Which Uga Mascot Was The Original?

The tradition of using a live bulldog as the University of Georgia’s mascot began in 1956 when attorney and alumnus Sonny Seiler introduced Uga I, also known as “Hood’s Ole Dan”, as a mascot. Uga IV was the first mascot invited to the Heisman Banquet and was posthumously awarded the highest honor by Vince Dooley in 1991. Uga XI, also known as Boom, is a one-year-old English Bulldog.

The tradition of using a live bulldog as Georgia’s mascot began in 1956 when attorney and alumnus Sonny Seiler introduced Uga I, also known as “Hood’s Ole Dan”. In the first game of 1990, Uga V officially began his reign as the Georgia mascot, taking over from his father Uga IV, who passed away at his home in Savannah on February 26, 1990.

The first UGA mascot was “The Goat” in 1892, which appeared at the Mercer game on January 30, 1892, and the initial Auburn game on February 22, 1892. The line of pure white English bulldogs, known as the Uga line, has been a fixture since Uga I first graced the campus in 1956. Since then, football fans everywhere recognize Uga by his spiked collar and varsity lettered jersey.

In 1894, Georgia’s mascot was a solid white female bull terrier owned by a student named Charles H. Black, Sr., of Atlanta. Trilby, named after a novel by George Du, was the first UGA represented by a goat. The first UGA was more of an American Bull, and this one would snap at you quickly.