While not the most popular mascot among NCAA colleges and universities, the bear was bullish on NCAA championships in 2004-05.

Seven teams nicknamed Bears, or derivatives thereof, won titles this year. They won them on land and on water -- by running, by shooting, by volleying and by rowing. They won them in regulation and in overtime.

There were bears who were new to the championship podium and bears who were old hands at accepting trophies. Among the latter were the Adams State Grizzlies, who won a 10th title in Division II women's cross country, the most compiled in that sport by any current Division II member.

There were bears who were proficient at one sport in both genders. The UCLA Bruins swept the water polo events, their eighth in men's and third in women's.

And in winter sports, during which bears typically hibernate, Baylor's were active, winning the school's first women's basketball championship and ending a three-year run by Connecticut's Huskies.

In the spring, bears used racquets, sticks and oars to claw their way to the top. UCLA in men's tennis (beating the Baylor Bears, by the way), New York Institute of Technology in men's lacrosse and California in women's rowing all growled, "We're No. 1."