NEW ORLEANS -- Bobby Bowden placed his right hand -- the one adorned with a gaudy garnet-and-diamond ring given to him by Burt Reynolds -- on the Sugar Bowl trophy.

Mark Richt also flanked the cup, but with both arms hanging stiffly by his sides.

"Grab the trophy, if you don't mind," someone instructed Richt. "Oh, yeah, I forgot to grab the trophy," he replied, moving his left hand into position.

When it comes to photo ops, at least, the ol' coach still has the upper hand on his former pupil.

Bowden, the 73-year-old icon of the Florida State Seminoles, will take on the guy who looks at him as nothing less than a father-figure in Wednesday night's Sugar Bowl.

Richt worked at Florida State for 14 years, the last seven as Bowden's trusted offensive coordinator -- a professional relationship that ended when Georgia gave Richt his first head coaching job in 2001.

Now, they're together again in the Big Easy, only this time as opponents.

"I don't think we're quite as emotional about it as you might think," said Richt, who guided the Bulldogs (12-1) to their first Southeastern Conference championship since 1982. "I'm sure some things will run through my head right before warmups, but it's really business as usual."

Likewise, Bowden conceded this game doesn't stir quite the same feelings as the ones he gets before playing his son, Clemson coach Tommy Bowden.

"There's one big difference -- Tommy's mother. I have to live with her," Bowden said, cracking up the room. "I don't have any blood on this team, just good friends."

Richt looked forward to spending some time with his former boss, but the bowl schedule was too hectic for anything more than a fleeting hello.

They had one of their longest conversations of the whole week on Tuesday, posing for a few minutes with the Sugar Bowl trophy between them. It was hardly an intimate moment -- at least a dozen photographers were snapping pictures as the two coaches chatted.

If not for fortuitous timing in the mid-80s, Bowden and Richt might not have gotten together at all.

Richt, who played at the University of Miami, was trying to land a job as a graduate assistant. He talked with Bowden, but Florida State didn't have an opening. Richt found a spot at LSU and had already packed a U-Haul van when Bowden called late one evening, saying he needed someone to work with his quarterbacks.

"One more day and I probably would have just stayed at LSU," Richt said. "I believe God's hand was on that whole thing. I think about it a lot."

Richt earned more and more responsibility with the Seminoles, finally drawing the ultimate compliment when Bowden named him offensive coordinator and turned over the play-calling.

"It takes a special guy to work with the quarterbacks," Richt said. "Mark has that rapport. He has complete confidence in his quarterbacks and he doesn't get down on them."

Richt would prefer to forget his final game with the Seminoles, a 13-2 loss to Oklahoma for the 2000 national championship -- Florida State's lowest-scoring game of the past 14 seasons.

He was doing double-duty, trying to recruit and put together a staff at Georgia while preparing Florida State's offense for the Orange Bowl.

"I didn't expect that. No one expected that," Richt said. "I felt horrible. But the next day I hit the ground running. I told myself, 'You're the coach at Georgia. You better get to work.' I didn't have time to feel sorry for myself."

Since going their separate ways, Bowden and Richt have seen their programs take divergent paths, as well.

Georgia is a program on the rise, so confident in Richt's direction that he already has been given a new $1.5-million-a-year contract that runs through 2010.

"There won't be another 20-year drought," All-American defensive end David Pollack said confidently.

Florida State, on the other hand, went 8-4 last season, snapping a streak of 14 straight 10-win seasons and top-five finishes in The Associated Press rankings.

This season, the No. 16 Seminoles (9-4) reclaimed the championship of the Atlantic Coast Conference, but they're the lone BCS team with more than two losses.

Compounding its problems, Florida State's reputation as an outlaw program got a few more entries: quarterback Adrian McPherson was kicked off the team for allegedly stealing a check and defensive tackle Darnell Dockett was suspended for the bowl after an incident at a shopping mall.

No. 2 quarterback Chris Rix also was suspended for oversleeping and missing a final exam, so third-stringer Fabian Walker will make his first career start against the Bulldogs, who allowed only 15.3 points per game.

The Seminoles are so desperate that receiver Anquan Boldin may take a few snaps. The junior hasn't played quarterback in a game since high school.

Two straight subpar seasons have sparked rumblings that it may be time for Bowden to step down.

He blames the slide on instability at quarterback and the loss of two trusted assistants, Richt and North Carolina State coach Chuck Amato. Others allege there's been a dropoff in recruiting -- not surprising, considering Bowden's age and all the accompanying speculation about when he'll retire.

"We're going through a down cycle," said Bowden, who has no intention of retiring. "Do you expect us never to lose? We're regrouping and we're going to get it back."