Browns doing their part to mend fences between bitter former rivals

The Cleveland Browns didn't own a first-round pick in this year's NFL Draft due in part to the Deshaun Watson trade. But they had six draft picks to work with and it was up to general manager Andrew Berry to find the best talent possible through the final six rounds of the draft. To start their draft off, the Brown selected Ohio State defensive tackle Michael Hall Jr. Their next pick, which came in the third round, was used on Michigan guard Zak Zinter.

Having a Buckeye and Wolverine on the same team will feel weird for those on either side of that heated college football rivalry. In their final head-to-head matchup this past season, Zinter broke his left tibia and fibula after Hall was accidentally thrown into him, resulting in the guard being carted off the field. Now the two are teammates.

While Hall is a Buckeye and Zinter a Wolverine, the two said that they are now "brothers" as members of Cleveland's NFL team.

"Being my rival throughout my career and finally being teammates here, it's crazy," Zinter said, h/t ESPN's Daniel Oyefusi. "I'm going to be seeing him day in and day out. But we're brothers now and it's all about that."

"[We] were enemies in college, but we're brothers," Hall said. "Now we're brothers and teammates."

Former college rivals Michael Hall Jr. and Zak Zinter are 'brothers now' in Cleveland

Zinter said that the two interacted with one another before the NFL Draft and that he knows that the injury wasn't intentional. Rather, a complete accident. The duo are now teammates, and will likely face off against one another during practices.

Michigan vs. Ohio State is always an anticipated game on the college football calendar. It is called "The Game," after all. It's always on the final week of the regular season, and in the past few years, it determined which team would make it into the Big Ten Championship Game and the College Football Playoff.

This past season's edition saw Michigan pick up the 30-24 win to make it to the Big Ten Championship Game. The Wolverines defeated the Iowa Hawkeyes 26-0 to win the conference title and clinch the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff. Eventually, the Wolverines would stand atop the college football world after they beat the Alabama Crimson Tide 27-20 in overtime in the Rose Bowl and defeated the Washington Huskies 34-13 in the CFP National Championship Game.

Zinter missed out on those three huge games after suffering the aforementioned leg injury. But now, the guard has been cleared to play for the upcoming season. Now, he will be the primary backup behind starting guards Joel Bitonio and Wyatt Teller.

As for Hall, he will be slotted behind Dalvin Tomlinson and Shelby Harris on the defensive tackle depth chart. Through his three seasons, Hall recorded 45 total tackles, 10 tackles for loss, and one fumble recovery.

While the two players were competing against one another in college for bragging rights and the chance to win conference and national titles, they will now be teammates on the Browns, looking to help lead the franchise to their first-ever Super Bowl appearance.