Ben Roethlisberger

Benjamin Todd Roethlisberger Sr. (/ˈrɒθlɪsbɜːrɡər/ ROTH-liss-BUR-gur; born March 2, 1982), nicknamed "Big Ben", is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He played college football for the Miami RedHawks, and was selected by the Steelers in the first round (11th overall) of the 2004 NFL draft.

Roethlisberger earned the AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Award in 2004 and his first Pro Bowl selection in 2007. In 2006, he became the youngest Super Bowl–winning quarterback in NFL history, winning Super Bowl XL 21–10 over the Seattle Seahawks in his second season at the age of 23. Roethlisberger led the Steelers to a second Super Bowl title in four seasons as they defeated the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII, 27–23, after completing a game-winning touchdown pass to Santonio Holmes with 35 seconds left in the game. He appeared in his third Super Bowl in Super Bowl XLV, but the team lost by a score of 31–25 to the Green Bay Packers.

Roethlisberger was one of the most prolific passers in NFL history. Upon retirement, he ranked 5th all-time in NFL career passing yards (64,088), 8th all-time in touchdowns (418), and 5th in completions (5,440) among quarterbacks with a minimum of 1,500 career attempts. He also had the fourth-highest career winning percentage (.710) as a starter in the regular season among quarterbacks with a minimum of 100 starts and was one of six quarterbacks in NFL history to have beaten at least 31 of the current 32 NFL teams.

Known for playing outside the passing pocket in what he calls "backyard football", Roethlisberger grew up idolizing John Elway and has often been compared to him, wearing number 7 in his honor.

Roethlisberger was born in Lima, Ohio, the son of Ida Jane (née Foust) and Kenneth Todd "Ken" Roethlisberger. His father is a former pitcher and quarterback at Georgia Tech. He is of part Swiss descent; his surname, Roethlisberger (Swiss-German spelling: Röthlisberger), is of Swiss origin, with roots in Geissbühl, a farming hamlet in the municipality of Lauperswil, Switzerland. His younger sister, Carlee Roethlisberger, played basketball for the University of Oklahoma.

At Findlay High School in Findlay, Ohio, Roethlisberger was captain of the Trojans' football, basketball, and baseball teams. Roethlisberger did not play quarterback until his senior year, giving way to the coach's son, Ryan Hite. Instead, Roethlisberger played wide receiver. "I'm a nationally known knucklehead in many people's eyes," Hite conceded in a 2004 interview to the Toledo Blade but insisted his decision had not been an act of nepotism, or miscalculation. "We did a bunch of drills and my son throwing to Ben was a better combination," he said.

Ken Roethlisberger, a former Georgia Tech quarterback, never publicly criticized Hite for playing Ryan ahead of his son Ben. He has stated, "It was a coach's call. You make good ones, you make bad ones. And I'm not even saying this was a bad one. We can say it was now, but how do we know for sure?" Ryan Hite went on to Denison University where, as a wide receiver, he set numerous career and single-season records by the time he graduated from college.

Roethlisberger played college quarterback at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. After arriving at Miami in 2000, he was redshirted his first season. In the 2001 season, he made his collegiate debut against Michigan, completing 18 of 35 passes for 193 yards and two touchdowns in the 31–13 loss. Against Akron, he broke the school single-game passing record with 399 passing yards, with 70 of those yards coming on a Hail Mary to Eddie Tillitz to win the game by a score of 30–27 as time expired. When Miami played Bowling Green, he had two touchdowns and 305 passing yards and broke the MAC freshman passing yardage record in the 24–21 victory. Against Hawaii, he broke school records for attempts, completions, and yardage, when he went 40 of 53 for 452 yards and three touchdowns in the 52–51 loss. He finished his first year with the Redhawks with 3,105 passing yards, 241 completions, and 25 touchdown completions while leading them to a 7–5 record.