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They lived around the corner from each other, and they were always the two tallest kids in their schools.

The only thing keeping Utah's Travis Wilson and Stanford's Kyle Murphy from spending even more time together was Murphy's burly build.

Until sixth grade, the Cardinal right tackle — now listed at 6-foot-7, 298 — was too big for little league football. Then, as a high school sophomore, he became too big, practically speaking, for volleyball.

But that leaves the pair more seasons spent together than you can count on one hand, culminating in a state football title bid at Orange County's San Clemente High in 2011.

"They're kind of one and the same," said San Clemente head coach Jaime Ortiz. "They were both very stoic guys. Not a lot of peripheral. They were very serious, very goal-oriented type of players."

Three years after leaving San Clemente, Wilson is an experienced starting quarterback for the Utes, and Murphy starts on the Cardinal offensive line.

Murphy recalls Wilson not only as a youth quarterback but as a mean middle linebacker — "I'm sure you know, Travis is a real physical dude" — and as an excellent middle blocker.

Beach volleyball is popular in the area, Murphy said, and he and the 6-foot-7 Wilson played indoors in high school as freshmen and sophomore. Which is to say, until Murphy started to push 280 pounds.

"He was just so explosive and was able to get off the ground," Murphy said of Wilson. "It was always real fun watching him play."

Both were younger brothers of former San Clemente football players, and so their families were "entrenched" in the program, Ortiz said. (Kyle's older brother, Kevin, now plays for the Minnesota Vikings.) And both caught the attention of college recruiters during their tenure as Tritons.

While Wilson was one of the nation's elite prep quarterbacks and Murphy was a five-star lineman, the two often talked college — although Wilson's early commitment made their experiences somewhat dissimilar. Murphy was so sought-after, Ortiz said, that the coach sometimes turned his phone off to shut out all the recruiters and reporters looking for an edge.

The Utes also offered Murphy, and Wilson freelanced as an agent on their behalf.

"I did try, but he had his mind set," Wilson said. "I think it's worked out great for him, and he's going to get a great education there, so I'm really happy for him."

Their senior year, playing with Oregon State offensive lineman Sean Harlow, USC wideout Christian Tober, and Nick Pasquale, a walk-on at UCLA who died after being hit by a car in September of last year, the Tritons went 12-2 and finished as the No. 17-ranked team in the nation.

It was a special season, Murphy said. Their schedules often conflict, but they try to meet up whenever possible, he said.

"Those guys will be my friends, my brothers, for the rest of my life."

— Matthew Piper

Twitter: @matthew_piper