Ben Roethlisberger is already a living legend for Pittsburgh Steelers fans. The star quarterback was born in Lima, Ohio in 1982. He was a successful high school athlete who played three varsity sports: baseball, basketball and football. He eventually earned a football scholarship to Miami University in Ohio, where he played three seasons as a RedHawk before entering the NFL Draft and being picked up by the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Since entering the NFL, Roethlisberger has had quite the football career. earning several prestigious awards and titles, including AP Offensive Rookie of the Year and several Pro Bowl appearances. "Big Ben" also holds several franchise and league records. He's led the Steelers to the postseason multiple times and won two Super Bowl championships.
Here are five interesting things to know about the Pittsburgh Steelers star quarterback:
1. Unlike a lot of other NFL players, Roethlisberger has remained with the same team that drafted him throughout his entire career — at least thus far. He was drafted during his junior year of college in 2004 by the Steelers as the 11th pick in the first round of the NFL draft. So far, he's taken the Steelers to the Super Bowl three times and won two of them, beating the Seattle Seahawks in 2006 at Super Bowl XL and the Arizona Cardinals in 2009 during Super Bowl XL III.
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2. During only his second season as a professional football player, Roethlisberger became the youngest quarterback in NFL history to win the Super Bowl. He was only 23 years old when the Steelers defeated the Seahawks. He still holds that title.
3. Roethlisberger was a huge John Elway fan growing up and wears a No. 7 jersey in honor of the former Denver Broncos quarterback. Throughout Roethlisberger's career, his playing style has often been compared to Hall of Famer Elway.
4. Roethlisberger was only four courses short of completing his bachelor's degree when he left college for the NFL. He completed his degree in education at the age of 30.
5. The Steel City quarterback is highly involved with giving back to the community, and in a very unique way. The Ben Roethlisberger Foundation raises money to help support police and fire departments around the country that have K-9 units. Foundation grants are distributed throughout the Pittsburgh area as well as other cities where the Steelers play during the regular football season. As an added bonus — to celebrate making it into the postseason — the foundation will donate to anywhere in the U.S. even if the area isn't in an NFL market each year the team makes it to the playoffs. Grants typically help K-9 units purchase dogs, safety vests for the dogs and other important items that a K-9 unit might need.