“Welcome to the #1 Cochran Ben Roethlisberger Show. We are pleased to be joined by the #1 pooch punter, Ben Roethlisberger.” — Vinnie Richichi

Ben was on the air this morning on 93.7 The Fan with Vinnie & Cook for his weekly #1 Cochran Ben Roethlisberger Show – one day early due to the short week!

Ben talks about the punt, his comfort level with Heath Miller, throwing to Antonio Brown, calling the no-huddle plays, watching the Steelers defense in action, Coach Tomlin, “roughing the passer” calls, facing the Ravens in their house on Thanksgiving night and….Thanksgiving at the Roethlisberger house:

His favorite Thanksgiving meal (which they will enjoy on Friday night):

“I’ve already put in my request for this Thanksgiving. I’ve asked for mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, corn, rolls, and lots of desserts….I do mac & cheese.”


Who cooks the turkey?

“My dad usually does. We leave that to him! I usually watch the games and when I smell that turkey, just go munch and nibble and wait for the desserts. Desserts are my favorite, I have a sweet tooth!”


What are you thankful for?

“What’s not to be thankful for? Family, friends, this great country we live in. I mean, we get to talk on the radio freely, we get to play a great game. I’m thankful for all the troops that protect us both here and abroad. I’m thankful to be a Pittsburgh Steeler, I’m thankful for the fans, and just the great blessings that the good Lord has given me!”


You can read or listen to more here (podcast can be found at the bottom of the page).


As always, thank you to 93.7 The Fan, Vinnie Richichi, Ron Cook and #1 Cochran!

Before the month ends, we wanted to share some of the great photos shared by the best fans in sports, Steeler Nation! This month, it’s all about that Black & Gold pride!


We start with a very proud grandpa:


“I’m raising her right, Ben! I’m John Wright and the little one is my granddaughter, Adrian Gwinn!”



A very proud uncle:


Corey Podein and his nephew, Nolan, always dress in their Steelers finest before every game! “He is awesome!”, says Corey of his little cheering partner!



And siblings proud to be part of yesterday’s win!


That’s Taylor, Stephen & Stephanie Moore bundled up at the Steelers vs Browns game with their friend Nathan Sanford, the masked man.

“Being a Steelers fan is the best cause no matter what”, says Taylor Moore. “We stick together through thick and thin! For my brother, Stephen, the best thing was meeting Ben!”



Now don’t leave yet – we have more photos to share! There’s the proud dad who sent in a photo of his son’s class art project; Then there’s the Big fans, a couple of awesome Steelers Man Caves, and a Steelers Lady Cave which are all right here!

We have lots of new and adorable Lil’ Fans, as well as a new addition to the Lil’ Teammates album.

You can check out the latest Birthday Wishes winners here.

Of course, there’s always a Steelers pet or two to show off…and a….uh…well, we also have a black & gold chicken! Yes, a Steelers chicken! You saw it here folks!

That’s 30 photos in all (it’s been a busy month)!

*Thank you to everyone who took the time to share them with us.

“I’m not looking around. It’s all about focus. This game is over now. That’s all we can control.” — Ben, on post-season speculation.

From Will Graves, AP:

“Ben Roethlisberger leads Steelers past Browns, into playoff picture”

Their horrendous start has long been forgotten, erased with an equally unexpected turnaround.

The Steelers are in contention, right back where they belong. The playoffs are possible.

Ben Roethlisberger threw touchdown passes to Antonio Brown and Emmanuel Sanders and beat Cleveland for the 16th time as Pittsburgh, which opened the season with four straight losses, pushed deeper into the postseason picture with a 27-11 win over the Browns on Sunday.

The Steelers (5-6) have climbed back with a one-game-at-a-time philosophy that they’re not about to abandon.

Roethlisberger connected on a 41-yard TD pass to Brown in the first half, and hit Sanders on a 4-yarder in the third quarter for the Steelers, who only have a few days to get ready for a Thanksgiving game at Baltimore — a matchup that didn’t look as if it would be very meaningful a few weeks back.

Roethlisberger finished 22 of 34 for 217 yards and improved to 16-1 against the Browns (4-7), who have lost five of six and seen a promising season turn into yet another miserable one.

