Deep South's Oldest Rivalry

Not to be confused with the South's Oldest Rivalry between North Carolina and Virginia.

Deep South's Oldest Rivalry

Auburn Tigers Georgia Bulldogs
Sport	College football
First meeting	February 20, 1892 Auburn, 10–0
Latest meeting	October 5, 2024 Georgia, 31–13
Next meeting	2025
Statistics
Meetings total	129
All-time series	Georgia leads, 65–56–8
Largest victory	Auburn, 44–0 (1900)
Longest win streak	Georgia, 9 (1923–1931)
Current win streak	Georgia, 8 (2017–present)

75km
50miles

Georgia

Auburn

  

Locations of Auburn and Georgia

The Auburn–Georgia football rivalry is a college football rivalry game between the Auburn Tigers and Georgia Bulldogs. The two teams first played each other in 1892, and the rivalry has been renewed annually since 1944 for a total of 129 games as of 2024. Because it is the oldest rivalry still contested between teams in the Deep South, the series is referred to by both schools as the "Deep South's Oldest Rivalry" (although the first football game played in the Deep South was Wofford vs. Furman in 1889). The series is currently the second-most played rivalry in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), behind Minnesota–Wisconsin (Paul Bunyan's Axe) and tied with North Carolina–Virginia (South's Oldest Rivalry).

The Deep South's Oldest Rivalry is eight months older than the South's Oldest Rivalry, with Auburn–Georgia first meeting on February 20, 1892, and North Carolina–Virginia first meeting on October 22, 1892. The Auburn–Georgia series has been played almost continuously from the beginning, with the exception of 1893 (rematch not scheduled), 1897 (Georgia disbanded its team early in the season following the fatal on-field injury of one of its players), 1917 and 1918 (Georgia did not field teams during World War I), and 1943 (Auburn did not field a team due to World War II). The Deep South's Oldest Rivalry and the South's Oldest Rivalry were tied from 1910–1942 until North Carolina–Virginia surpassed Auburn–Georgia in 1943 (though North Carolina–Virginia continued to trail Southern rivalry Texas–Texas A&M by two games). Conference realignments in the early 2010s ended several prominent rivalries, allowing North Carolina–Virginia (in 2014) and Auburn–Georgia (in 2015) to surpass Kansas–Missouri and Texas–Texas A&M, giving North Carolina–Virginia the undisputed lead as most-played rivalry in the South and tied with Cincinnati–Miami University (Battle for the Bell) for the second-most played rivalry in the FBS. They would soon be joined by Auburn–Georgia in 2017 after the SEC foes played twice in the same season – once in the regular season and again in the conference championship game. The Cincinnati–Miami University matchup was cancelled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving Auburn–Georgia and North Carolina–Virginia tied for the second-most played rivalry in FBS.

Series history

The first college football game between Auburn University and the University of Georgia was played on February 20, 1892, in Piedmont Park in Atlanta, Georgia. The game was the brainchild of Charles Herty of Georgia and George Petrie of Auburn, the founders and first head coaches of their respective university's football teams. The two had met as graduate school classmates at Johns Hopkins University. The game was also, according to legend, when Auburn's team cheer, "War Eagle", originated, though this claim is disputed. Auburn won the game 10–0.

The Tigers and Bulldogs have played each other nearly every year since. There have only been three exceptions since 1898, when World War I and World War II interrupted the series. From 1904-1911, games in the series were played in Macon, Montgomery, and Savannah. From 1916 until 1958, the game was played at a neutral site, A. J. McClung Memorial Stadium in Columbus, Georgia. When the Southeastern Conference split into its Eastern Division and Western Division in 1992, with Auburn placed in the west and Georgia in the east, the game was designated as the teams' annual cross-divisional rivalry game, leaving open the possibility for the two teams to meet in the SEC Championship Game. This happened for the first time in 2017, when Georgia beat Auburn 28–7 to claim their 13th SEC championship. This championship game matchup tied the rivalry with the South's Oldest Rivalry between Virginia and North Carolina for the 2nd most played rivalry game in FBS football.

The rivalry is historically close, with the all-time series tied as recently as the 2014 season. However, since 2006, Georgia has won 17 of the last 20 to take a nine-game lead.

