ATLANTA -- Georgia entered Saturday’s SEC championship game hoping to get a reprise of 1980: a game against Notre Dame with the national championship on the line.

Instead, most signs point to the Bulldogs getting a reprise of 1983: a matchup in the Cotton Bowl against Texas.

That’s the most likely possibility, although there was some sentiment after Georgia’s close loss to Alabama that the Bulldogs should get a BCS bid. That will be tough, as Georgia (ranked third in the BCS this week) will have to stay ahead of No. 4 Florida, which was idle.

Georgia head coach Mark Richt was asked Saturday night if he felt his team should get a BCS bid.

“Well, it’s up to whoever is deciding. I’m not in charge of that,” Richt said. “But do I think we are worthy of a BCS Bowl? Yes, I do. I do.”

Alabama head coach Nick Saban was pushing Georgia’s case, too, although not at the expense of Florida.

“I think it’s a crying shame if Georgia doesn’t get to go to a BCS bowl game,” Saban said. “They should get to go to a BCS bowl game. They played a tremendous game out there. That was a great football game by both teams.”

Georgia’s chances would have to come at the expense of Florida, since no more than two SEC teams can make it to the BCS. When asked later, Saban declined to get into whether it should be Georgia or Florida, so his point seemed aimed at the conference limit.

“I think it’s ridiculous,” Saban said. “I watch teams playing that are 7-5 that are talking about they might go to a BCS game because they won their championship? Something’s not right there.”

Jones had the flu

Georgia star linebacker Jarvis Jones had a noticeably raspy voice after the game, and it wasn’t from yelling.

“I got the flu earlier this week,” Jones said. “That don’t mean nothing. But it is what it is. We fought, and I love these guys, and I’m willing to go to bat with them any day.”

Jones didn’t appear too affected. He had two sacks and a forced fumble, bringing his season total to 12.5 sacks. The Georgia single season record is held by David Pollack, with 14.

Richt gets prickly

Richt had a testy exchange with a media member who asked about Richt and quarterback Aaron Murray’s ability to win big games.

“I don’t know what you’re saying,” Richt said. “Why don’t you just say it straight up what you’re straight to say.”

People will say, the reporter asked, that Richt and Murray come up short on the biggest stage against the biggest opponents.

“Is that what you’re saying or everybody else? Richt replied.

The reporter, a radio talk show host, replied that he was hearing that “every day.”

“Well that’s for you to worry about then,” Richt said. “If that’s what you say, then I’ll answer the question. If you think other people are saying that, I’m not worried about that.”

Richt wasn’t done.

“I want to say something else. If anybody thinks our guys didn’t play their tail off, and Aaron Murray didn’t play his tail off, they are crazy,” he said. “That’s unbelievable somebody would even bring that up.”

Then Richt was done, leaving the stage and ending the postgame news conference.

Not worried about focus

Running back Todd Gurley said the Bulldogs will have little problem focusing on their bowl opponents, regardless of the location.

“Whoever we have to face next, they are going to have to deal with a real angry Georgia team,” said Gurley, who rushed for 122 yards and two touchdowns in his first SEC championship game. “Whoever we got.”

Gurley’s two touchdowns gave him 16 for the season, breaking the single-season record for a Georgia freshman, formerly held by Herschel Walker.