HOUSTON -- They battled fiercely at times, and that, in part, is why they achieved what they did.
Whitney Mercilus and Jeff Allen were two future NFL players who tested themselves against each other while teammates on opposing lines at Illinois.
"Man, they were heated," Mercilus said of their practices against each other. "We got into a couple scuffles. He’d be pulling me by my jersey, I’d be like, ‘Hey bro, chill. I’m coming after you next play.’ So it’d be stupid things like that."
Those battles with Allen on the offensive line and Mercilus on the defensive front drew them closer together, and eventually they became roommates, drawn to each other's intensity.