Game results

Auburn victories

Georgia victories

Tie games

No.	Date	Location	Winning team		Losing team
1	February 20, 1892	Atlanta, GA	Auburn	10	Georgia	0
2	November 24, 1894	Atlanta, GA	Georgia	10	Auburn	8
3	November 28, 1895	Atlanta, GA	Auburn	16	Georgia	6
4	November 26, 1896	Atlanta, GA	Georgia	12	Auburn	6
5	November 24, 1898	Atlanta, GA	Auburn	18	Georgia	17
6	November 18, 1899	Atlanta, GA	Tie	0	Tie	0
7	November 30, 1900	Atlanta, GA	Auburn	44	Georgia	0
8	November 27, 1901	Atlanta, GA	Tie	0	Tie	0
9	November 27, 1902	Atlanta, GA	Georgia	12	Auburn	5
10	November 26, 1903	Atlanta, GA	Georgia	22	Auburn	13
11	November 24, 1904	Macon, GA	Auburn	17	Georgia	6
12	November 30, 1905	Macon, GA	Auburn	20	Georgia	0
13	November 29, 1906	Macon, GA	Georgia	4	Auburn	0
14	November 30, 1907	Macon, GA	Georgia	6	Auburn	0
15	November 27, 1908	Montgomery, AL	Auburn	23	Georgia	0
16	November 25, 1909	Montgomery, AL	Auburn	17	Georgia	5
17	November 24, 1910	Savannah, GA	Auburn	26	Georgia	0
18	November 29, 1911	Savannah, GA	Tie	0	Tie	0
19	November 28, 1912	Athens, GA	Georgia	12	Auburn	6
20	November 22, 1913	Atlanta, GA	Auburn	21	Georgia	7
21	November 21, 1914	Atlanta, GA	Tie	0	Tie	0
22	October 30, 1915	Atlanta, GA	Auburn	12	Georgia	0
23	November 4, 1916	Columbus, GA	Auburn	3	Georgia	0
24	November 1, 1919	Columbus, GA	Auburn	7	Georgia	0
25	October 30, 1920	Columbus, GA	Georgia	7	Auburn	0
26	October 29, 1921	Columbus, GA	Georgia	7	Auburn	0
27	November 4, 1922	Columbus, GA	Auburn	7	Georgia	3
28	November 3, 1923	Columbus, GA	Georgia	7	Auburn	0
29	November 15, 1924	Columbus, GA	Georgia	6	Auburn	0
30	November 7, 1925	Columbus, GA	Georgia	34	Auburn	0
31	November 6, 1926	Columbus, GA	Georgia	16	Auburn	0
32	October 22, 1927	Columbus, GA	Georgia	33	Auburn	3
33	November 3, 1928	Columbus, GA	Georgia	13	Auburn	0
34	November 15, 1929	Athens, GA	Georgia	24	Auburn	0
35	November 25, 1930	Columbus, GA	Georgia	39	Auburn	7
36	November 21, 1931	Columbus, GA	Georgia	12	Auburn	6
37	November 19, 1932	Columbus, GA	Auburn	14	Georgia	7
38	November 18, 1933	Columbus, GA	Auburn	14	Georgia	6
39	November 24, 1934	Columbus, GA	Georgia	18	Auburn	0
40	November 23, 1935	Columbus, GA	Auburn	19	Georgia	7
41	October 24, 1936	Columbus, GA	Auburn	20	Georgia	13
42	November 20, 1937	Columbus, GA	Tie	0	Tie	0
43	November 19, 1938	Columbus, GA	Auburn	23	Georgia	14
44	November 25, 1939	Columbus, GA	Auburn	7	Georgia	0
45	November 2, 1940	Columbus, GA	Georgia	14	Auburn	13
46	November 1, 1941	Columbus, GA	Georgia	7	Auburn	0
47	November 21, 1942	Columbus, GA	Auburn	27	No. 1 Georgia	13
48	November 18, 1944	Columbus, GA	Georgia	49	Auburn	13
49	November 17, 1945	Columbus, GA	Georgia	35	Auburn	0
50	November 16, 1946	Columbus, GA	No. 3 Georgia	41	Auburn	0
51	November 15, 1947	Columbus, GA	Georgia	28	Auburn	6
52	November 13, 1948	Columbus, GA	No. 13 Georgia	42	Auburn	14
53	November 12, 1949	Columbus, GA	Tie	20	Tie	20
54	November 18, 1950	Columbus, GA	Georgia	12	Auburn	10
55	November 17, 1951	Columbus, GA	Georgia	46	Auburn	14
56	November 15, 1952	Columbus, GA	Georgia	13	Auburn	7
57	November 14, 1953	Columbus, GA	No. 20 Auburn	39	Georgia	18
58	November 13, 1954	Columbus, GA	Auburn	35	#20 Georgia	0
59	November 12, 1955	Columbus, GA	No. 12 Auburn	16	Georgia	13
60	November 17, 1956	Columbus, GA	Auburn	20	Georgia	0
61	November 16, 1957	Columbus, GA	No. 3 Auburn	6	Georgia	0
62	November 15, 1958	Columbus, GA	No. 4 Auburn	21	Georgia	6
63	November 14, 1959	Athens, GA	No. 12 Georgia	14	#8 Auburn	13
64	November 12, 1960	Auburn, AL	No. 10 Auburn	9	Georgia	6
65	November 18, 1961	Athens, GA	Auburn	10	Georgia	7

