Totally Random

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Where do old Georgia Bulldogs go when they die?

Some will go to “Bulldog Haven,� a cemetery plot near Georgia’s football stadium devoted exclusively to Georgia football lettermen and their families.

The plot will include a wall that looks like stadium steps, a small-scale version of a football field, a small chapel bell and the trademark hedges that line the field inside the big stadium across the street.

So far, more than 100 spots have been sold to former Georgia players and their families at $1,500 apiece. The Georgia Football Lettermen’s Club, which is organizing the sale, is advertising it as a way for old Bulldogs to “come full circle.�

‘We thought it would be great to be buried close to the stadium where we could hear the crowds six times a year,’ Mack Guest, a former lineman and president of the lettermen’s club, told the Associated Press. ‘It goes back to the Georgia tradition. There’s nothing like being in Athens on a Saturday afternoon.’

Trivia time

Georgia’s first football mascot was not a bulldog. Which animal represented the school instead?

Cubs’ October swoon

The rock band Smashing Pumpkins hails from Chicago, and during a recent hometown concert, lead singer Billy Corgan turned territorial when alluding to Eddie Vedder’s “All The Way,� inspired by the Cubs.

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, Corgan railed against Pearl Jam lead singer Vedder for writing the song, telling the crowd it doomed the Cubs’ chances of reaching the World Series.

‘’Last I checked, Eddie ain’t living here, OK?’’ Corgan reportedly said. ‘’Eddie ain’t living here to write a song about my . . . team.’’

No, Vedder’s band is Pearl Jam, based in Seattle. But Vedder is a native of Evanston, Ill., and inspirational fodder in Seattle -- home of the Mariners, Seahawks and Washington Huskies -- isn’t much these days.

History lesson

Maradona was well-received in Glasgow earlier this month, winning his debut as Argentina’s national team coach with a 1-0 victory over Scotland. Scottish fans have a deep appreciation for how Maradona tormented England during his career, in particular the infamous “Hand of God� goal that knocked England out of the 1986 World Cup.

Maradona told reporters in Glasgow that England benefited in 1966 from a controversial goal by Geoff Hurst in the final against West Germany.

‘England won a World Cup, and it was plain to see for everyone that they did that with a goal that did not cross the line,� he said. “I don’t think it’s fair to judge me [for 1986] when stuff like that went on in 1966.’

Trivia answer

A goat was Georgia’s first mascot. It appeared at Georgia’s first football game, against Auburn in 1892, wearing a black coat with the letters “UG� on the sides.

And finally

After his Dallas Cowboys defeated Seattle on Thanksgiving, Coach Wade Phillips praised quarterback Tony Romo, saying, “If we get the splint off, he might throw for 300 yards — oh, wait, he did.�

Playing with a splint on the little finger of his passing hand, Romo indeed completed 22 of 34 passes for 331 yards in the Cowboys’ 34-9 triumph.

-- Mike Penner