After graduation, JT Forsyth will probably don a suit and tie for work each day—the standard accountant’s uniform. But on Saturdays at Sanford Stadium, you’ll find this Dawgs fan dressed very differently.
For every home game, Forsyth forgoes a shirt entirely for a full coat of red paint from head to waist, reflective aviator sunglasses, a Ronald McDonald-esque red wig, and a big black letter on his chest.
Spelling Out at Sanford
Last spring, Forsyth became co-captain of the Paint Line, the group of UGA superfans who spell “GEORGIA DAWGS” on their chests on gamedays. If you keep an eye on the student section, you’ll see them cheering just above the hedges…or, sometimes, in them.
“Anytime we score, we jump up on the ledge,” Forsyth says, “but we’ve had a couple guys fall into the hedges. They just roll out of the hedge and jump right back up there.”
Gameday for a Paint Line member is a marathon of chanting with the student section, dancing to the Redcoat Band, and generally “going nuts for about four hours.” But gameday preparations begin days or weeks in advance.
An All-Day Affair
From their roster, Forsyth and his co-captain, Scout Summerlin, find 13 guys who can “paint up” and 16 or so painters, called “Paint Girls,” for each game. Then, hours before kickoff, the co-captains finalize letter assignments and divvy out paint supplies.
The second “G” in “GEORGIA” and the “G” in “DAWGS” are coveted since they reflect the Georgia logo and keep you away from the stadium’s busy aisles. But the new guy, well, he gets to be the space between the words.
The Paint Line goes to every home game, no matter the weather. Hand warmers are essential in November, while August events make sweat a real problem for paint application. But Forsyth thinks the discomfort—including hours scrubbing paint off in the shower—is worth it.
The Purpose Behind the Paint
Paint Line traces its history back to the 1997 football season, when a handful of friends started spelling “DOGS” or “GEORGIA BULLDOGS” on their chests and grew into a close-knit community. Eventually, the Paint Line partnered with the Baptist Collegiate Ministry with the goal of setting a good example during games and spreading the gospel by starting conversations.
“The main thing is how we conduct ourselves,” Forsyth says. “I want to reflect a way, especially for kids, that you can be out here, you can be a college student and have a great time without being obnoxious, mean, or rude. You can just have a good time and make it a party.”
Just above their usual letters, Paint Line members wear a painted cross on their shoulders, a conversation starter about their Christian faith. On special occasions, like the G-Day game before Easter Sunday, they’ll even paint a secondary message on their backs, such as “HE IS RISEN”.
Forsyth also has personal reasons to paint up. Growing up in a family that loved watching the Dawgs play, he knows his mom would appreciate his contributions to the electric environment at Sanford Stadium.
During Forsyth’s freshman year, she was diagnosed with cancer and passed away before she could see him painted red.
“She was just so proud of me being at UGA,” he says. “Whenever I do Paint Line, I know she would think: This is awesome.”
Going forward, Forsyth thinks his time with Paint Line will make him a better communicator and coordinator, skills that should give him a leg up in the world of accounting—even if he does have to trade the paint for a standard suit and tie most days.
