teams in NFL history. Payton. The Fridge. Ditka. McMahon. Buddy Ryan and his 46 defense. That rap song. A 15-1 record in a season that ended with playoff shutouts of the Giants and Rams followed by a 46-10 drubbing of the Patriots in Super Bowl XX.

Strangely, that Bears team never visited the Reagan White House. According to the Chicago Tribune, the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster happened on the day after the Bears' victory parade through the city's streets. The visit was understandably postponed, but no effort was ever made to reschedule. At least until now. From the Trib:

But now the White House is home to a Chicagoan who roots for the Bears, reads local newspaper coverage of the team and is always eager to showcase his everyman credentials. The NFL called the White House soon after Obama was sworn in and asked if the '85 Bears could get a belated celebration. "It's been on our radar ever since,'' a White House aide said.

The Bears will visit with President Obama on Friday, albeit without some of their more notable names: Walter Payton and Dave Duerson have since died, and The Fridge cannot travel because of an illness. And then there's former defensive lineman Dan Hampton, who told the Trib part of the reason he's not going is because he's "not a fan of the guy in the White House." Perhaps he and Hank Williams Jr. will play golf together instead.

And here, just because, is a video of the 1985 Bears' "Super Bowl Shuffle":