Fun piece from long-time L.A. Times sports writer Sam Farmer on the Steelers Friday night practice:

Pittsburgh Steelers camp had a county fair feel to it Friday night, and it wasn’t just because of the country band or the fireworks.

Ben Roethlisberger and the rest of the quarterbacks stuck around for an impromptu competition to test their throwing accuracy.

The targets were tall gray “buckets” — two large trash barrels stacked on each other — and the object was to land footballs in them. Participants got one point for hitting a bucket, two points for hitting the rim, and three points for sinking a shot. The buckets were placed at various distances to simulate different throws.

Tied with reserve quarterback John Parker Wilson at 11 points each, Roethlisberger — who hadn’t connected with a three-point throw to that point — won with a surgical strike that plunked into the bucket. He smiled, pumped his fist, and sauntered off the field.

“That’s him,” offensive coordinator Todd Haley said. “Ben finds a way to win, no matter what it is.”


You can read more from Mr. Farmer’s column here.

From Nick Kratsas, KDKA Morning News today:

What scares Ben Roethlisberger more than a 300 pound lineman?

How about a dirty diaper.

KDKA-AM’s Larry and John caught up with Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger at training camp, and he talked about being a father.

“It’s truly amazing how fast they grow up and how much they change every single day, especially here at camp where I’ve seen him twice in a matter of ten days,” says Roethlisberger.

“It’s just crazy how after practice the other day he was at the end of the field and he gets a big smile on his face when he sees me. It just warms your heart, everyone that’s a father out there knows that there is a special love for, not just your child, but for a son.”

And what about those diapers?

“I’ve changed my share of diapers and have had my fair share of messes on me so I have no problem with that,” says Roethlisberger.

For Roethlisberger, camp is a chance to get in season shape and assess the talent he has at his disposal.

“It’s nice to come out here and get some pads on, see some hits, and see what the young guys can take.” says Roethlisberger. “I’m seeing these young guys do some really neat things.”


You can listen to Ben’s full interview here.

You can see a collection of Ben’s family photos in his album here.


*What’s D.A.D.D.? Dads Against Dirty Diapers!

…to the WDVE Morning Show and catch Ben’s interview!



Ben on the set today with the DVE Morning Crew for an interview that will air on Friday morning!


The hosts of the popular radio show have been at Steelers training camp this week, interviewing Big Ben, Brett Keisel, Ike Taylor, Emmanuel Sanders, and Jarvis Jones about the upcoming season…along with the craziness that is the DVE Morning Show – including Ben interviewing Randy Baumann in the role of “Ben” and as himself.


Friday Update: If you were unable to tune in, you can check out the podcast of Ben’s crazy-funny interview here!


*Thank you to Mr. Lauten, Steelers, for the photo!

From Steelers.com this evening:

The Steelers annual Friday Night Lights practice scheduled for Friday, August 2, at Latrobe Memorial Stadium will be moved to Saint Vincent College, the team announced today. The event will be FREE to the public.

“Unfortunately, the grass surface at Latrobe Memorial Stadium suffered an unexpected disease and we do not want to jeopardize the surface for the 2013 Latrobe High School games,” Steelers General Manager Kevin Colbert said. “We still want to provide the great Steelers fans of Westmoreland County the opportunity to still enjoy our team practice as well as enjoy the many fan-friendly activities that go along with our annual night practice, but we felt it was better to move the event to campus for this year. We look forward to returning to Latrobe Memorial Stadium next year.”


You can read a list of the activities for the “Friday Night Lights” practice here.

Bianca Wellen, just 5-years old, waited patiently yesterday for training camp to finish for the day…then waited even more patiently for her favorite player, Big Ben, to make his way to where she was standing at the fence line in hopes of getting her #7 jersey signed….

Her patience paid off! Check out that smile!


“A huge ‘Thank You’ to Ben. After practice today and having his knee wrapped, Ben spent nearly 30-minutes signing autographs for fans. Bianca has waited 5 years for this moment (her whole life). It finally occurred, and she was ecstatic. Here is a picture of her with her signed jersey. Ben was courteous and was talking with fans, and having a good time regardless of how his knee felt. Thanks again Ben.” — The Wellen Family


Bianca’s big sister Madisyne had fun at camp yesterday too. She wanted her photo taken while wearing Ben’s shoulder pads and jersey at the Steelers Experience display.



And speaking of Lil’ Fans…

A BIG Steeler Nation welcome to the newest Steeler fan, Lance Jacob Bruban, Jr.! Baby Lance was born today at 4:53PM! We received his photo at 7:29PM!


Also, thank you to Chad Pointer, Billie Jo Yakubik and Nicole Viglianco for sending in their photos from training camp! You can view the latest here.