Steelers add third MAC QB

Pittsburgh took Bowling Green's Omar Jaacobs in Sunday's fifth round.
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Apparently, the Pittsburgh Steelers can't have enough Mid-American Conference quarterbacks.
After winning the Super Bowl with Ben Roethlisberger (Miami) as their starter and Charlie Batch (Eastern Michigan) as his backup, the Steelers added yet another MAC quarterback Sunday by drafting Omar Jacobs of Bowling Green.
One of the most productive quarterbacks in MAC history -- his 41 touchdown passes in 2004 are a conference record -- Jacobs also was one of the most unorthodox because of his sidearm delivery. Because of questions about his mechanics and the shotgun offense he played in -- he was not asked to throw many deep passes -- Jacobs lasted until the fifth round.
Quarterbacks coach Mark Whipple already knows what his daily meetings are going to be like -- all MAC, all the time.
"Just look at the success that they've had -- [Chad] Pennington was in the playoffs with the Jets," Whipple said of MAC quarterbacks. "Look at Ben's success and Byron [Leftwich] has done well in Jacksonville. Charlie [Frye] started up in Cleveland and had some success. In my room, it's not a problem."
To the 6-foot-4, 233-pound Jacobs, confidence is no problem, either.
Thought he'd go higher
He said he considered Southern Cal's Matt Leinert and himself as the two best college quarterbacks in the country going into last season -- no mention of Vince Young -- and was surprised to have lasted until the second day of the draft. He may go into camp as the No. 3 quarterback, but he said doesn't expect to stay there long.
"I'm going to compete for the job," Jacobs said. "Ben is a great quarterback. If I have to sit for a while ... my time will come. I think I have to be patient to some degree and I want to be patient in Pittsburgh."
Last season, Jacobs threw for 2,591 yards with 26 touchdowns and only seven interceptions, completing 195 of 321 passes.
"This kid put up some amazing statistics in productivity," Steelers director of football operations Kevin Colbert said.
Needed another QB
The Steelers wanted to draft another quarterback because they had only two on their roster after releasing former starter Tommy Maddox. They will add one more before training camp starts in three months.
After going for two wide receivers with kick-returning ability on the first day of the draft in first-round pick Santonio Holmes of Ohio State and third-rounder Willie Reid of Miami, the Steelers used the second day to add depth all around.
They picked up two offensive linemen in Hofstra guard Willie Colon and California center Marvin Philip, a defensive lineman in Miami's Orien Harris, a backup tight end in Purdue's Charles Davis and a power running back in Virginia Tech's Cedric Humes.
Colon and Harris both went on the fourth round despite having college careers that couldn't have been more contrasting.
Division I-AA product
The 320-pound Colon played in relative obscurity at Division I-AA Hofstra, and wasn't invited to any postseason all-star games or the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis. He emerged as a draft prospect only after doing well at some private workouts.
No wonder Colon had to lock himself in the basement to hear reporters' questions amid the din emanating from a raucous party at his home in the Bronx.
"This has been the longest emotional roller coaster ride of my life, especially since I didn't go to the combine and I didn't go to any all-star games," Colon said. "I am a blue collar-type guy and Pittsburgh is a blue collar-type city, so I am ready to go to work."
Harris, however, has been one of college's best known defensive players for several years and is the brother of former 49ers first-round pick, Kwame Harris of Stanford. But Kwame Harris has been an NFL disappointment, and some scouts apparently felt his younger brother should have produced more given his skill level.
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