The age-old rivalry between the Michigan Wolverines and Ohio State Buckeyes is one of the the most fiery and intense in college football and that can sometimes lead to bad blood on and off the field.
When The Cleveland Browns selected Ohio State Michael Hall Jr. in the second round and followed that up with Michigan"s Zak Zinter in the third round, it was unclear what kind of relationship the two players would have on the same team. Hall and Zinter have faced off in the past and the Ohio State defensive end was even involved in an unfortunate injury that saw guard Zinter go down with a season-ending broken tibia and fibula in 2023. The two competitors, however, aren"t holding any grudges.
In a recent piece from ESPN, Zinter discussed being paired up with his rival and his relationship with Hall.
“He"s a great dude, and it"s football. You know, stuff happens when we"re playing in the trenches," said Zinter.
Hall himself played down any talk of a conflict and shared that the two have a strong connection.
[We] were enemies in college, but we"re brothers," Hall said. “Now we"re brothers and teammates."
The Browns finished 11-6 last season but the franchise only have one playoff win since the team was restored in Cleveland in 1999. With Hall and Zinter, they will be hoping to fortify their offensive and defensive lines and make another playoff push in 2024.
