Georgia Bulldogs - Football

Football

Moving from North Campus toward South Campus—the more recently constructed campus where science and mathematics departments are located—one passes the Tate Student Center and, most notably, the 92,746 seat Sanford Stadium: home of the Georgia football team. The white, and now also brown Bulldog is UGA’s mascot and is properly known as the late "Uga VIII", now "Uga IX", previously known as "Russ". The Bulldogs play in the tradition-rich Southeastern Conference. The Bulldogs' most historic rivalry is with the Auburn Tigers, referred to as the Deep South's Oldest Rivalry and dating back to 1892. The other rivalries are between the Bulldogs and the Atlantic Coast Conference's Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets ("Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate") and the Florida Gators ("Florida vs. Georgia Football Classic"). In addition, UGA enjoyed a strong rivalry with the nearby Clemson Tigers for many years in football, especially in the 1980s. The Bulldogs and the Tennessee Volunteers annual showdown on the second Saturday of October has become a rivalry as a result of the 1992 division of the Southeastern Conference into Eastern and Western divisions. Before 1992, the two teams had only met 21 times since 1899. Beginning in 1992, the two teams have played annually as members of the same division. Georgia also enjoys a healthy rivalry with the South Carolina Gamecocks, meeting on the football field 62 times since 1894.

The football team has celebrated recent success, compared to some relatively lean years in the 1990s. Between 1989 and 2000, the Bulldogs earned a record of 86–53–1 under head coaches Ray Goff (often derisively referred to as Ray 'Goof', a nickname given by former Florida Gators and current South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier) and Jim Donnan. Since 2001, Mark Richt has led the Bulldogs to 2 SEC Championships in 4 appearances, as well as an overall record of 106–36 (7–3 in Bowl Games).

The Bulldogs have brought home two national championships in their storied history: a shared title in 1942 and a consensus national championship in 1980 (several polls recognized the Bulldogs as national champions in 1927, 1946, and 1968, as well). In addition to their 2 national championships, the Bulldogs have won 12 Southeastern Conference (SEC) championships, the most recent coming in 2005, boast two Heisman Trophy winners (Frank Sinkwich, 1942, and Herschel Walker, 1982), and hold the distinction of having three graduates become Super Bowl MVPs (Jake Scott, 1972, Terrell Davis, 1998, and Hines Ward, 2005).

Notable former players include RB Herschel Walker, WR Lindsay Scott, QB Eric Zeier, QB Fran Tarkenton, RB Frank Sinkwich, RB Charley Trippi, RB Rodney Hampton, FB Mack Strong, RB Garrison Hearst, DE Bill Stanfill, DB Terry Hoage, CB Champ Bailey, RB Terrell Davis, RB Olandis Gary, WR Hines Ward, DE Richard Seymour, LB Boss Bailey, DE/LB David Pollack, QB David Greene, K Kevin Butler, CB Sean Jones, SS/LB Thomas Davis, WR Reggie Brown, FS Greg Blue, Jon Bentley, QB Buck Belue, RB Knowshon Moreno, QB Matthew Stafford, and WR Mohamed Massaquoi, QB Evan Boose, PR Prince Miller, R Rennie Curran, LT Jon Stinchcomb, WR A.J. Green.

The Georgia-Florida game is held annually in late October/early November in Jacksonville, Florida, a site intended to be neutral. However, it is worth noting that the neutrality of the game's location is a point of contention for many Georgia fans; many of whom argue that Jacksonville's location relative to the two universities favors Florida. The city lies 342 miles from Athens, Georgia, home of the Bulldogs, but only 73 miles from Gainesville, Florida, home of the Gators. The game is considered a must-do for many UGA students and alumni. The game was traditionally referred to as the "world's largest outdoor cocktail party" due to the tailgating and celebration by fans, but in recent years the city and universities have dropped the usage to discourage drunkenness among fans. Georgia holds the all-time advantage in the series, posting a win-loss record of 48–40–2 (47–40–2 according to the University of Florida, which does not include the 1904 game in Macon, Georgia, played before officially sanctioning its football program.) The University of Florida began closing the gap, going 15–1 between 1990 and 2003. Georgia has become more competitive in the series since then, winning in 2004, 2007, 2011, and 2012, while the Gators took the game in 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009 and 2010.