Teen-agers are sometimes confounding, often astounding. And in many instances, wise beyond their years.
Andy Oates, son of former Orioles and current Texas Rangers manager Johnny Oates, and Shane Beamer, son of Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer, are two examples.
Johnny Oates and Frank Beamer had been classmates at Virginia Tech, but they had lost touch with each other over the years. After Oates got the Orioles job in May 1991, Shane Beamer decided to write to Andy Oates.
"Frank and I had been good friends at Tech, but we had gone our separate ways," said Oates. "Shane and Andy knew we had been classmates, but they had never met.
"Shortly after I got the job with the Orioles, Andy received a letter from Shane telling him how his [Andy's] life would be affected. He shared his experiences of what it was like to be the son of a football coach -- and that Andy would have to get used to 'D hearing and reading things people would say about his father that wouldn't be very pleasant."
At the time, Shane Beamer just had completed eighth grade and Andy Oates was preparing for his sophomore year in high school.
"The letter was something Shane did on his own," said Oates, "and it made an impression on Andy. The two of them exchanged letters, and because of their contact, Frank and I renewed our friendship."
For the next three years, the highlight of the summer for the Beamers were trips to Baltimore to see the Orioles play at Camden Yards. "I can't remember specifically when Johnny and I started communicating again," said Beamer, whose team finished the regular season 8-3 and plays Tennessee in the Gator Bowl on Friday. "It was something that just kind of evolved."
As for the letter that rekindled one friendship and started another, it was a spur-of-the-moment thing. "It was totally Shane's idea," said Beamer. "He's always taken the initiative, and he's good about things like that. He gets that from his mother [Cheryl], not me.
"We [Beamer and Oates] are kind of in the same business. He knew Johnny and I had been classmates, and I think he felt good about sitting down and writing him a letter."
Today, neither of the teen-agers recalls specifics, only the general tone of what they shared. "I had always been an Orioles fan, and I was aware of the situation Andy was in," said Shane, now a senior at Blacksburg High School.
"The Orioles were struggling at the time, and I just remember wanting to do something to help him [Andy] along. I was aware of the Virginia Tech connection between his dad and my dad and that there was a lot of pressure.
"I also figured it wouldn't hurt to get in good with him -- it might help get tickets to see the Orioles," he said with a smile.
Andy, a freshman baseball player at Virginia Tech, said he benefited almost immediately from his new friendship. "I just remember him telling me about things they [the Beamer family] had to go through -- the second-guessing -- with his dad being a head coach," said young Oates.
"I can remember times thinking I was the only one who felt like I did, but once in a while I'd think about what he [Shane] had said in the letter. It was nice to have somebody who knew how I felt."
The impact of that original letter hit home on both sides a few months ago. Beamer was entering the final year of his contract at Virginia Tech and had been promised a five-year extension if the Hokies won six games.
Meanwhile, Oates had another year on his contract, but it hardly provided any security. Then, a week before Oates was fired, Beamer got his extension as an early reward for four straight victories to open the season.
Oates' firing seemed to sting the youngsters more than their fathers. Andy said at first he was angry. "I didn't know what to think, or where that would leave me, whether I'd have to change schools, but I was sure he'd get another job," he said.
"I felt bad for him," Shane said of Oates' firing. "But I had heard a lot, so I guess it really wasn't unexpected. And I knew he had a lot of respect from other people in baseball, so I knew he'd get another job."
On the weekend of Virginia Tech's first game this year, Oates took advantage of the baseball strike to visit Andy on campus. Beamer invited him to talk to the football team.
"I felt a little funny doing that," said Oates.
"It was the night before the first game, and all of my guys knew who he was," said Beamer. "He's a real sincere guy."
It has been more than 25 years since Frank Beamer and Johnny Oates were classmates who became friends. Today, as major college football coach and major-league manager, they share a bond cemented by a pair of teen-agers who took the time and effort to get to know one another.
Shane Turner and Andy Oates are 17 and 18 now. And next year, if Shane (an end and quarterback) decides to try out for his dad's football team, they could be united at Virginia Tech as their fathers were more than 25 years ago.