Following in his father's footsteps at Michigan State University is one thing.

But moving into in the same dorm room his dad did three decades ago has been a coincidence like no other for Mike Robell.

The Dearborn Heights freshman has moved into B310 Emmons Hall -- the same room occupied by 50-year-old Rich Robell in 1978. What are the odds? The East Lansing university has about 8,000 rooms.

Rich Robell tells The Detroit News he suspected it was his old room, and the same broken window latch offered some evidence. The proof came from a university archivist, who located a 1978 student directory.

Housing complex manager Tim Knight says it's the first time in his 37-year tenure that he's aware of a parent and child having the same room by chance.