He is a dog so these things happen from time to time, and Georgia will most certainly have a succession pooch ready in short order. But it's sad news just the same, as UGA is one of the better live mascots in all of sport and a face for the entire Georgia athletics program.
UGA was a fixture "between the hedges" on the Georgia sidelines at football games, taking in his 'Dawgs and offering a few barks when the mood struck. He actually goes down as the winningest UGA in program history, as Georgia football went 87-27 during his tenure. How much of that was due to coach Mark Richt and how much was the good grace of UGA, we'll let you decide.
Regardless we enjoyed writing about him here. There was actually speculation last year might be his last before heading to retirement, but it appears a call to puppy heaven made that decision for his owner, Frank W. "Sonny" Seiler. Our condolences to Seiler and the entire Georgia athletics family.
It's Official! Kris Bensonsigns with the Phillies! Good for him. Have you seen the Orioles motto for this season? "THIS IS BIRDLAND." That's a great way to get fans into the park. "We traded away our stars. COME SEE THE BIRD, THE ACTUAL ANIMAL THE BIRD"
With the migration of Anna Benson comes the next chapter in a Dugout story that began in the long long ago before the darkness came about how Anna would sleep with everyone on the team including the mascot if she ever caught her husband cheating. The only way this could get better for us is if she got traded to the Red Sox and got to deflower Wally the Green Monster. She would have to go into the police force and get choked by Dmitri Young to be more Dugout ready.
Anna Benson wears a jersey around her cleavage like we'd never expect and Kris Benson gets into a plane crash and misses the '08 season with a dilated brain in today's Dugout, after the jump.
What better way to celebrate the final home game in a creaky stadium that's falling apart than have the mascot risk his life attaching itself to wire and bungee cord, held up by the very stadium being left behind because it's creaky and falling apart. Obviously, lots of folks in RFK Stadium on Sunday ... as evidenced by the collective gasp in the crowd ... thought that Nationals mascot Screech was done for while dropping down from the zip line. Admit it, you thought so too, right?
Luckily, no mascots were injured in the making of this You Tube video. Sorry, No Photos
Let's face it, the Devil Rays playing a late-August series against the Orioles isn't exactly Red Sox versus Yankees. While both teams showcase some very promising young major league talent, it is a foregone conclusion as to where they will finish in the AL East. I say let's mix it up a bit. Forget about baseball - it's time for a dance-off! This is better than Will Smith versus Carlton on Fresh Prince!
Bleacher Bums is MLB FanHouse's look at those oh so fun fan adventures.
You know, it's incidents like this which explain why Teddy Roosevelt was winless in the Nationals' President Mascot Race in 2006. From a 2007 game (I think), the Roosevelt mascot took a detour from the daily race to go all Joey Chestnut on us and chase a hot dog ... not a real hot dog mind you, but a fake mascot hot dog ... and ran over some poor fans in the process. He may be winless (at least last season he was), but in Washington, the Teddy Roosevelt mascot is a cult figure ... kind of like Anna Kournikova.
Yeah, I don't know what the hell the Mascot Hall of Fame is, either. But surely it's something that Orioles fans can get behind. And although this clip does provide almost 5 minutes of unbeatable guy-in-a-bird-suit action, you can save yourself some time by checking out the two highlights:
-- The opening montage of the Oriole Bird's various incarnations through the years, including a menacing "gangsta" version that shows up about 15 seconds in.
-- A visit by the Bird to what I'm guessing is the set of Romper Room; an all-too-short snippet of surrealness that kicks in at around 38 seconds in.
The Brewers tried to spice things up last July by introducing "Chorizo," the Mexican sausage, to their Famous Sausage Races. He didn't win but was immediately a fan-favorite, which soon resulted in a mini-uproar when Major League Baseball banned him after one game. From Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel:
Baseball has strict rules for clubs that want to introduce a new mascot, uniform or logo change, and the Chorizo got caught up in the rules.
According to Susan Goodenow, an MLB spokesman, baseball wants to be sure that fans tie into new characters or promotions from a marketing and licensing standpoint.
Fortunately for all fans who like a little more diversity when watching gigantic, felt tubes of meat run around the field, the Brewers have apparently maneuvered through all of MLB's extremely necessary red tape to bring back the colorful character. So after training in Arizona with the rest of the team this past month, he made his return to Miller Park during today's Opening Day festivities. Hooray, Chroizo! Long live Chorizo!
The University of Georgia's awesome English bulldog UGA VI died Saturday at the age of nine of congestive heart failure.
It's Official! 
