ATHENS — Clemson coach Dabo Swinney says it will be “big boy football right out of the gate” when Tigers play the Georgia Bulldogs.

“When I got the job in 08 or 09, people were talking about playing Georgia in 2013,” Swinney said. “I don’t even know if I’ll be the head coach or alive in 2013, I’ m just trying to survive 09 and people are asking me about playing Georgia in 2013.

“It’s what makes college football fun, is rivalries like this.”

The No. 3-ranked Tigers play the No. 5-ranked Bulldogs at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C.

Georgia’s injuries have been well-documented. Coach Kirby Smart’s team expected to be without at least four projected starters, and center Warren Ericson has had a cast on the hand he snaps with in fall camp.

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Swinney said every team will have issues, including his Tigers, who are unsettled at center.

“We definitely could play multiple centers during the game (and) probably will have to,” Swinney said. “But good news is, I think we have multiple guys that could go in there and play.”

The bad news for Clemson is, Georgia has two of the top defensive tackles in the nation lining up over center in Jordan Davis and Devonte Wyatt.

The Tigers, likewise, have a ferocious front with three of their four down lineman selected first-team All-ACC. It will be a challenge for whichever player lines up at center for Georgia, but Smart shrugged off any added complications.

“I don’t think it’s a big burden, most people’s centers make those calls and the quarterback has the ability to override or change things,” Smart said on Wednesday. “It would be tough if you have a completely new center ‚or if you took a guard who hadn’t made those calls and made him the center.

“But we have two guys that, that’s what they have done for an entire year, they both worked at center a lot last year.”

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Second-year lineman Sedrick Van Pran, the top-rated center in the 2020 signing class, is expected to start for the Bulldogs and veteran Jamaree Salyer has also taken snaps there.

Both teams are also thin in parts of the secondary, with Georgia missing projected starter Tykee Smith at “star” and in reload mode with seven defensive backs gone from last season’s team.

There are questions if Clemson cornerback Fred Davis, who faced charges of reckless driving after a scary wreck, will play or be limited in the game. Swinney said earlier this month that Davis would face “a lot of consequences” for his costly mistake.

But on Tuesday, when asked directly about Davis, Swinney stated that “everybody is available,” and indication Davis will play in the game.

This, despite Swinney talking up Clemson’s great experience and depth in all position groups.

“We actually have 70 of 135 on the team that are third, fourth, fifth or sixth year players,” Swinney said. “And then 65 first and second-year players. It’s one of the older teams we’ve had, and so that’s exciting.

“This is a big boy football game right out of the gate and it’s fun. I’m proud of what they’ve done in camp, I like what we can turn out to be, but we’ve got to go play.”