Top Dawg

SALTof the CITY

Top Dawg

Written by SARA WATSON

AS THE OWNER of Rody’s Audio Warehouse, Philip Perrie trades in thunderous acoustics (his shop sells amplifi ers, musical instruments and professional audio equipment, in addition to video, lighting, security and CCTV design and installation services). But the loudest event in recent memory happened decidedly outside the offi ce, when Perrie traveled to the NCAA Division I College Football Playoff National Championship in Indianapolis. After 40 years, the University of Georgia won a national title, defeating the University of Alabama 33 to 18. The crowd roared; the sound was deafening. It was music to his ears, though he acknowledges, “I probably should’ve worn ear plugs.”

UGA is a way of life for many in the region, but for Perrie it’s especially personal. He attended Georgia, and his sister, brother, nephew and eldest daughter, Meredith (one of four children), all count the school as their alma mater. His eldest son, Charles, however, can one-up them all, and with graduation impending this May, the cat — or dog — is fi nally out of the bag: Charles is a Hairy Dawg.

Perrie gets a lot of questions about his son’s role as a UGA mascot, and rattles off the answers in short order on Charles’ behalf: Yes, the costume is hot, and no, it isn’t air-conditioned. “From what he tells me, August, September and part of October are miserable,” Perrie says. That’s why there are multiple mascots, but it’s Charles who leads the pack. “He’s kind of the senior Hairy Dawg, you could say.” Perrie is also quick to dispel a potentially dirty little secret: Bulldog staff ers dry-clean and rotate the costumes on-site, so no one is ever putting on a used garment. “Believe it or not, that’s one of the most common questions I get,” he says.

Philip Perrie and his son, Charles, in a Hairy Dawg mascot costume, on the fi eld at Sanford Stadium in January.

“Is the second person putting on this sweaty, gross costume? No. They do clean and take care of them.”

Meredith, a mathematics professor, also made an indelible mark on UGA football, though she managed to do so from a surprising place. “She was a teaching assistant at Georgia Tech in graduate school, and she had this big class of about 200 students,” Perrie shares. “She played the Georgia fi ght song to begin the class and would give students an extra point if they wrote ‘Go Dawgs’ at the top of their papers. She became kind of an underground hero when people back in Athens heard of her,” he says, laughing. And did the students go through with such a potentially traitorous act? “About 70 percent of them did it,” he says.

Perrie, a South Carolina native, moved to Savannah to open what is now Rody’s Audio Warehouse in 1980 — the very same year Georgia won its last national title. Watching his son from the stands this January made for a sweet, full-circle moment. “He was on the fi eld for the second half of the championship, and he celebrated with the players and coaches,” Perrie recalls. “He’s got memories for the rest of his life.”

Charles, an engineering major, made sure dear old dad got some memories of his own, getting permission to bring Perrie onto the fi eld in Athens at a celebratory parade. The moment was a long time coming, with Perrie having attended virtually every bowl game and home game for the past decade, always waiting for a big win. “I’m the eternal optimist,” Perrie says. “I always think, ‘Next year, it’ll happen next year.” The wait, fortunately, is over.