Atlanta ? At 6-4, Georgia’s season appeared lost. The Bulldogs’ streak of 10-win seasons and top-10 rankings would end at four and they were facing the real possibility of a losing record.

After three straight wins over ranked opponents, including a 31-24 comeback upset of No. 14 Virginia Tech in Saturday night’s Chick-fil-A Bowl, Georgia coach Mark Richt had reason to be ecstatic.

“To be where we were, pretty much lost and forgotten, and to beat three ranked teams … is pretty fantastic,” Richt said.

Georgia finished an up-and-down season with three straight victories over ranked teams – No. 5 Auburn and No. 16 Georgia Tech before the bowl game – a first for the program.

The Bulldogs (9-4) also found their offensive coordinator for the future while salvaging the season.

New Georgia offensive coordinator Mike Bobo’s offense delivered in the second half as Georgia rallied from an 18-point deficit.

“At halftime we said ‘Look, we’re down 21-3, but all we need to do is get a couple of first downs,”‘ Bobo said. “We knew we were going to have the opportunity to get some guys open deep if we could protect, and we were able to do that.”