"Go Dawgs" by Kimberly Wood

To one devoted football fan, “Uga represents a winning tradition” (Wood). What was once a belated wedding gift has now turned into a national icon (Seiler and Hannon, 6). From the covers of magazines to appearances at major social events, the University of Georgia mascot can be seen all over the nation. Specifically representing Georgia football, Uga is abound the UGA campus on Saturdays in the fall. Photo opts, multiple public appearances, and relaxation on a bag of ice in his air-conditioned doghouse occupies Uga's Saturday afternoons. The line of Uga's captures the true essence of Georgia football.
For fifty-one years, the University of Georgia has used the infamous English bulldog as its mascot. Over that time, six dogs have passed through the gate of Sanford Stadium with each one's son following in his footsteps. Every game, Uga sports his uniform—an intimidating spiked collar and an official UGA football jersey (Pittman, First & Goal). Uga even has his own student identification card and varsity letter (Seiler and Hannon, 10). The University of Georgia is also the only college to bury its mascots inside the stadium. Each time an Uga passes away, he is buried in a metal vault near the main gate of the stadium (Pittman, First & Goal).
The Uga dynasty was started by the Seiler family. Sonny and Cecelia Seiler were given a solid white English bulldog as a belated wedding gift (Seiler and Hannon, 6). Owner, Frank W. “Sonny” Seiler, began the tradition of using a bulldog when he was a college student at the university. At the season home opener in 1956, he took his nine month old wedding gift with him to a tailgate with his buddies (Pittman, First & Goal). Seiler's friends convinced him to take the dog to the game, not knowing that by the end of the fourth quarter he would establish Uga as the permanent mascot for the University of Georgia. During the game, a photographer snapped a picture of Seiler with his bulldog, which appeared in the paper the next day (Pittman, First & Goal). The photo caught the eye of the football coach at the time, Wally Butts, and now Uga is present at every football game (Seiler and Hannon, 8).
The Savannah, Georgia family started Uga I's reign in 1956 (Seiler and Hannon, 11). This dog did not experience the luxuries that the current Uga receives. Since bulldogs are susceptible to the heat, Uga I sought shade by the hedges (Seiler and Hannon, 14). To also ease the threatening Georgia heat and humidity, Uga I, along with all the other bulldogs, received a special surgery, in which the nasal passageway was expanded to allow more oxygen to pass through (Seiler and Hannon, 15). The jerseys for this dog were actually homemade by Seiler's wife, and because the hedges tended to tear the shirts, new ones were constantly made (Seiler and Hannon, 14). Uga also experienced some trifling times when he was once stolen briefly during his first season as mascot by a group of University of North Carolina fraternity brothers (Seiler and Hannon, 14). He also was taken a few years later at the Auburn game in Athens. Randomly, he turned up safely at Georgia Tech (Seiler and Hannon, 14). Despite a few mishaps, Uga I led a successful command with two bowl game appearances and a SEC championship (Seiler and Hannon, 1).
Uga II became the chip off the old block when he replaced his father as the new mascot of UGA. Due to many health problems, he unfortunately served the shortest time (Seiler and Hannon, 44). Once in 1967, the heat really took a toll on Uga II (Seiler and Hannon, 36). Uga was participating in the annual picture day; Uga fell over, and he began to pant for his life. The Seiler's realized that Uga had suffered a heat stoke, which ultimately resulted in his loss of hearing (Seiler and Hannon, 36). To prevent anymore damage, Seiler created the fireplug, a red fire hydrant, which served as a refuge for Uga II (Seiler and Hannon, 36). The fireplug was not air-conditioned, but instead, an ice-filled pillow was placed inside of it for Uga to lie on when he became overheated (Seiler and Hannon, 37). Uga II had an impressive set of football seasons with five bowl games debuts and two SEC championships (Seiler and Hannon, 28).
Uga III and IV exhibited major careers at the university. Uga III is still considered one of the most successful bulldogs in history. He led the University of Georgia football team to the 1980 NCAA national championship, two SEC championships, and six bowl game presences (Seiler and Hannon, 48). Uga III served an amazing one hundred games before retiring due to consistent vision problems and severe arthritis (Seiler and Hannon, 60). Uga IV was just as successful. Leading the team for nine seasons, Uga IV sent the team to nine bowl games, one for each year, and another SEC championship (Seiler and Hannon, 70). Uga IV, escorted by Hershel Walker, became the first mascot to attend the Heisman Banquet (Seiler and Hannon, 75). At one point, Uga IV was actually replaced for four games by his brother Otto (Seiler and Hannon, 85). According to Seiler, Uga IV “injured ligaments in his left hind knee when jumping off a hotel bed before the Vanderbilt contest” (84). Luckily, Otto, “the substitute,” led the bulldogs to three wins and one loss (Seiler and Hannon, 86). Uga IV soon returned and finished his time as mascot.
Uga V and VI nationally established a name for themselves. Uga V moved into the doghouse in 1990 (Seiler and Hannon, 96). Seiler declared that he was the last puppy to be procreated by Uga IV (97). Uga V is probably the most famous of all the bulldogs. He appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and he was the bulldog in the famous photograph that captured him lunging towards an Auburn football player (Pittman, First & Goal). Currently, Uga VI stands as the mascot for the University of Georgia. He is actually the heaviest of all the bulldogs, weighing in at sixty-five pounds (Seiler and Hannon, 131). Uga VI is still going strong with an SEC championship and six bowl appearances under his belt.
As Seiler stated, “These six dogs have a resume so stellar that even summarizing it is difficult” (xii). Like salt needs pepper, the UGA football team needs Uga. Having him at the games is such a great tradition even if while the 92,746 fans are standing in ninety-eight degree temperatures and a hundred percent humidity, Uga is sunbathing on a bag of ice.