TELEVISION

'I can't believe I kissed a cheesehead': 'The Conners' mines Packers-Bears rivalry for laughs

Kendra Meinert
Green Bay Press-Gazette
Tim Baltz and Lecy Goranston star in a scene from ABC's "The Conners."  Tuesday's episode is titled "Throwing a Christian to a Bear."

Green Bay Packers fans in need of a laugh after the NFC championship game loss against the San Francisco 49ers got a couple courtesy of Tuesday night's episode of “The Conners."

The ABC "Roseanne" spinoff that's set in the fictional town of Lanford, Illinois, focused on everybody’s favorite NFL rivalry, Green Bay Packers vs. Chicago Bears. The episode, "Feeding a Christian to a Bear," got in a few good-natured jabs at fans on both sides.

With the Connors decked out in their Bears gear to watch the game against the Packers, Becky invites her new boyfriend, Wyatt, over to join them. Just one problem: She had no idea he was a Packers fan. He shows up at the door wearing green and gold, a tie and a Cheesehead.

Bringing along "treats" that include trail mix with dried mango and a six-pack of a small-batch organic IPA don't exactly endear the devout Christian to Dan Conner (John Goodman), a blue-collar Bears fan whose grandpa first took him to see Gale Sayers play when he was a kid.

Wyatt starts to rattle off a few Packers facts in hopes of impressing him.

Wyatt: "I know Chicago loves its Bears, but did you know the Packers are actually owned by the people of Wisconsin?"

Dan: "That's not football, son. That's communism."

The Conners struggle to accept a cheesehead in their midst when Becky brings her new boyfriend, a devout Christian and a Green Bay Packers fan, home to watch the Bears-Packers game on Tuesday's episode of ABC sitcom "The Conners."

As things escalate with the Bears ahead in the first quarter, Wyatt reminds the Conners the Bears have won only one Super Bowl and the Packers have won four. Not to mention the trophy is called the Lombardi Trophy.

"Did I mention you're an udder-sucking, Rodgers-loving, cow-tipping dairy dork loser?" Dan fires back.

When Wyatt tells him football is nothing more than entertainment, "like a game show or magic or something," Dan sets him straight.

"Football is a big thing in this family. Our team's struggles are our struggles, and their successes are our successes, because sometimes we need a win to get through the week. Who the hell are you to pass judgment on that?"

Needless to say, things don't work out with Wyatt.

"Ugh, I can't believe I kissed a cheesehead," Becky later tells her dad. "Hey, hey, hey, keep that to yourself," Dan says. "I have to live in this neighborhood."

Lecy Goranson, who played the original Becky on “Roseanne” and now the same character on “The Conners,” grew up in Evanston, Illinois, and is a big Bears fan. Actor Tim Baltz, also an Illinois native, plays Wyatt.

RELATED:Green Bay gets a Bears fan boo when it turns up on 'Jeopardy!' tourney

RELATED: Favre joins 'Da Bears!' fans for 5 minutes of Packers-Bears rivalry fun

Contact Kendra Meinert at 920-431-8347 or kmeinert@greenbay.gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @KendraMeinert