Nebraska State Paper, Grand Island Independent and several other papers are examining the personal relationships that formed decades ago on the fields of Youngstown, Ohio.

Oklahoma Coach Bob Stoops has too much tunnel vision to dwell on the fact that he’s coaching against childhood buddy Bo Pelini when OU takes on Nebraska this Saturday in Norman.

But there was a moment last summer, when Stoops and Pelini were at a coaching clinic in their hometown of Youngstown, Ohio, that he just had to chuckle.

“Bo and I were just hanging out with everybody,” Stoops said in Monday’s Big 12 Teleconference, “and we said, ‘isn’t it ironic two guys from the south side of Youngstown end up coaching, hell, Oklahoma and Nebraska, and the rivalry that it is?’ It’s just unusual.”

I hope what we see this Saturday night is the first of many legendary battles between these storied programs. I love that’s there’s this additional element of two tough kids from Youngstown–long time friends–now leading the respective teams. It’s an additional layer in an already decadent cake.