When he goes back home to Prospect Park, Rutgers safety Kiy Hester sleeps in a room half-filled with Nebraska keepsakes.
When Nebraska linebacker Quayshon Alexander visits his mother's house, he sleeps in a room that is half an homage to Rutgers.
It's the same room. They share it ... as brothers in big families often do.
"It was mostly like having a constant sleepover with my best friend," Alexander told NJ Advance Media. "We'd talk a lot. He's always giving me his opinion, which is good because he's older than me and a little wiser than me. It was always fun to hear what he had to say, even if I didn't like it."
After years spent as teammates on youth teams and at DePaul Catholic High School, Hester and Alexander -- who have the same mother -- will be on opposite sidelines for the first time Saturday when Rutgers visits Nebraska.
"We went from playing with each other," Hester said, "to playing against each other."
Rutgers and Nebraska both have white and red color schemes, but that hasn't stopped Carla Alexander from getting creative for the family reunion.
"My mom is flying out," Hester said. "She's getting a half white and half red shirt with our names on it. My aunt is doing the same. It's going to be a great experience seeing my brother."
It also will be the culmination of weeks of private trash talk, which gained steam in recent days. Hester notched an interception last week that would have resulted in a touchdown if not for a teammate's illegal block penalty.
"He was saying it even during camp: 'I'm working on this special teams. I hope I see you. I'm going to smack you,'" Hester said. "He texted me after the game ... like, 'I saw your pick. You're not going to do that to us.'"
But, as Alexander tells it, Hester is the bigger trash talker of the two brothers, who are the youngest of six siblings. Hester has the same reputation with his Rutgers teammates.
"This is the first time, and it's really a dream," Alexander said of playing against each other. "I don't think we ever thought this would happen."
The brothers will meet up on the field after the game and maybe Friday night with other family in the hotel lobby, but Hester is approaching the road game as a "business trip." Both teams are 1-2 and fighting to salvage their seasons.
They talk football most weekends, but not Xs and Os. Inside secrets are off limits.
"We can't really say too much," Hester said, "but he'll say, 'I saw your plays.' Things like that. We just talk overall. When he told me he wasn't going to be traveling (to road games) because he is still rehabbing, I was like, 'Alright, don't let it get to you.'"
Wise older brother
When they weren't playing sports -- both were basketball stars before college -- Hester and Alexander played video games like Madden football and "just hung out like brothers do."
Hester used his age to his advantage on the court, the field and the television screen.
"Back when I was younger, he knew all the (Madden) defenses," Alexander said through a laugh. "I was a little kid. I couldn't really get the ball to my receivers."
Years later, Hester's job still is to prevent the ball from getting to open receivers. The redshirt junior is a third-year starter whose versatility and leadership is a tone-setter for a pass defense that arguably is Rutgers' biggest strength.
"He brings a lot of confidence, poise and game experience to the group," coach Chris Ash said. "He seems to be steady every game, and I like that about Kiy."
So why isn't Alexander one of the pass-rushers helping Hester's cause at Rutgers? Alexander was a three-star recruit who committed to Nebraska in July 2015 and signed seven months later after taking an official visit to Rutgers.
Ash was hired in December 2015.
"I did a lot (of recruiting), but it was kind of hard with the whole staff change," Hester said. "Coach Ash came in a little late and my brother already had a great relationship with the staff at Nebraska. I was happy with his decision. I was happy he went in the Big Ten."
Hester, a four-star recruit in the class of 2014, originally tried the out-of-state route, but he transferred to Rutgers after just a few homesick weeks at Miami.
"He was one of the biggest reasons for me being as successful as I was," Alexander said. "Mostly because when you have an older brother to look up to, you can feed off their energy and know what level you have to play at and perform at to get recruited and be one of the top guys in your class.
"I was able to mimic him and his movements and how hard he worked. It just happened to work out for me as well."
Alexander still is awaiting his Nebraska debut. He redshirted last season and was injured this preseason as he was practicing for a special teams role.
If being sidelined takes some luster off the matchup, he doesn't see it.
"It's definitely tough," Alexander said. "I'd love to be out there taking snaps. Either way, to me, it's a blessing. Nothing can deter my mood. Just seeing family and seeing my brother ball out is all I want. We get to all be happy."
School pride
Hester wears his Rutgers pride on his right forearm, where he has an elaborate tattoo of a scarlet-colored block 'R' and his No. 2.
It has Alexander thinking about stepping up his game.
"My mom said I couldn't get one until I got to college, so I just started looking at some different tattoo artists to ink me up," Alexander said. "The funny thing is I was thinking about getting a big 'N' tattoo so when we come home for family dinners we can always stare at that. We need to win this weekend so I can brag a little bit more than he can."
Though Rutgers and Nebraska are in opposite divisions within the Big Ten, this is the third time the schools have met in the past four seasons. They don't play again until 2020.
"When we played them my redshirt freshman year, he was talking smack to me about us losing to them," Hester said. "There are definitely bragging rights now when we go home in the summer. Hopefully we get the win and I can talk smack to him."
For their mother, the game might pull her in two directions, but the weekend will be special.
"It's a win-win for her," Alexander said. "She gets to see both her kids. As much as we love football, we also love each other and we realize family is everything. This is a great way for our family to come back together."
It has made Alexander into a Rutgers fan all weekends except this one.
"That's just something I really can't help," he said. "It's almost innate. You want to cheer for your family. This week is a little bit different. I've never had this happen. It's a little weird."
So does the winner get extra space in their shared room?
No. Between the letters of recruitment from Nebraska that Alexander says "kept my mind on straight" and Hester's Rutgers collection is a football common ground.
"Steelers stuff in the middle," Hester said.
Ryan Dunleavy may be reached at rdunleavy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @rydunleavy. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.