Remembering Uga VII: (2005-2009)

Uga VII, Georgia's football mascot, dies
By Chip Towers

ATHENS - To the Bulldog Nation, the Uga mascot is royalty, the lineage anointed to represent the University of Georgia. But to the Seiler family, the English bulldogs are family pets. That is sadly evident at times such as these.

Uga VII passed away suddenly Thursday morning at his home in Savannah. At 4 years old, he was practically a pup and had served Georgia's mascot for not even two full football seasons when he unexpectedly succumbed to heart problems.

"As you could imagine, we are devastated," said Swann Seiler, daughter of Uga owners Sonny and Cecelia Seiler. "He was such a sweet dog. This is a very hard day."

Uga VII, or "Uga VI's Loran's Best" as was his registered name, was latest in the 54-year line of mascots owned by the Seilers. To them, he was much more than an emblem.

"Mother woke up this morning and said she thought Uga didn't feel too good," said Swann Seiler, her voice quivering.. "Daddy got up with him and he could tell something was wrong. We have a vet [Sonny Lester] that's practically on-call just for Uga and he was there in five minutes. They took him to a [veterinary] hospital quick as they could but he didn't make it."

"We are all in a state of shock," Sonny Seiler said. "We had no warning whatsoever."

In fact, Seiler said Uga VII had just been given a clean bill of health from the UGA vet school a week earlier.

Uga VII's sudden passing causes a predicament. There will be no time to find his replacement before Saturday's home game against Kentucky. So the Bulldogs will have to play without a bulldog.

"I think the Bulldog Nation will understand," Swann Seiler said.

It has been done before, as recently as 2000 when it was determined Uga VI couldn't make the 10-hour flight to Hawaii for the Oahu Bowl.

The Seilers plan to have an interim dog in place for the Georgia Tech game on Nov. 28 in Atlanta. That dog will also represent Georgia at its bowl game but won't necessarily become Uga VIII. A thorough search of Uga's VII's extensive brood of heirs will commence as soon as possible.

"There's lineage out there we can depend on in unforeseen cases such as this," Swann Seiler said. "That's what we intend to do. Right now we're just trying to get through the next couple of days."

Georgia has played under interim mascots before and done quite well. In 1986, Otto was called to fill in for his younger brother Uga IV, who had injured a hind knee jumping off a hotel bed. He went 3-1 and remains then-coach Vince Dooley's all-time favorite mascot.

In the meantime, the two-legged Bulldogs vow to soldier on.

"You never think something like that could happen that quickly but it certainly did, " Georgia coach Mark Richt said before Thursday evening's practice. "It's sad we won't have him on the sideline anymore."

Uga VII, the biggest of the line at 56 1/2 pounds, made his sideline debut against Georgia Southern in the season opener on Aug. 30, 2008. He compiled a record of 16-7 during his tenure, the shortest for any in the Uga line.

Burial details have not been finalized. The mascots are interred in a mausoleum built in the southwest corner of Sanford Stadium. Georgia is the only university in the nation to bury its mascots within the confines of its stadium.

"Uga has gone the way of all great bulldogs %u2026 up in the sky," said Loran Smith, Georgia's longtime sideline radio reporter and the man for whom the late mascot was named. "I'm not a very good prognosticator. I wrote a story on him for the game program this year and I said he was going to be a lucky dog because he's number seven."

Stated UGA president Michael Adams: "Uga VII was both a family pet and a symbol for millions of fans. And besides that, he was just a sweet dog. We will miss him."

Alexis Stevens and Andy Johnston contributed to this article.

By Chip Towers
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Athens -- There is a chance Uga VII will be laid to rest at Sanford Stadium before Georgia kicks off against Kentucky Saturday night. If so, however, it will not be a public ceremony.

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By Rhonda Cook and Brant Sanderlin
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

With the University of Georgia battle hymn playing, a golf cart carrying the flag-shrouded body of Uga VII took the beloved Bulldog across the Sanford Stadium field -- one more time -- to the spot where he was interred Saturday next to his father.

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By Chip Towers
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Uga VII will be laid to rest in a private ceremony at Sanford Stadium on Saturday morning.

The Georgia Bulldogs mascot, who died suddenly on Thursday, will be interred in the mausoleum in the southwest corner of Sanford Stadium where his six predecessors are also buried.

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Sound the trumpets and roll out the red carpet. The new Uga has arrived and his name is "Loran's Best."

Uga VII was officially named Friday and will make his public debut before Saturday's game against Georgia Southern. The dog, who is nearly 3 years old, will be escorted onto the field by the Seiler family, who has owned the continuous line of mascots since Uga I took up the mantle in 1956.

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You can pick up after your pooch and make sure he plays nice, but it's your dog's breed that truly speaks volumes about what kind of owner you are.

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Kings and queens have crowns. Batman has a utility belt. 'Loren's Best' wears a geniune red leather collar adorned with stainless steel spikes. Of all the technologies Uga uses his collar serves more as a fashion statement than function but history tells us that wasn't always the case.

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ATHENS - The seventh in the UGA line of Georgia mascots will be introduced to the Georgia people on Saturday, Aug. 30, during pre-game ceremonies of the Bulldogs' season opener against Georgia Southern.

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Batman has his cave while Bruce Wayne lives in a mansion; Uga can say the same. While Uga lives in a pretty nice house in Savannah, Georgia with the Seilers, he has a front row seat on football Saturdays at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Georgia.

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Athens -- Uga VII has been anointed. You're just not going to see him until Aug. 30.

That was the word Friday from Savannah lawyer Sonny Seiler, whose family has overseen the selection and care of Georgia's white English bulldog mascots since 1956. Seiler confirmed to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Friday that they have designated the successor to Uga VI, whose registered name was "Uga V's Whatchagot Loran." He died of heart failure in late June.

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Athens -- At this point in the summer, Sonny Seiler will make only one promise: There will be an Uga VII and he will be on the field for Georgia's season opener against Georgia Southern.

And even that pledge came with an asterisk.

"Unless the dog gets sick or something," Seiler said from his Savannah law office Monday. "We can't control that."

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Deceased Ugas are interred in a mausoleum near the main entrance to Sanford Stadium. An epitaph describing each dog graces the mausoleum nameplates.

WAR EAGLE FOREVER.COM would like to express our heart felt condolences to the Bulldog Nation in the passing of Uga VI. We have created a memorial page for everyone to see and visit, which includes video memorials, photos and various write-ups.

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Greatness. Majesty. Beauty. Freedom. Power. All the following terms describe Nova or War Eagle VII. The seventh golden eagle in the WAR EAGLE line of mascots for Auburn University was introduced to the Auburn Family on Saturday, November 11, 2006, during the half-time ceremonies of the 110th edition of the Deep South's Oldest Rivalry.

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The sixth in the MIKE line of LSU mascots was introduced to the Tiger Nation on Saturday, October 6, 2007, during the pre-game ceremonies at Tiger Stadium against the University of Florida. LSU won the game 28-24 eventually claiming the 2007 SEC and 2008 National Championship. The reign of Mike VI is off to a great start.

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Auburn and Georgia have met 113 times, as of 2009, in what is known as 'the Deep South's Oldest Rivalry' in the sport of college football. The Auburn-Georgia rivalry is unlike the annual contest between Auburn and Alabama; It is a true competitive interstate civil war, brother vs. brother. Where as the Iron Bowl is about setting an annual family dispute. Of Auburn's major rivals whose games were once played at neutral sites, Georgia is the ONLY school to come to Auburn without argument.

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