For the better part of six summers now Cedric Byrd II and Anthony Pandy have relentlessly pushed each other.

In hot sand and pounding surf of Manhattan Beach, Calif., they have implored each other to run faster and stronger.

In the gym at Shift Athletic Performance in Redondo Beach, Calif., they’ve pushed the other to lift more and jump higher in preparation for their seasons.

Come Saturday, push turns to shove.

That’s when the two former Narbonne High (Harbor City, Calif.) teammates, Byrd a 5-foot, 9-inch senior slot receiver for the University of Hawaii, and Pandy, a 6-foot, 1-inch, 229-pound junior linebacker for Arizona, figure to meet on the field as the best of rivals in the season opener for both teams.

Theirs has been a fast friendship forged in the early days of football camp in high school and renewed over summers, holidays and on group chats since then.

After high school Byrd went on to Long Beach Community College and eventually UH while Pandy was recruited to UA, never the twain to meet on the field. Or, so they thought.

When Byrd glanced at the Rainbow Warriors’ 2019 schedule in the offseason, the appearance of Arizona in the season opener came as a surprise. “I guess I was concentrating so much on last season that it wasn’t until after the season was over that I noticed we were going to play Arizona this year,” Byrd said.

That inspired a message to Pandy, “I told him, ‘I cannot wait to play you,’ ” Byrd said.

The feeling, Pandy said, was mutual. Especially since their roles figure to put them in close proximity if not frequent contact with each other on the field. Something that hasn’t happened since practice in high school.

“We don’t talk smack to each other or anything like that,” Pandy said. “It is just positive. We just encourage each other to keep working hard.”

In July, when they last worked out back at home, they began counting down the weeks until the season opener at Aloha Stadium, preparing in earnest. And, perhaps remarkably, still encouraging each other to be at his best for the impending clash.

Byrd said, “He knows what I’m capable of and I know what he can do, so when we work out and we feel like one of us is slacking a little bit we push each other. We talk a lot about our goals and what we want to accomplish. It is all about us seeing each other get better and succeed.”

Pandy said he has told Wildcats teammates that Byrd, UH’s leading returning receiver after 79 catches for 970 yards and nine touchdowns last season, is primed for a breakout year the second time around in the Rainbow Warriors offense.

Byrd said, “People know about their other linebacker (Tony) Fields II. But I told (UH teammates) not to sleep on (Pandy),” who will be alternating with Fields. “It would be a mistake. He’s been working hard and is really gonna have a great season.”

After practice Wednesday Byrd said they might talk when the Wildcats arrive.

Then, it will be radio silence with laser focus on the game. “We can’t wait to get on the field, where the best man comes out,” Byrd said.

“After that, though, it is all love.”

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@staradvertiser.com or 529-4820.