No.	Date	Location	Winning team		Losing team
66	November 17, 1962	Auburn, AL	Georgia	30	Auburn	21
67	November 16, 1963	Athens, GA	No. 9 Auburn	14	Georgia	0
68	November 14, 1964	Auburn, AL	Auburn	14	Georgia	7
69	November 13, 1965	Athens, GA	Auburn	21	Georgia	19
70	November 16, 1966	Auburn, AL	No. 9 Georgia	21	Auburn	13
71	November 18, 1967	Athens, GA	Georgia	17	Auburn	0
72	November 16, 1968	Auburn, AL	No.5 Georgia	17	No. 12 Auburn	3
73	November 15, 1969	Athens, GA	No. 11 Auburn	16	No. 16 Georgia	3
74	November 14, 1970	Auburn, AL	Georgia	31	No. 8 Auburn	17
75	November 13, 1971	Athens, GA	No. 6 Auburn	35	No. 7 Georgia	20
76	November 18, 1972	Auburn, AL	No. 11 Auburn	27	Georgia	10
77	November 17, 1973	Athens, GA	Georgia	28	Auburn	14
78	November 16, 1974	Auburn, AL	No. 7 Auburn	17	Georgia	13
79	November 15, 1975	Athens, GA	No. 20 Georgia	28	Auburn	13
80	November 13, 1976	Auburn, AL	No. 7 Georgia	28	Auburn	0
81	November 12, 1977	Athens, GA	Auburn	33	Georgia	14
82	November 18, 1978	Auburn, AL	Tie	22	Tie	22
83	November 17, 1979	Athens, GA	No. 15 Auburn	33	Georgia	13
84	November 15, 1980	Auburn, AL	No. 1 Georgia	31	Auburn	21
85	November 14, 1981	Athens, GA	No. 4 Georgia	24	Auburn	13
86	November 13, 1982	Auburn, AL	No. 1 Georgia	19	Auburn	14
87	November 12, 1983	Athens, GA	No. 3 Auburn	13	#4 Georgia	7
88	November 17, 1984	Auburn, AL	No. 18 Auburn	21	#15 Georgia	12
89	November 13, 1985	Athens, GA	No. 14 Auburn	24	#12 Georgia	10
90	November 15, 1986	Auburn, AL	Georgia	20	#8 Auburn	16
91	November 13, 1987	Athens, GA	No. 12 Auburn	27	#8 Georgia	11
92	November 12, 1988	Auburn, AL	No. 9 Auburn	20	#17 Georgia	10
93	November 18, 1989	Athens, GA	No. 11 Auburn	20	Georgia	3
94	November 17, 1990	Auburn, AL	No. 24 Auburn	33	Georgia	10
95	November 18, 1991	Athens, GA	Georgia	37	Auburn	27
96	November 14, 1992	Auburn, AL	No. 12 Georgia	14	Auburn	10
97	November 13, 1993	Athens, GA	No. 7 Auburn	42	Georgia	28
98	November 12, 1994	Auburn, AL	Tie	23	Tie	23
99	November 11, 1995	Athens, GA	No. 20 Auburn	37	Georgia	31
100	November 16, 1996	Auburn, AL	Georgia	56	#20 Auburn	494OT
101	November 15, 1997	Athens, GA	#16 Auburn	45	#7 Georgia	34
102	November 14, 1998	Auburn, AL	#17 Georgia	28	Auburn	17
103	November 13, 1999	Athens, GA	Auburn	38	#14 Georgia	21
104	November 11, 2000	Auburn, AL	No. 22 Auburn	29	#14 Georgia	26
105	November 10, 2001	Athens, GA	No. 24 Auburn	24	#19 Georgia	17
106	November 16, 2002	Auburn, AL	No. 7 Georgia	24	#24 Auburn	21
107	November 15, 2003	Athens, GA	No. 7 Georgia	26	Auburn	7
108	November 13, 2004	Auburn, AL	No. 3 Auburn	24	#8 Georgia	6
109	November 12, 2005	Athens, GA	No. 15 Auburn	31	#9 Georgia	30
110	November 11, 2006	Auburn, AL	Georgia	37	#5 Auburn	15
111	November 10, 2007	Athens, GA	No. 10 Georgia	45	#18 Auburn	20
112	November 15, 2008	Auburn, AL	No. 13 Georgia	17	Auburn	13
113	November 14, 2009	Athens, GA	Georgia	31	Auburn	24
114	November 13, 2010	Auburn, AL	No. 2 Auburn	49	Georgia	31
115	November 12, 2011	Athens, GA	No. 14 Georgia	45	#24 Auburn	7
116	November 10, 2012	Auburn, AL	No. 5 Georgia	38	Auburn	0
117	November 16, 2013	Auburn, AL	No. 7 Auburn	43	#25 Georgia	38
118	November 15, 2014	Athens, GA	No. 16 Georgia	34	#9 Auburn	7
119	November 14, 2015	Auburn, AL	Georgia	20	Auburn	13
120	November 12, 2016	Athens, GA	Georgia	13	No. 8 Auburn	7
121	November 11, 2017	Auburn, AL	No. 10 Auburn	40	No. 1 Georgia	17
122	December 2, 2017	Atlanta, GAA	No. 6 Georgia	28	No. 2 Auburn	7
123	November 10, 2018	Athens, GA	No. 5 Georgia	27	#24 Auburn	10
124	November 16, 2019	Auburn, AL	No. 4 Georgia	21	#12 Auburn	14
125	October 3, 2020	Athens, GA	No. 4 Georgia	27	#7 Auburn	6
126	October 9, 2021	Auburn, AL	No. 2 Georgia	34	#18 Auburn	10
127	October 8, 2022	Athens, GA	No. 2 Georgia	42	Auburn	10
128	September 30, 2023	Auburn, AL	No. 1 Georgia	27	Auburn	20
129	October 5, 2024	Athens, GA	No. 5 Georgia	31	Auburn	13
Series: Georgia leads 65–56–8

