St. Charles boy remakes last bright spot in Bears' near-miss

Last Sunday, Jeff Joniak's call of Rashied Davis' touchdown catch near the end of the Bears game surely drew fist pumps and cheers from Chicago fans.

The joy was shortly followed by curses and lamentations when the Bears blew the game in the final seconds.

Today, before the Bears take on the Minnesota Vikings at Soldier Field, Joniak's touchdown call will be relived. Only this time, it is guaranteed to draw smiles that will last for at least a whole week.

Zach Hubbe, a 9-year-old student at Ferson Creek Elementary in St. Charles, will be the voice behind that touchdown call during today's Bears' pregame show on WBBM Radio. Hubbe taped his version of the call Thursday and spent Friday at school with pictures to prove it.

"He thought he was a big shot," said his mom, Gretchen, with a laugh. "He's our celebrity for about 10 minutes."

Hubbe won the chance to do the taping by entering his name in a Great Clips Junior Broadcaster contest the last time he got his hair cut.

Hubbe spent Wednesday rehearsing the script with his mom, who is no stranger to radio. Gretchen Hubbe studied broadcast journalism and worked for her college radio station at Illinois State University.

"He's definitely a very outgoing, fun-loving kid," she said. "He always comes up with really funny things to say. So he's sort of following in my footsteps. I could not have asked for a better performance."

Indeed, she said the production manager that worked with Zach said he did a better job than some adults who tape sessions at the WBBM studios. That is no small complement considering Zach sat in the same chair Bears defensive lineman Tommie Harris uses to tape promotional spots for Mike and Ike Candy.

Hubbe said the experience has her son contemplating a career in broadcasting. He'll have a chance to be rated by his peers during the upcoming week when his school will try to rebroadcast Zach's performance during morning announcements.