August 7, 2026

Title:  BEAR DOWN 

Constructor: Brian Callahan

Editor: Amanda Rafkin

Theme synopsis:

• BEARNAISE SAUCE (4D: Egg-based steak topping)
• I'LL BE AROUND (17D: Hit me up whenever)
• PLAYOFF BEARD (22D: Look sported by many an NHL player in late spring)

BEAR DOWN: The word BEAR is found in each vertical (DOWN) theme answer. As you move from left to right in the grid, the word BEAR is moving DOWN: BEARNAISE SAUCE, I'LL BE AROUND, and PLAYOFF BEARD.

And now a word from our constructor:

Brian: I’m delighted to be back with another USA Today puzzle! My fandom for a certain sports team from a certain sports town was the inspiration for this puzzle’s title and mechanic. Apologies to GLOBE ARTICHOKE and NANOTUBE ARRAY for not making the cut. A couple of fun angles that I think I’m debuting are ___5 for ELI and NEO clued as the “Crash Bandicoot” villain. Thanks for solving!

What I learned from today's puzzle:

• ADOBO (37A: ___ seco (dry rub in Puerto Rican cooking)) Puerto Ricans use two types of ADOBO in their cuisine. ADOBO mojado is a wet rub. The dry rub, ADOBO seco, is more popular. It consists of garlic powder, onion powder, turmeric, salt, black pepper, false oregano (a plant that smells like oregano but belongs to a different botanical family), and sometimes other seasonings as well.
• BILL (54A: "Documentary Now!" actor Hader) Documentary Now! (2015-2022) is a mockumentary that pretends to be a long-running news magazine for documentaries. BILL Hader co-created the show and starred in its first two seasons.
• NEO (57A: Doctor ___ Cortex (Crash Bandicoot villain)) Crash Bandicoot  is a video game franchise. The title character is the game's protagonist, a genetically mutated bandicoot (a marsupial endemic to Australia) who escapes from the mad scientist, Doctor NEO Cortex.
• DEE (65A: Sweet ___ ("It's Always Sunny" nickname)) It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, which premiered in 2005, is a sitcom following a group of friends who run in Irish dive bar (Paddy's Pub) in South Philadelphia. I know of this show from my son, who is a fan, but I've never seen it. Deandra "DEE" Reynolds, known as Sweet DEE, is a bartender at Paddy's Pub.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• CAT BED (1A: Siamese's sleeping spot) My CAT, Willow, says she doesn't need a CAT BED, because she can sleep wherever she wants to. (It's true.)

• OLE (15A: Estadio Azteca shout) Estadio Azteca is a football (aka soccer to those of us in the U.S.) stadium in Mexico City, Mexico. It is the home stadium of Club América and the Mexican National Team.
• ELLIOT PAGE (20A: He plays Viktor Hargreaves on "The Umbrella Academy") The Umbrella Academy (2019-2024) is a TV series based on the comic book series of the same name. The show is centered on a family of adopted sibling superheroes reunited to solve the mystery of their father's death, while also trying to prevent an impending apocalypse. ELLIOT PAGE plays the role of Viktor Hargreeves, a violinist who can unleash great force by focusing on sound. The character was originally named Vanya until he came out as a trans man in the third season. 
• IBM (29A: Tech co. with an 8-bar logo) IBM's logo is the letters I, B, and M, with horizontal blue and white stripes running through the letters (8 blue bars). Prior to 1972, IBM used a 13-bar logo. The change to the 8-bar logo was made partly because photocopiers at the time did not render the narrow stripes well.
• ATE (39A: Enjoyed a Crunchwrap Supreme) A Crunchwrap Supreme is an item on Taco Bell's menu. It consists of seasoned beef, cheese, a tostado shell, lettuce, tomatoes, and sour cream wrapped into a hexagon-shape inside a large flour tortilla.
• SOFAS (42A: Where to find remote workers?) Ha! That's people working the remote for a TV, who might be sitting on SOFAS.
• AFLAC (48A: Company with a spokesduck) The idea for the AFLAC duck came from the Kaplan Thaler Group, an ad agency in New York City. Apparently one of the agency's art directors was wandering around Central Park trying to come up with an idea, and while muttering "AFLAC, AFLAC," realized it sounded like quacking.
• MANCHILD (59A: Grammy-nominated Sabrina Carpenter single) "MANCHILD" is a 2025 song by Sabrina Carpenter. It was the lead single from her seventh studio album, Man's Best Friend. I've found that when something is described as "Grammy-nominated," that means it didn't win. "MANCHILD" was nominated for four Grammys: Record of the Year (won by "Luther" by Kendrick Lamar & SZA), Song of the Year (won by "Wildflower" by Billie Eilish), Best Pop Solo Performance (won by Lola Young for "Messy"), and Best Music Video (won by Doechii for "Anxiety").
• ANDRES (67A: Restaurateur and humanitarian Jose) José ANDRÉS is a James Beard Award-winning chef and restaurateur. He is the founder of World Central Kitchen, a nonprofit whose mission is to provide food relief "in response to humanitarian, climate, and community crises."
• ELI (5D: ___5 ("Explain like I'm Five" acronym) The use of the acronym ELI5 is a request for an explanation that is simple to understand.
• ROYAL WE (10D: Sovereign's pronoun) I enjoyed this answer. I've been known to use the ROYAL WE myself occasionally.
• PLAYOFF BEARD (22D: Look sported by many an NHL player in late spring) Many NHL players (and fans) grow a PLAYOFF BEARD. The player (or fan) will stop shaving when their team enters the playoffs, and not shave again until their team wins the championship or is eliminated. 
• CBS (26D: "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert" network) Well, CBS was the network for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, until they canceled the show. Stephen Colbert began hosting the show September 8, 2015. The final show was May 21, 2026. My husband and I were lucky enough to attend a taping of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert in 2019. 
• BIEL (33D: "Candy" actress Jessica) Candy is a 2022 TV series based on the life of Candy Montgomery, who was accused of the axe murder of her neighbor in 1980. Jessica BIEL plays the title role.
• LOTSA (53D: Many o') At first I thought part of this clue was missing. "Many o' what?" I wondered. Crossing answers helped me out. Oh, I see now!
• SIMU (56D: "Avengers: Doomsday" actor Liu) Avengers: Doomsday is a Marvel Comics movie scheduled to be released in December of this year. It is a sequel to Avengers: Endgame (2019). SIMU Liu portrays martial artist Xu Shang-Chi, a role he first played in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021).
• A few other clues and answers I especially enjoyed:
• YEW (18A: Tree that sounds like a female sheep)
• BRAIN BREAK (32A: Activity for reducing cognitive fatigue)
• DANES (6D: Great ___ (dogs that are actually from Germany))

"BEAR DOWN, Chicago BEARs" is the fight song of NFL's Chicago BEARs. At home games, the song is played every time the BEARs score. I don't follow football, so I'm fine with Brian taking inspiration from his team. (Baseball is another story; Brian and I have a friendly rivalry where that sport is concerned.) Thank you, Brian, for this excellent puzzle.

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