Results by location

As of October 5, 2024

State	City	Games	Auburn victories	Georgia victories	Ties	Years played
Alabama	Auburn	33	12	20	1	1960–present
	Montgomery	2	2	0	0	1908–09
Georgia	Columbus	39	16	21	2	1916–58
	Athens	35	17	18	0	1912, 1929, 1959–present
	Atlanta	14	6	5	3	1892–1903, 1913–15, 2017
	Macon	4	2	2	0	1904–07
	Savannah	2	1	0	1	1910–11

Notable games

1892 Trophy

1895 Auburn-Georgia game at Piedmont Park.

1892

The two schools met in the first meeting in what is now the Deep South’s oldest college football rivalry. Auburn won the game 10–0. One Atlanta newspaper called it the “social event of the year.”

1896

Georgia won by a 12–6 score to finish its first undefeated season under Pop Warner. For Auburn, the game featured Reynolds Tichenor's brilliant punt returns.

1899

All accounts Auburn was leading Georgia by a score of 11-6 when the game was called due to darkness, lighting not being available at that time, resulting in an official 0-0 tie. As noted by sideline reporters for The Atlanta Constitution "The conditions that appeared to make the ruling of Referee Rowbotham a necessity were such as should never have occurred on any gridiron that has the advantage of police protection. As darkness came on it was impossible in the bleachers and grand stand to distinguish the play and with no obstacle in the way the crowd surged into the field mingled with the players and made further progress a matter of impossibility." Fifteen minutes prior to the decision, Auburn coach, John Heisman, and Georgia Coach, Gordon Saussy, made an official request to call the game for the same reason. The decision was backed by Umpire Taylor. "In the decision that made the game a tie the referee was backed up by Umpire Taylor of Birmingham who, although a Just official has always been regarded by many as a friend of Auburn."

1902

Rufus Nalley dies in Atlanta after a short, serious illness. According to some, the last thing that he heard before losing consciousness on November 27, was that Georgia had beaten Auburn earlier that day, news that caused him to smile. It was the first victory for Georgia in the rivalry since the 1896 team for which Nalley played.