An Ohio native, Roethlisberger relishes beating a team from his home state.

“It’s homecoming, you know, a home game,” he said. “So it does feel good.”


You can read more from Mr. Graves post-game report here.

“Everybody was saying they aren’t the same Pittsburgh. But at the end of the day they did what they do best.” — Willis McGahee, from the column below.

From Bud Shaw, Cleveland Plain Dealer:

“Cleveland Browns are Ben Roethlisberger’s patsies once again”

As part of his ownership stake in the Browns, Ben Roethlisberger might be tempted to pitch city council today on the deal to renovate his personal lakefront playground.

Who has more fun in this place? (Not you or me, certainly).

Who feels more at home? (Not any of the 117 or so quarterbacks who’ve started games for the Browns during Roethlisberger’s career)

If the first 15 times didn’t convince you, the 16th should. That’s Roethlisberger’s record against the Browns now: 16-1. Which is only ridiculous.

Even with the mental agility of a sports writer, it’s easy […]

“When Ben came over and met her, it was the most awesome thing I ever saw.” — Michelle Converse.

From Teresa Varley, Steelers.com:

When Steelers practice ended and Ben Roethlisberger walked over to 15-year old Jessica Converse, you could just feel the excitement.

Because for Converse, the wish she made almost a year ago, was coming true. And her smile was as bright as can be.

Converse is visually and hearing impaired, considered legally blind and deaf, and also suffers from an enlarged heart, high blood pressure and is diabetic.

She was the Steelers guest at practice through the Make-A-Wish Foundation, meeting Roethlisberger and his teammates.

“I am just so glad she was able to get her wish with all of the different problems she has,” said her mother, Michelle Converse. “She has been waiting for this and it was so overwhelming and exciting for all of us. When Ben came over and met her, it was the most awesome thing I ever saw. I got overwhelmed when they all came up around her.”


You can see more photos here!


*Thank you to Ms. Varley and the Steelers!

Balloons, cake, ice cream and presents…a little fella could get used to this kind of celebration every year!


“I’m so excited for my very first birthday party that I asked mommy if I could greet my guests as they drive up to the house! I can’t wait til’ they get here so we can start having fun! Hurry up everybody!!”

Little man, I want to wish you a happy first birthday. You have been such a blessing and it’s been so much fun watching you grow and change every day. I’m looking forward to every day with you and that smile! I can’t wait to do more and more daddy-son things. Love you buddy! — Happy Birthday, Dad.

It has been a joy to watch you grow over your first year. Thank you for the many smiles you bring us everyday. You are a perfect little boy, a true blessing in our lives. I love you, monster! — Mommy.

Today, Ben announced that his Foundation, in association with The Giving Back Fund, will be distributing a grant to the Euclid Police Department in honor of the Steelers upcoming game against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, November 24th.

The department will apply the grant funds to the purchase and training of a new dog to replace recently retired K-9 Max (photo at left). Funds will also be used to purchase a ballistic vest for the new K-9.

Euclid Chief of Police Thomas Brickman said, “On behalf of the Euclid Police Department, we would like to extend our deepest gratitude to the Ben Roethlisberger Foundation for the K-9 Grant that has been awarded to our community. Like many other U.S. cities, the City of Euclid has its financial challenges. With the impending retirement of K-9 Max due to health reasons, we thought our only option would be to reduce our K-9 unit strength to two working dogs. With the assistance of the Foundation, we will now be able to keep three working dogs in service. ”

This marks the seventh season that the Ben Roethlisberger Foundation has distributed grants to K-9 units. The mission of the Ben Roethlisberger Foundation is to support K-9 units of police and fire departments throughout the United States with a particular emphasis on support for service dogs in Pittsburgh, PA. Roethlisberger and the Foundation also strive to support Make-A-Wish.

The Foundation distributed more than $135,000 in grants to K-9 units around the country during the 2012 NFL season and has distributed in excess of $1 million since 2007.


You can learn more about Ben’s foundation here.


*Photo: Euclid Police Department’s Community Policing Facebook page.