Famed bulldog Uga can’t be at football games in 2020, but he’ll be watching
Sanford Stadium’s most iconic bulldog will be missing on Saturday.
Georgia’s famed English Bulldog mascot, Uga X, will not be present on the sidelines Saturday night for the team’s first home game against Auburn. SEC guidelines ban live mascots in stadiums this season during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Charles Seiler, Uga’s owner and handler, understands the decision. He called the dog a “magnet” for attention, something that isn’t necessarily a good thing when trying to limit the spread of a disease.
“What happens is, people see the dog, they get excited and they forget what they’re supposed to do,” Seiler said. “The next thing you know they’re on him rolling around on the floor. It makes it difficult for us to do what we do. We think that the dog is good because he’s very approachable. Now is not the time to approach.”
Uga’s last public appearance came at the university’s Skidaway Institute of Oceanography in late March. Seiler called the gathering “very awkward,” as he had to balance people’s desire to be near the school mascot with social distancing guidelines.
Missing games isn’t unheard of for Uga. Seiler said they often miss a road game or two early in the season because of the difficulties of keeping the pup cool on the road without the air-conditioned dog house he has in Sanford Stadium.
Some schools also have rules prohibiting live mascots, even before COVID-19. For example, Uga didn’t make the trip to South Bend for the Notre Dame game in 2017.
But this weekend brings a home game without Uga, one of the symbols of the University of Georgia. It’ll be different for the limited number of fans in attendance, and it will be a change for the mascot as well.
He won’t spend Thursday afternoon watching Seiler wash the red Chevrolet Suburban that shuttles him four hours north from Savannah to Athens on weekends. Seiler won’t have to organize all the dog’s gear or measure out his food for the trip.
Instead, the dog named the greatest mascot in college football history by Sports Illustrated in 2019 will spend Saturday like countless other pooches across the state.
He’ll don his classic red Georgia jersey, find a cool spot on Seiler’s hardwood floor (“We don’t allow him to climb up on anything,” Seiler said) and watch his team with the volume turned up so he can stay accustomed to the noise.
But also just like other dogs, Uga’s attention can sometimes wander.
“He watches that grill moreso than the TV,” Seiler said.
He’s smart, too. He knows that when the game ends and the jersey comes off, a tasty snack might be heading his way.
“If we have Chick-Fil-A lying around or part of a hamburger, something like that, we’ll generally break it up and put it on his food,” Seiler said. “He doesn’t get that exclusively. Generally, it’s just a little treat.”
Seiler isn’t ruling out a potential appearance from Uga in some form on Saturday. He said Georgia’s video team might put some old footage of the mascot on the scoreboard, or maybe Uga could make an appearance via a live Zoom call. The same possibility goes for a possible sighting on Saturday night’s ESPN broadcast.
As for later in the season, Seiler said he’s open to Uga returning to the sidelines if it’s deemed safe by the conference and the staff in Athens. The weekends won’t be as complicated for now, but they won’t necessarily be better.
“It makes for an easier weekend on us, but we’d much rather be where we’re supposed to be doing our job,” Seiler said.
Next game: Georgia vs. Auburn
Where: Sanford Stadium in Athens
When: 7:30 pm Saturday
TV: ESPN
This story was originally published September 30, 2020 at 5:00 AM.