1916

Auburn won 3–0 in the mud on a 40-yard field goal in the fourth quarter by Moon Ducote kicked off of teammate Legare Hairston's leather helmet, in Columbus's McClung Stadium. This precipitated the rule which states the ball must be kicked directly off the ground.

1920

Georgia upset Auburn 7–0 when Auburn was fresh off a 56–6 beatdown of Vanderbilt.

1942

Georgia won the national championship with an 11–1 record, beating UCLA in the 1943 Rose Bowl, Georgia's lone loss came to Auburn, falling 27–13 at Columbus's Memorial Stadium.

1959

On November 14, at Sanford Stadium in Athens, as time ran short, Georgia player and future Auburn head-coach Pat Dye recovered a fumble by Auburn quarterback Bryant Harvard. Georgia quarterback Fran Tarkenton's touchdown pass in the final seconds gave Georgia a 14–13 victory and cost Auburn a Southeastern Conference championship. Georgia went on to claim the 1959 SEC Championship and the 1960 Orange Bowl Championship with a victory over Missouri in Miami.

1983

Again at Sanford Stadium, Pat Dye celebrated his first SEC championship as Auburn's coach after the Tigers beat Georgia 13–7 on November 12. Georgia coach Vince Dooley, a former star Auburn quarterback, was there too on that day in 1959 as an assistant on Shug Jordan's staff.

1986

The Bulldogs visited Auburn as three-touchdown underdogs. Auburn was two wins away from the SEC Championship, with only one blemish on their record, an 18–17 setback at Florida. Georgia, deprived of starting quarterback James Jackson at the last moment due to a family funeral, staged a 20–16 upset victory. When Georgia fans stormed the field of Jordan–Hare Stadium and started tearing the turf from midfield and refused to leave, they were doused by sprinkler system and fire hoses. The hoses were quickly turned on the stands, soaking the Georgia marching band and fans listening to its traditional post-game performance. The incident received widespread attention and Auburn officially apologized.

1994

Georgia ended Auburn's 20-game winning streak with a 23–23 tie at Jordan-Hare. The Sunday morning headline in nearby Columbus, Ga read "UGA beats Auburn 23–23".

1996

The two teams played in the first Southeastern Conference football game to go into overtime. First-year head coach Jim Donnan's team was down 28–7 at halftime, before rallying to tie it at 28 on a 30-yard touchdown as time expired from Mike Bobo to Cory Allen, and Georgia went on to win 56–49 in four overtimes. This game was also famous for the incident in which Uga V lunged at Auburn wide receiver Robert Baker after a first-quarter touchdown.

1999

Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville got his first signature win, as the underdog Tigers led 31–0 at halftime and cruised to a 38–21 victory.

2001

No. 19 Georgia had a chance to force overtime after getting possession back at the Auburn 45-yard line with 1:10 remaining and no timeouts. The Bulldogs drove down to the goal line with 16 seconds left, but rather than spiking the ball to save time off the game clock, they inexplicably called for a handoff up the middle for no gain. Time expired before Georgia was trying to hurry up on offense, and the Bulldogs lost to the #24 Tigers 24–17.

2002

No. 7 Georgia traveled to #22 Auburn with a spot in the SEC Championship game and an outside chance at the national title on the line. Auburn led 14–3 at halftime, thanks to a 53-yard touchdown run from Ronnie Brown. Georgia rallied to make it 21–17 Tigers with 1:25 remaining when they faced a 4th and 15 from the Auburn 19. QB David Greene threw up a prayer, and Michael Johnson caught the pass over Auburn CB Horace Willis to come away with the improbable touchdown. Georgia defeated Auburn 24–21 to secure a spot in their first SEC Championship Game. The Bulldogs defeated Arkansas 30–3 to win their first SEC Championship since 1982. The Bulldogs finished the season 13–1 with a victory over Florida State in the Sugar Bowl, and a #3 final ranking. Auburn meanwhile finished with a 9-4 record and defeated Penn State in the Citrus Bowl.

2004

No. 8 Georgia traveled to undefeated and #3 Auburn in 2004. The Tigers were eyeing their first SEC Championship since splitting the title in 1989 (note: Auburn was on probation in 1993 and ineligible for the championship), as well as a spot in the BCS National Championship Game. The Tigers won 24–6 on their way to a 13–0 season, ending with a 16–13 victory over Virginia Tech in the Sugar Bowl and a No. 2 national ranking.

