Recently at a Fargo South football game against Fargo North, The Bear was a target of a possible devious lick.

According to Laura Phan, a senior at South, she had heard from a friend that some of the boys had warned them about the upcoming plan to steal The Bear, a symbolic staple at South games. The North student section dressed up in hunting attire. 

The rumors were not believed, and The Bear was temporarily stolen.

Phan said that a few minutes before the game ended, a male student from North in a bright orange vest ran across her, grabbed it and took off toward the parking lot. She then took off and started running to retrieve it but as she began her attempt, the lights went out. An unrelated outage lead to the game temporarily being paused due to darkness.

Phan said she was determined to keep running to catch the thieves. She ended up chasing them all the way to the parking lot and as the boys were about go get in their car, she stopped one of them and demanded that they give The Bear back. It took them a while to do so, but they eventually gave it back in respect for Laura and her perseverance.

So what is The Bear? According our principal, Dr. Bertsch, he said that “The Bear has been a symbol of Bruin Pride, school spirit and tradition.”

It is unknown about the origin of The Bear, but according to Bertsch and other staff at South, it’s believed to be originated about a decade ago.

Dr. Bertsch said, “The Bear has been part of the FSH student body, making appearances at a number of (athletic) events, since the early 2000’s.” 

Why might someone steal The Bear? One popular theory is that it could have been a foiled “devious lick.” This viral trend on TikTok encourages students to steal and vandalize school property. This fad has occurred throughout the district, including South.

Some students have been caught stealing soap out of the dispensers and property that belongs to the school or even a belonging of another person.

The Bear was safe and sound and available for all Homecoming festivities.