This article was originally published with Dawgs247 on November 11, 2015 and can be found here. 

ATHENS — Saturday’s matchup between Georgia and Auburn has plenty of people with ties to both schools. The famous example from the rivalry’s history is former Auburn player Vince Dooley coaching at Georgia and former Georgia player Pat Dye coaching at Auburn, but this year’s matchup has a number of similar instances.

Georgia defensive line coach Tracy Rocker won the Lombardi Trophy and Outland Trophy as a defensive lineman at Auburn in 1988. Auburn defensive coordinator Will Muschamp played safety at Georgia from 1991 to 1994 before entering the coach realm with Auburn one year later. Auburn defensive line coach Rodney Garner played at Auburn during Rocker’s run there, coached at Georgia for 15 years then returned to Auburn in 2013. Auburn defensive graduate assistant Brandon Wheeling played for the Bulldogs in 2009 and worked on the Georgia staff before following Garner to the Tigers.

Georgia head coach Mark Richt said the game stands out for the people who have called both Auburn and Athens home.

“I think it’s always a little more meaningful [for] anyone that’s been on both sides,” Richt said. “Whether that’s played at one place and coached at another, or coached at one place and then coached at the other. We compete a lot in recruiting, too.”

There’s also the case of Auburn sophomore Tray Matthews. Matthews started eight games for Georgia in 2013 before being dismissed for a violation of team rules. He landed in Auburn in 2014 and, after sitting one year, has recorded 36 total tackles and one interception for the Tigers this season.

Georgia safety Quincy Mauger has stayed in touch with Matthews. While he said there has been some chirping back and forth this week, Mauger made it clear Matthews remains one of his friends.

“It’s going to be pretty fun to go against a guy like Tray,” Mauger said. “He’s been working his butt off. I let him know that people over here at Georgia still love him. No matter what anyone does, they’re still family.”

Several other players on the Auburn roster were recruited heavily by the Bulldogs, including defensive tackle Dontavius Russell, defensive end DaVonte Lambert and defensive tackle Montravius Adams.

The Tigers are known for their emphasis on recruiting the state of Georgia, as 43 players on this year’s roster hail from the Peach State. The proximity to many of Auburn’s players during childhood ramps the game up even more for a few Bulldogs.

“With Auburn having a lot of guys from Georgia, it always adds fuel to the competition,” defensive end Josh Dawson said. “Just playing against guys you’ve grown up with makes the game much more fun. I most definitely want to go out with a win on Saturday.”

As close as the two schools stand for many players and coaches, the series remains even closer. Despite so many games since the inaugural meeting in 1892, the two teams share 55 victories along with eight ties.

Saturday’s matchup will give one side bragging rights in a rivalry rich with crossed paths and shared backgrounds.

“We’ve played them 118 times,” Richt said. “Whoever wins this one takes the lead in the series. That’s kind of hard to believe after all these years. That’s how close this thing has been.”