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Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn on the sidelines in the second half against Clemson Saturday, Sept. 3, 2016, during an NCAA football game at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Ala. (Julie Bennett/jbennett@al.com)

(JULIE BENNETT)

When Gus Malzahn takes the field at Jordan-Hare Stadium on Saturday evening, he'll see some familiar faces on the visitor sideline.

Malzahn, who spent one year as the Arkansas State head coach in 2012, will be squaring off against several players on the Red Wolves' roster who he either signed to Arkansas State as part of the 2012 class or recruited as part of the 2013 class but never coached before he took the head job at Auburn.

"They still have a few of the players we recruited there that are seniors and outstanding football players," Malzahn said Wednesday.

In all, Arkansas State has 12 players who were recruited or signed by Malzahn: offensive lineman Jemar Clark, Colton Jackson, Devin Mondie and Austin Moreton, linebackers Quanterio Heath and Xavier Woodson-Luster, cornerback Chris Humes, safety Mark Johnson, wide receivers Jonah Hill and Dijon Paschal, tight end Warren Leapheart and defensive end Darrius Rosser.

Eight of those players were members of Malzahn's sole signing class in Jonesboro, Arkansas in February 2012, when the Red Wolves inked 30 players to National Letters of Intent. Among those were the four offensive linemen, Rosser, Leapheart, Heath and Humes as Malzahn's only signing class ranked 63rd nationally in the 247Sports Composite team rankings.

"We were very excited about that class," Malzahn said. "What I remember was not only good football players, but good people, good families. It doesn't surprise me at all that a lot of those guys have had very good careers. Of course, they've won a lot of championships while they were there and they know how to win and they're very good football players."

Of those eight members of the 2012 class, six are listed as starters for the Red Wolves, including all four offensive linemen: Clark (6-foot-6, 307 pounds) at left tackle, Jackson (6-foot-4, 300 pounds) at left guard, Mondie (6-foot-5, 302 pounds) at center and Moreton (6-foot-1, 314 pounds) at right guard.

Clark was rated as a three-star prospect in the 247Sports Composite, while the other three linemen were regarded as two-star recruits.

"When we signed that offensive line class, we thought it was very, very strong and thought that was the future, so it doesn't surprise me at all that they're playing well," Malzahn said. "They're all very good football players. They're physical, they're smart. They have a lot of experience."

The Red Wolves also have two defensive starters signed by Malzahn in 2012: Heath and Humes. Heath is listed on the Arkansas State depth chart as the team's starter at Mike linebacker, while Humes is the starting cornerback opposite Blaise Taylor -- a one-time Auburn target during the 2014 recruiting cycle.

Hill, Johnson, Woodson-Luster and Paschal, meanwhile, all committed to Arkansas State's 2013 recruiting class in 2012 before Malzahn accepted the head coaching gig at Auburn. Woodson-Luster is the team's starting Will linebacker and led the Red Wolves with 14 total tackles in Week 1 against Toledo, while Paschal is one of the two starting wide receivers but did not register a catch last week. Johnson saw the field against Toledo but did not register a tackle, while Hill did not play in the opener.

"We thought they were going to be good players, and it looks like they've had a pretty good career so far," said offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee, who was on Malzahn's staff at Arkansas State and helped him recruit all of those players to Jonesboro. "Unfortunately, we've got to play them."