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    Western Pennsylvania in a passing drought
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    But the sobering reality is that there are only three WPIAL alums among the current NFL quarterbacks: Steelers backup Charlie Batch of Steel Valley, St. Louis starter Marc Bulger of Central Catholic and Oakland backup Bruce Gradkowski of Seton-La Salle. "The only time I think about it is when people bring it up ... To mention me in the same breath as a Dan Marino or Joe Namath is crazy. It's an honor, but I'm like, 'I don't know about that.' When you hear stories about Dan Marino coming out of the city, it gives you that extra hope, that dream that they're from the same area that I am, and if they can make it, I can make it." For now, Western Pennsylvanians have to live with the fact that there are more NFL quarterbacks from the other half of the state with Tennessee's Kerry Collins, Miami's Chad Henne, Atlanta's Matt Ryan and Houston's Matt Schaub than from here. Full Article at Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
    The only time I think about it is when people bring it up ... To mention me in the same breath as a Dan Marino or Joe Namath is crazy. It's an honor, but I'm like, 'I don't know about that.' When you hear stories about Dan Marino coming out of the city, it gives you that extra hope, that dream that they're from the same area that I am, and if they can make it, I can make it.
    – Bruce Gradkowski SOURCE: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review 1 month ago
All quotes from:
Western Pennsylvania in a passing drought
  1. It is the desire to be out there and play the game you love to play and have dreamed about playing since you were a little kid ... Sometimes, you get caught up in the business, but the reality is it's a game that's fun to play.
    – Bruce Gradkowski SOURCE: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review 1 month ago
  2. Twenty years ago, when people ran the Wishbone and the Veer, people didn't spend one percent on pass protection ... Because of the era we're in and the area we're in, we're passing the ball so much more. What happens are guys come into college and the NFL lot more polished than ever before.
    – Gil Brandt SOURCE: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review 1 month ago
  3. To be the quarterback that breaks that shield and plays in the NFL is tough to do ... You have to not only to be super-talented, but you have to have great instincts, a very strong arm and a natural ability to play at that level. They're all lacking one ingredient.
    SOURCE: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review 1 month ago
  4. They think, 'OK, he's from Western Pennsylvania. He's a tough guy. We know what we have when he comes into our program,' ... Ultimately, being from the WPIAL doesn't guarantee playing in the NFL because you still have three or four years before you can get to this level.
    Charlie Batch – Charlie Batch SOURCE: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review 1 month ago
  5. In the NFL, coaches are funny and I was the same way in that you get a comfort zone ... You get a guy who might be in the league 10 years, and he's had some success and knows the offense. You're more apt to rotate players at any other position than quarterback. You're trying to win a Super Bowl.
    Dave Wannstedt – Dave Wannstedt SOURCE: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review 1 month ago
  6. Instead of the 6-foot-3, 200-pound strong-armed kid that would be a 'conventional quarterback,' now high school coaches are taking their best athlete and putting him at quarterback ... They're not being tutored and developed like they were in the past. I talk to NFL scouts all the time, and they're amaz...
    Dave Wannstedt – Dave Wannstedt SOURCE: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review 1 month ago
  7. Everybody wants this big, canon arm, but the kids who throw accurate are the ones who are going to play ... I don't think people work enough on the bottom half of the body. That's where quarterbacks start, with the base. You've got to be in position to throw the football.
    SOURCE: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review 1 month ago

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