ATHENS — Steve Sarkisian has been here before — in the SEC Championship, and coaching in Mercedes-Benz Stadium — albeit, not in the role he currently holds.

Sarkisian, a 50-year-old rising star in the collegiate coaching ranks, has “Texas back,” poised to win the SEC Championship Game in the program’s first season in the league.

The Longhorns’ appearance in the 4 p.m. Saturday (TV: ABC) game against Georgia in Mercedes-Benz Stadium is certainly noted in the Lone Star State.

Perhaps most importantly, recruits on the talent-rich trails of Texas high school football will take note how the Longhorns reached the SEC title in expedient fashion even as their chief rival, Texas A&M, has not in its 13 years in the league.

Never mind that the Aggies had an Alabama-sized roadblock in the form of seven-time national champion Nick Saban, who occupied the same now-defunct West Division.”

Sarkisian, himself, was part of the 2020 Saban Tide that won the SEC Championship Game en route to the national title in the Covid-affected season of 2020, calling the plays for an Alabama team that featured three Heisman Trophy finalists in the forms of Mac Jones, Najee Harris and trophy winner DeVonta Smith.

That 2020 Sarkisian offense lit up a Kirby Smart defense that started 10 NFL draft picks, including five future first-rounders, to the tune of 564 yards — including 417 through the air against a Georgia secondary with three future NFL starters in a 41-24 win in Tuscaloosa.

Sarkisian was was hired to take over the Texas program the next season, and it has been “All Gas, No Brakes” for the Longhorns since then,

with Arch Manning ready to take over the offense for a capable but fading senior Quinn Ewers at quarterback.

So now here comes Georgia, the team that came into Austin and spoiled the party for a then-No. 1-ranked and undefeated Texas team with a 30-15 shellacking that wasn’t as close as the final score indicated.

Sarkisian said he’ll lean more on the Mercedes-Benz experiences he gained as the Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator in 2017 and 2018 when preparing for the rematch.

“One thing that I’ve tried to lean into here today, as we’re in the preliminary stages of it all, I kind of take myself back to the NFL,” Sarkisian said. “You get in you division there, you play teams multiple times a year.

“Then, over time, a couple years go by, you start playing them four times in two years. If it’s the playoffs, five times in two years.”

It’s worth noting Sarkisian was a successful coordinator with the Falcons, helping the team to a 10-6 record and NFL playoff appearance in 2017 — the franchises most recent — before an injury-riddled 2018 season derailed head coach Dan Quinn’s team.

The 2017 Falcons finished eighth in the NFL with 364.8 yards per game of offense, with then-quarterback Matt Ryan sixth in passing with 4,095 yards passing -- one spot ahead of current Atlanta QB Kirk Cousins (4,093), who was then with the Washington Commanders.

Sarkisian, now on his third college football head coaching job after stints at Washington (2000-13, 34-29) and USC (2014-15, 12-6), is a 2 1/2-point favorite to finally capture a conference crown if his plan to win a rematch goes as planned.

“You try to A, do the things that you do well, B, you try to take in the information that maybe you can gather from seeing them in person as opposed to what it looks like on tape,” Sarkisian said.

“Then, it’s making sure that you have an idea of some of your own tendencies, that you’re able to break some of those things.”

Texas-Georgia SEC Offensive ranks

Scoring offense: Texas 4th (34.8 ppg); Georgia 5th (34.1 peg)

Total offense: Texas 4th (450.1 ypg); Georgia 7th (425.2 ypg)

Passing offense: Georgia 2nd (297.0 ypg); Texas 3rd (274.6 ypg)

Rushing offense: Texas 7th (175.5 ypg); Georgia 15th (128.2 ypg)

Third-down: Texas 6th (.449); Georgia 11th (.416)

Sacks allowed: Georgia 3rd (1.5 per game); Texas 6th (1.83 per game);

Fumbles lost:  Georgia 2nd (4); Texas 12th (10)

Passes intercepted: Texas 8th (9); Georgia 13th (12)

RedZone Offense: Georgia 1st (.926, 40 TD, 10 FG); Texas 10th (.821, 39 TD, 7 FG)