2006

No. 5 Auburn had hopes of playing for a National Championship after knocking off eventual champion Florida, but the Bulldogs got a big performance out of free safety Tra Battle. Battle tied a Georgia record that day with three interceptions, one of which he returned 30 yards for a touchdown. UGA would go on to rout the Tigers 37–15, dashing their title hopes and costing Tommy Tuberville a shot at playing for the SEC Championship Game.

2007

The game marked the first time in the modern era that Georgia wore black jerseys. It also marked the first time that Georgia defeated Florida and Auburn in the same season since 1982 [1], and the first time that Georgia scored more than 40 points in three straight games since 1942.

2013

No. 7 Auburn hosted No. 25 Georgia in Auburn. Through the first 50 minutes of the game, Auburn had scored on seven of nine possessions with 29 first downs building a 37–17 lead. In contrast, when Georgia began their first possession of the fourth quarter they had only reached the end zone once on their previous six drives. Auburn maintained that 20-point lead until 9:35 left in the game when the momentum suddenly shifted in Georgia's favor. At that moment, Aaron Murray threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to senior Rantavious Wooten to cut the deficit to 13 points. In fact Murray would lead his team to three touchdowns in the span of 7:46, the final touchdown giving Georgia their first lead of the game with 1:49 remaining. With 36 seconds remaining and faced with 4th and 18 from the Tiger 26-yard line, Auburn quarterback Nick Marshall, a former defensive back for the Bulldogs during the 2011 season, threw a Hail Mary pass, which was tipped by Georgia safety Josh Harvey-Clemons into the hands of Auburn sophomore wide receiver Ricardo Louis. What has become known as "The Prayer at Jordan–Hare," the play resulted in a game-winning touchdown for the Tigers with 25 seconds to spare. Auburn went on to win the SEC Championship and later barely lost the BCS National Championship in the final seconds to Florida State. This was the first time an SEC team failed to win the BCS Championship game since the 2005 football season.

2014

The Bulldogs avenged their loss from the year before by handily beating the Tigers 34–7 in Athens. Auburn scored first and took a 7–0 lead, but the Bulldogs came back with 34 unanswered points. Bulldogs freshman running back Nick Chubb ran the ball 19 times for 144 yards and 2 touchdowns for the Bulldogs. Georgia outgained the Tigers in total yards 412–292 and Auburn committed 3 turnovers in the game. The loss effectively ended the Tigers' hopes for a second straight National Championship Game appearance. However, the Bulldogs would lose running back Todd Gurley to a knee injury during the game. It was later revealed that he had torn his ACL, ending his season and college career.

2017

The two teams met twice in a single season for the first time in history. The first matchup occurred on November 11 in Georgia's only regular season loss, where the #1 Bulldogs lost 40–17 at #10 Auburn. A rematch took place in the 2017 SEC Championship Game in Atlanta, where #6 Georgia got revenge by beating #2 Auburn 28–7 and winning the SEC championship, securing a College Football Playoff spot in the process.

Family rivalry

Beyond the length of the rivalry, the schools' football histories are quite interconnected, with many individuals having played or coached at both schools.

Georgia's all-time winningest head coach and long-time athletic director, Vince Dooley, earned both his bachelor's and master's degree at Auburn while playing football and subsequently beginning his coaching career under legendary Auburn head coach Shug Jordan. Jordan himself was an assistant football coach and head basketball coach at Georgia before returning to his alma mater.

Former Auburn head coach Pat Dye was a three-year letterman and All-American offensive lineman at Georgia under head coach Wally Butts. About the rivalry, Dye has said, "It's a unique thing. It's like playing against your brother. I don't think anybody who plays in that game can ever forget it. It just doesn't matter much where it's played or what somebody's record is. It's so intense and tough, but at the same time, it's family."

Current Auburn associate head coach and defensive line coach Rodney Garner previously coached at Georgia for fifteen years (1998–2012). Garner and current Georgia offensive line coach Stacy Searels both played at Auburn under Dye. Former Georgia offensive coordinator Neil Callaway was Auburn's offensive line coach for all of Dye's 12 seasons.

Two-time former Auburn defensive coordinator Will Muschamp and offensive line coach Hugh Nall are former Georgia players. Tracy Rocker, a College Football Hall of Fame inductee and two-time All-American at Auburn as a defensive lineman, was a defensive line coach at Georgia from 2014–2017 after holding the same position at Auburn from 2009–2010.

See also

• List of NCAA college football rivalry games
• List of most-played college football series in NCAA Division I