SMITH: Uga, Georgia's English bulldog mascot, enjoys great fame, posh treatment

Here in late summer when Nolan Sental Smith, Georgia’s multi-purposed linebacker, returned home for a promotion for the Boys and Girls Club, he was introduced to Uga X, the Georgia mascot, widely proclaimed by Sports Illustrated as the No. 1 mascot in the nation.

Although the accomplished linebacker — one distinguished in the classroom as well as in competition — was familiar with the heralded mascot, he had never spent time with the all-white male English bulldog which the Frank Wilkins Seiler family has maintained and coddled for well over a half century, he had never enjoyed a closeup and personal experience with Uga. He inquired as to how he might someday own a descendant of Uga. He even had his photo made with “Q.”