Georgia facing chilly bowling

The Georgia Bulldogs are bowl-eligible, but they know to leave their warm weather clothes at home.

After spending the postseason in Florida or in the comfort of a dome seven consecutive years from 2002-08, the Bulldogs are headed for a second straight bowl in brisk conditions. Georgia defeated Texas A&M in last December's Independence Bowl in Shreveport, La., and the Bulldogs appear headed to the Liberty Bowl in Memphis on New Year's Eve afternoon.

Liberty Bowl executive director Steve Ehrhart hung around Sanford Stadium late Saturday night following Georgia's 42-34 win over Georgia Tech, which left both teams 6-6, and briefly met with Bulldogs coach Mark Richt.

"We're in a bowl, and that's all that matters," Bulldogs outside linebacker Justin Houston said. "Some teams can't even get to a bowl. We've got to be blessed with what we have."

Said defensive end Abry Jones: "With our record, we can't be really picky."

The Bulldogs are not scheduled to practice this week, but that doesn't guarantee all will be quiet. Richt's name surfaced Sunday as a leading candidate at Miami to replace Randy Shannon, who was fired Saturday night after a loss to South Florida capped a 7-5 regular season.

Richt is a former Hurricanes quarterback who graduated in 1982, but he shot down the possibility of coaching his alma mater Sunday as quickly as he did earlier this month when linked to Colorado's vacancy.

"Georgia is my home, and it's where I want to finish my career," said Richt, who has a 96-33 record with the Bulldogs.

The Liberty Bowl pits an SEC team against the Conference USA champion, which will be determined this Saturday in Orlando when SMU faces Central Florida. UCF is coached by George O'Leary, who led Georgia Tech to three straight wins over Georgia in 1998-2000, while SMU is coached by June Jones, who in 2007 guided Hawaii to the Sugar Bowl, where they lost 41-10 to the Bulldogs.

Georgia hasn't played in the Liberty Bowl since 1987, when the Bulldogs topped Arkansas 20-17.

"It would have been sickening to be 5-7 right now and it just be over," Richt said. "I'm glad we don't have to deal with that."

For the first time since 1963, the Bulldogs did not defeat a team that finished the regular season with a winning record. Georgia beat three teams (Tennessee, Kentucky and Georgia Tech) that are 6-6 and three more (Louisiana-Lafayette, Vanderbilt and Idaho State) with losing records.

The '63 Bulldogs went 4-5-1 under coach Johnny Griffith, who was not retained at season's end and was replaced by Vince Dooley. This year's Bulldogs will keep going.

"We've got to carry this over for the next month of practice and finish this season strong," quarterback Aaron Murray said. "To finish with a winning record will be huge."

No longer automatic

Georgia Tech kicker Scott Blair, a senior from Calhoun, had made 77 extra points in a row before pulling one wide left with 4:57 remaining that kept Georgia in front 35-34. Bulldogs senior receiver Kris Durham also played at Calhoun and said he spoke briefly with Blair after the game but that Blair wasn't saying much.

"It was unfortunate for him, but I was happy," Durham said. "I would never wish bad luck upon him, but I was happy about the whole thing."

Richt: 'He got me'

The Yellow Jackets were trailing 35-34 when they used their last time out with 1:35 remaining. Georgia was intent on running out the clock and faced a second-and-12 from Tech's 20 when the Jackets allowed Washaun Ealey to score.

The Associated PressThe Georgia Bulldogs, shown here celebrating an Orson Charles (7) touchdown in Saturday night's win over Georgia Tech, have scored 30 or more points in seven straight games.

Blair Walsh kicked the extra point to make it 42-34, but Paul Johnson's Jackets were alive again, needing a touchdown and two-point conversion to tie the game.

"We got outcoached right there," Richt said. "As soon as it happened, I said, 'He got me.'"

Odds and ends

Richt fired three defensive assistants following last year's win over Tech but said Sunday that he is not considering any staff changes. ... Several Bulldogs assistants were out recruiting Sunday. ... Richt did not have an update for senior defensive end Demarcus Dobbs, who left the game in the second quarter with an injured right elbow. ... Durham on his home finale: "I'm still kind of shocked, because this was too close for comfort."

Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.

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