Athletics

The University of Georgia boasts excellence in academics and richness in history, but an added aspect to the university’s allure can be summed up in four simple words: How ‘Bout Them Dogs. The vintage slogan, which became a catch phrase for Bulldog fans worldwide, is still bandied about today and is a symbol of the university’s love for its sports. So get ready for some action, whether you chip, shoot, serve, sprint or swim.

University Golf Course

A public course with a pro pedigree.

As beautiful to view as it is challenging to play, the 7,300-yard, par 72 Robert Trent Jones course (pictured above) course features hilly terrains, strategically placed bunkers and large, undulating greens. Golf Digest has rated it as one of the top 50 public courses in the nation, and a face-lift by the Love Golf Design team (a company run by PGA Tour player Davis Love III and his brother Mark) has given it an additional swagger.

The course is characterized by lush bermuda fairways best known for their length. Water guards four of the holes while bunkers border quick, bent grass greens. In the past years, it has undergone large-scale renovations, making the greens larger and more undulating. Mounds and pot bunkers have also changed the look of the greens and enhanced the challenge of getting to the pins.

In addition to the championship course, the facilities include a three-tiered driving range, a large bermuda chipping green, a bent grass putting green and three practice bunkers with a bermuda green. Things only get better for Georgia golfers with a state-of-the-art practice center already at the team’s disposal along the UGA Golf Course property.

Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall

Ever seen a NCAA Championship Trophy? Want to?

Located off Lumpkin Street on the south side of campus, Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall is an 85,000 square foot complex that is all things Georgia football. Serving as the headquarters for both players and coaches – which includes four full-length practice fields, offices, locker rooms, weight room, sports medicine facility, racquet ball court and meeting rooms for each position – the building’s main attraction is the Heritage Museum. Occupying the third and fourth floors, the museum is where Bulldog fans can relive past Georgia gridiron glories.

In the rotunda under the domed roof, exhibits include retired jerseys, memorabilia from Heisman Trophy winners, and the shining jewel – the 1980 NCAA National Championship Trophy. Recently upgraded touch-screen displays contain video highlights of Georgia’s football history, and UGA lovers can view an exhibit on the acclaimed mascot. It also houses the Larry Munson Trophy Room, featuring awards and trophies Georgia football has gathered through the years.

A $40 million expansion of Butts-Mehre was completed in 2010, and includes new strength and conditioning rooms and renovation to the first and second floors. A garden and sculpture commemorating former football coach and athletic director Vince Dooley is adjacent to Butts-Mehre. The statue shows Dooley being carried on the shoulders of players from his 1980 national championship team.

Stegeman Coliseum

A history of hoops, and gymnastic mastery.

The site of countless Georgia men’s and women’s basketball games, Stegeman Coliseum has also hosted rhythmic gymnastics and preliminary volleyball matches during the 1996 Summer Olympics, as well as the NCAA gymnastics championships in 1989, 1995 and 2008. Built in 1964 and called the Georgia Coliseum, it was renamed in 1996 to the memory of Herman James Stegeman, former UGA athletics director.

The Coliseum is two structures – the roof and the building beneath it – with the only connection between the two an aluminum bellows which seals the joints and permits the rise and fall of the roof with temperature change. Stegeman (capacity 10,523) has undergone several renovations, including expansion of the seating area, new scoreboards and a state-of-the art basketball floor. Home to the 10-time NCAA champion Gym Dogs, visitors can take a gander at the NCAA trophies the ladies of the blue mats accumulated throughout the years.

Ramsey Activities Center

A place to swim, spike, lift, run, swim, climb…

Considered one of the country’s finest all-purpose indoor sports facilities, the Ramsey Center provides practice and competition sites for Georgia’s swimming and diving and volleyball teams. Named the best recreational facility in the country by Sports Illustrated in 1997, the center is a constant reminder of UGA’s commitment to athletic excellence.

The facility encompasses 420,000 square feet — the equivalent of five and a half acres — and the variety offered is as vast as the area covered. Five gymnasia, three swimming pools, three multipurpose rooms, a climbing wall, 10 racquetball courts, two international squash courts, strength and conditioning room, an 1/8 mile jogging track, an outdoor equipment rental room and an outdoor resource center are all available under one roof.

Within Ramsey lies the home of Georgia’s swimming and diving program – the Gabrielsen Natatorium. The natatorium area contains three separate pools. The 50-meter competition pool contains 844,000 gallons of water and can be configured into four different layouts by utilizing the two movable bulkheads to allow for both short- and long-course training.

Adjacent to the main pool is seating for nearly 2,000 spectators. The volleyball center is in Ramsey as well, and seats 2,500

Dan Magill Tennis Complex and Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame

Serving collegiate players from 1883 to the present.

Long standing as a beacon of excellence in collegiate tennis, the Magill Tennis Complex (G4) enjoys 16 courts (12 outdoor and four indoor), seating capacity of more than 5,000, and is the site of the Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame. Named after a longtime UGA tennis coach and supporter of university athletics, the complex has hosted the men’s NCAA Championships 22 times, most recently in 2010, and four of Georgia’s six national championships were won on their home courts at the Magill complex.

In 1982, UGA was selected as the site for the Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame. The Hall inducts members annually, honoring past collegiate players, coaches and contributors dating back to 1883 when the first national tournament was held. Visitors can view more than 800 photographs and murals, featuring Hall members, NCAA singles, doubles and team champions and collegians who have excelled in Davis Cup play and Grand Slam winners. Numerous racquets used by champions from different eras, including 90-year-old replicas of those used by the first U.S. Davis Cup team players in 1900, can be seen. Also, another interesting item is the first tennis rule book used in the country (1879).

Legion Pool

The place on campus to make a splash.

Legion Pool (pictured above) operates as a service for students, employees, alumni and guests, is a 75 feet by 160 feet pool that dips to 9 feet deep and offers lap lanes, sun decks, a picnic pavilion and certified lifeguards. The pool opens from 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. every day during the summer hours.

Spec Towns Track

Bulldogs get around, and around, and around.

Nestled between Stegeman and Butts-Mehre, Spec Towns Track features an eight-lane track surrounding a field containing areas for other events, including runways for the pole vault and long and triple jumps, shot put circles, high jump pits, javelin and discus ranges. In 1987, a 1,000-seat grandstand was added. The track was renovated in 2010.

The track was officially named Spec Towns Track for former Georgia star athlete and coach and 1936 Olympic gold medalist Forrest “Spec” Towns. The track is open to the public when not in use by the men’s and women’s track and field teams. The track was renovated in 2010.

Foley Field

Where Diamond Dogs have their days.

Styled with chair-back seating and covered grandstands, Foley Field was built in 1990 and holds room for 3,291 baseball fans. Concession stands dot the complex for hungry fans, while players can enjoy indoor and outdoor bullpens, indoor hitting cages, a spacious locker room and a players lounge.