Bears Fan To Change Name To Peyton Manning

Lost Super Bowl Bet Leads Die-Hard Fan To Take Name Of Colts' MVP Quarterback

(CBS/AP)  He says he doesn't want to do it, but a die-hard Bears fan is changing his name to Peyton Manning.

Scott Wiese had told friends that if his beloved team didn't win the Super Bowl, he'd take the name of the Indianapolis Colts quarterback.

He even signed a petition in front of 200 people last week at Decatur's Katz Piano Bar saying that he'd do it.

After the Colts defeated the Bears 29-to-17 on Sunday, Wiese started the process.

"A bunch of friends and I were talking one night before the game, and there was a little alcohol involved," Wiese told the Herald-Review newspaper. "I made the bet, and now I've got to keep it. I chose Manning because, well, he is kind of the face of the Colts franchise."

The 26-year-old Forsyth, Illinois, man trudged to the Macon County Courts Facility yesterday and filed the paperwork. The change still has to be approved by a judge.

Wiese says he really cares about the team and that his sacrifice represents the true passion of Bears fans.

Of course, Wiese will never be mistaken for the multimillionaire 6-foot-5-inch, 230-pound Super Bowl MVP quarterback. At 5-feet-11-inches, Wiese, who works at a local Staples store, admitted to the newspaper that his 190-pound body is "not muscle."

He remains unsure how long he will keep Manning's name, and was asked if it will take a Bears Super Bowl win — Chicago last won the big game in 1986 — to reverse the name change. "I mean, well, it may be another 21 years," he told the newspaper.

[anopinion1]

What ever happend to the shave your head and eyebrows bet???
and how did cbs come across this or why did it get an article??

[jdweymouth]

Do these people have lives? Is this news?

[rhondam5]

I live in Decatur and it was big news around here. I imagine CBS got the story from our CBS affiliate in Chamgaign, IL (about 40 miles from here). Although it may not matter to a lot of people it is big here, especially since the original Chicago Bears started in Decatur as the Staley Bears! We may not have won, but we do love our Bears!

[rhondam5]

Yes, we have lives here.....even if we're not from LA or NY!

[bushfan3]

This is retarded. Why do you want to make an article on this dumb story. I guess nothing is happening in the world.

[dredre2k]

Why does anyone care?
Please remove this article from the site.

[rhondam5]

It never ceases to amaze me how many hard-hearted snobbish people there are in this world! I suppose you'd rather be reading about a mass murder somewhere or who's been seen running around with the latest society girl! Relax, it's just a lighthearted human interest story. Everything in the news doesn't have to be about something terrible happening in the world!

[dredre2k]

to RhondaM5: This is a Serious news sight. Personally, I do not want to hear about Joe Shmuck changing his name to Peyton Manning... Obviously, he wanted wanted to do something to bring himself some media attention and it worked. But if it makes you feel better by reading it, than that's ok too. There are plenty of light-hearted news stories on "The View".

[gunownerdan]

I've said it before and I'll say it again, the bigger the football fan the lower the IQ(this logic can also be applied to other sports and especially Nascar).

[rhondam5]

To dredre2k......if you don't want to read any article that isn't "serious news" don't click on the headline! And not all the news on this site is serious, it covers a broad range of items.

[rhondam5]

Oh, now that is just stupid.....you can't equate IQ with being a sports fan! Being a gun owner, do you also put that same logic to hunters, that's a sport too isn't it?

[gunownerdan]

Well, I do think hunting for sport is pretty stupid especially if the hunter doesn't eat what they shoot.

[dredre2k]

to RhondaM5:
Actually, I clicked on this headline just to leave a comment about how dumb a story it was...
I love the comments feature... my banter is all in good fun ;-). I enjoy seeing everyone's comments about the stories here.

[dredre2k]

to RhondaM5:
Ok, so in fairness, CBS news just posted a nice "people interest" story about an Honest Cabbie that returned bag of dimand rings to store at: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/02/07/national/main2443188.shtml

That's a nice people interest story of an honest person doing something constructive. That's good to hear about, and I do enjoy reading those type of stories.

THIS ARTICLE HOWEVER, represents the kind of rubbish that needs to be scrubbed from the news headlines.
No one cares that some alcohol-slamming sports fan frat boy is going to change his name because he got the idea during drunken celebration. He is a Moron, not worth the time of any news agency.

