What is the oldest rivalry in SEC football? Exploring Power 5 conference's rich college football rivalry history

The SEC Conference is considered to be the toughest conference of college football. With a rich history of winning 12 of the last 16 national championships and boasting powerhouse teams like Alabama, Georgia, LSU, and others, it is safe to say that the conference harbors some of the top talents in the game.

Ever since the dismantling of the SWC conference, the SEC has built a reputation for itself as the conference with the most top-rated teams in college football. While the SEC is considered to be a Power 5, do you know the oldest rivalry to exist in the conference?

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What is the oldest rivalry in SEC football?

When you talk about the oldest rivalry in SEC football, you think of the rivalry between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Auburn Tigers. These games are also referred to as 'Deep South's Oldest Rivalry', because of their vast and rich background going against each other.

The first meeting between Auburn and Georgia dates back to 1892. That is when the founders of both the football programs, Charles Herty (Georgia) and George Petrie (Auburn) decided to initiate the contest between the two schools. Auburn won the debut game of the series with a 10-0 whitewash of the Bulldogs.

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When the Southeastern Conference was founded in 1932, both Auburn and Georgia joined as the inaugural members of the conference. Then in 1992, the conference was further divided into the East and West Division. Thus, Georgia was placed in the East and Auburn was placed in the West, which led to them facing each other annually as cross-division rivals.

Over the years, the two teams have played each other 128 times. Currently, Georgia leads the series 64-56-8, while Auburn last won the Deep South's Oldest Rivalry back in 2017.

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Who won the last contest between these oldest SEC rivals?

The last time these two teams met each other was in week 5 this season. Georgia won the game 20-27, further extending their lead and putting up a seven-game winning streak against their rivals. The Bulldogs are on a mission to three-peat the national championship this campaign. So far, they are looking strong, being ranked the No.1 team in the AP poll.

On the other hand, Auburn is ranked fifth in the West Division. Last weekend, they went against the LSU Tigers, which they unfortunately lost 48-18 (3-3 overall record). Can they revive their lost glory and put up a challenge for their oldest rivals once again in the near future?