If you’re one of those people who has a fear of teddy bears or hated that Mark Wahlberg movie, “Ted,” and are planning to be at Allen Fieldhouse for [Saturday’s 11 a.m. showdown with Villanova,][1] you might want to make sure you’re not in your seat at halftime.
That’s when KU officials will give the go-ahead for Jayhawk fans to fire teddy bears and other stuffed animals onto the Allen Fieldhouse floor as a way to collect cozy companions for children in need this holiday season.
Officially dubbed the Kansas Men’s Basketball program’s Teddy Bear Toss, all of the stuffed animals collected will be donated to Toys for Tots.
While Saturday will mark the first time that the Kansas basketball program has jumped into the Teddy Bear Toss game, it’s far from a new idea.
In fact, the Hershey Bears, an AHL affiliate the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League, recently hosted their latest version of the event and it was a sight to see.
Fans at the 10,000-seat Giant Center in Hershey, Pa., tossed 34,798 stuffed animals onto the ice after the Bears’ scored their first goal during a recent home game.
That haul broke the team’s record of 25,017, set last year, and also shattered the world record of 28,815 set by the WHL’s Calgary Hitmen in 2015.
With that bar set pretty high, it ought to be interesting to see what KU’s final number is on Saturday.
While it’s hard to imagine more than 30,000 stuffed bears making their way into Allen Fieldhouse this weekend, the Jayhawks do have more than 6,000 more spectators at their home games than the Hershey Bears so you never know what’s possible.
For those of you who can’t make it to Saturday’s game, [KU has set up an enter-to-win contest][2] where one lucky winner will receive two tickets to the game, a giant, KU-themed teddy bear and select KU Adidas gear.
Here’s a quick — and incredible — look at Hershey’s Teddy Bear toss from earlier this month.
[1]: http://www2.kusports.com/weblogs/tale-tait/2018/dec/11/kansas-vs-villanova-may-look-different-t/
[2]: https://kansas-jayhawks.activation.umbel.com/47a/teddy-bear-giveaway/