[hollyt2-2009]

I think it was a cute human interset.If you want real depressing news: go East my friend MIDDLE EAST!

[agnim]

"the bigger the football fan the lower the IQ(this logic can also be applied to other sports and especially Nascar).

Posted by GunOwnerDan at 12:56 PM : Feb 07, 2007"

Aren't you kinda dissing your Nascar constituency?
I bet that bulk of the Nascar fanatics are also gun NUTS! LOL

[hollyt2-2009]

GOT MILK?

[apdepetris]

I thought it was a cute story. I rather read this kind of stuff than articles about Britney spears flashing her naughty bits. I'm going to send it over to some friends (we watched the Superbowl at their house) who are big Bears fans.

[hrdstonewall]

So much for me changing my name to Tony Romo hahah. Take it easy on CBS guys, after all, the SB might be made into a national two-day holiday, or so I heard is Congress disputing. CBS posts these news to provide some color to today's blood-stained headlines. A laugh can help a lot of people these days. Anyway, GO COWBOYS!

[jbmill19]

Scoot Wiese is a true fan

[jbmill19]

Take it from the one of the guys that was in the room watching the game with him that this event was priceless. And this is good humored news. A change from from all the horrible B.S. that is going on on the world today.

[withna624]

I'll think twice before bashing someone without the full truth's from now on.

Scott Wiese is a hilarious person and a great friend and he's loyal to his friends even more than he is to his beloved sports teams.

The story is slipping in 2 aspects.

1. He had zero alcohol in his system when he thought up this idea, reported it to his friends, or decided he's definitely going to do it because he believed in his team.

The night the story refers to in a bar, was when this all started to pick up steam. He had the paperwork with him and he was asked to sign the paperwork in person as he delivered motivation to Bears fans.

Quit knocking Scotty. You people don't know him. If you don't want to hear or see his story. Don't read it. He didn't call and ask for this. He was just playing on it around home (and our home is the ORIGINAL home of the Bears ... the Decatur Staleys).

Scotty (or soon to be Peyton) we're proud of you.

A. lee

[michellem99-2009]

I hope he is happy with his new legal name. I for one legally changed my full name years ago. I was raised in foster care and at the time in 60s-70s barred from knowing who my family is. My dad was/is hurt over it but I didn't know that when I did it. I am sorry that it hurt him as I love Dad very much. This young man will have to live with the fact that some will not address/call him by his new name no matter what. I have been there and I know. I am a lady.I have never heard of a man who legally dumpped his full name. Best wishes to him.

[crater7]

NOW HERES A STORY WORTH DEBATING. WHERES THE USUAL HEAVYWEIGHTS? NO COMMETS FROM THE GUYS WHO GIVES US THEIR OPINION ON EVERYTHING, AND QUICK TO GIVE ADVISE TO US ALL. HANG IN THERE SCOTT,(PEYTON) MAYBE NEXT YEAR.
WAY TO GO COLTS.

[heyheychi]

Oh lawd this is funny! I feel for the guy. I'm the owner of ChicagoDiscountMattress.com. I'll give this poor guy a free new mattress to comfort him those nights when he's up thinking "What the hell was I thinking...". If anyone knows him, tell him to give us a call at 708-707-2293 or 773-278-2525 Ask for Will, Nate or Anna. ChicagoDiscountMattress.com at 2101 N Western in Chicago.

[mdc76082]

This guy is nothing more than a moron who doesn't welch on his bets. What's next???? A book????? Gimmie a break.

[jbmill19]

Scotty is a guy that doesnt welch on his bets. At least he's not going out there pulling a Charles Barkley. I support him 100%. Peyton Scott Manning is a great friend!

[gsr4ever-2009]

Frankly, I think this is ridiculous. Does this guy realize what goes into a name change? First of all it severs ties from family, can make settling an estate of a family member difficult, not to mention the fact that if he has sons they won't have their GrandFather's name. Now maybe he doesn't care about his GrandFather but seriously I think it's just silly. His children will have different names than their cousins and all over what? a football team? Yet when girls go out and get tattoos of their favorite boy bands put on themselves it's stupid, but THIS, CHANGING your name legally is NOT? Sorry but it's time for those around this guy to tell him it's ok to 'squelch' on this bet, because if they are friends they'd realize it was ill-conceived and again just really dumb