Tailgate Testaments & Half - Truths

After finally winning back-to-back national titles, Georgia football fans have finally seen a great light. In Tailgate Testaments & Half-Truths, Charlie English recounts the long, winding trek through the darkness Bulldog fans took to get there.  

With his glass of bourbon always in hand and tongue planted firmly in cheek, the Southern humorist details all of the tipped passes and deflected Hail Marys that the program suffered through during the years leading up to the team’s eventual championships in 2021 and 2022. While those two seasons were especially sweet because of the decades-long drought until that magical run, Tailgate Testaments & Half-Truths chronicles all of the near-misses that drove every fan to drink on the way there. 

Written in the same, irreverent style as his first book Pregame Prayers & Tailgate Tales, English again captures the pageantry of Saturdays in the South, reflecting on football, sundresses, Yeti coolers, pimento cheese, and, of course, brown liquor. In addition to his renowned pregame prayers, which span selected contests from 2013 to 2020, in his second book English wryly explores the oddities of coed culture through the years: from a record-breaking mass streaking event, to smuggling alcohol into Sanford Stadium, to a campus rock concert that never was.

English’s second work isn’t just a humorous account on the silly, and quite often absurd, traditions of college football. It is a reminder of the importance of community, and why fans gather together in the first place. Passion and pride remain steadfast—whether your team makes the College Football Playoff or ends its season at a bowl game in Shreveport. 

As fans prepare for football season, Tailgate Testaments & Half-Truths is a must-have accessory for every Bulldog fan, alongside their Ray-Bans and red Solo cups.   

“...It’s a true pleasure to be able to write an introduction to Charlie English’s latest book. A friend of mine from my hometown of Wrightsville, Georgia gave me a copy of Charlie’s first work and asked Charlie to autograph it for me. It may have been the only object related to University of Georgia Football that someone asked to have autographed for me. Charlie has captured with his writing the lore, the traditions and, most importantly, the deep emotional connections and experiences within our hearts which make us bleed Red & Black. 

According to Charlie, in his four years of dedication to the Bleckley County football team, he had only one tackle. That single career tackle occurred in 1979 and it happened to involve a kid from Johnson County named Walker who went on to become a freshman at the University of Georgia in 1980 and on the back of his jersey was #34..."

— Herschel Walker, 1982 Heisman trophy winner and College Football Hall of Famer 

"...What in the world could be more Southern than religion, food and tailgating.  The only thing missing is story-telling and Charlie English puts it all together in his new book Tailgate Testaments & Half-Truths. This book is a stroll back in time that will bring back many enjoyable memories of sitting with friends, sipping a cold one, eating a piece of fried chicken and remembering the stories Charlie tells and the stories you have forgotten.

This hardcover is a must for your Bulldog library and will certainly now be a part of Vince’s Georgia Bulldog collection. It shows that Jesus is truly a Dawg Fan and how important daily prayer is for each of us. Yes, Jesus lives in our heart along with our beloved Dawgs and we need to remember our loyalty to both!

— Barbara Dooley, UGA Football Matriarch