News

July 4, 2008

HAPPY JULY 4TH!!

The Brett Keisel fan site wishes everyone a happy and safe holiday weekend!

Training camp is just around the corner, so be sure to stop back to check out the latest pictures & updates from camp!

Also...

I have moved some of the previous news stories to the archives page.

You can find the archives page link at the bottom of this page, or just click here.

June 29, 2008

Announcing the newest Steelers rookie.....

AKEEM HAVENS!!!

ESPN aired their first My Wish segment for 2008 today.

Akeem's story is in both the May 29 and June 26 news.

I have included screen captures of Brett meeting Havens, and of Brett and the Steelers defense attempting to stop Havens from scoring his first TD.

The defense tried their best, but were unsuccessful, as Havens scored.

This will be the only time Coach LeBeau is ok with his defense allowing a TD!

To view the pictures of Brett with Akeem, click here.

Then click on the My Wish 2008 gallery.

To read more, and to watch a video of the My Wish segment, visit ESPN.

The smiles on Akeems's and his families faces conveyed how special this day was for them. The Steelers organization gives us yet another reason to be proud Pittsburgh fans!

I want to say a special thanks to Erin, at Big Ben News, for doing the screen caps for me! Visit her site to view pictures of Akeem with Ben Roethlisberger!

June 26, 2008

Must-See TV

From Scott Brown's column, View from the Press Box:

Steelers fans (or even just jaded sports fans) should do themselves a favor and watch SportsCenter on ESPN this Sunday at 11 a.m.

ESPN is airing the first segment in its latest “My Wish” series, and Sunday it will feature 14-year-old Akeem Havens, who spent a day with the Steelers last month.

Havens is a quadriplegic, and the Flowery Branch, Ga., resident got about as raw a deal as life can deliver. He was in a car accident when he was 7 or 8 years old and even though he had been wearing a seat belt Havens still ended up in a wheelchair for the rest of his life.

Somewhere along the way Ben Roethlisberger became his favorite athlete and Havens got more than he could have dreamed for when he requested, through Make-A-Wish Foundation, a chance to play video games with the Steelers quarterback.

Roethlisberger and his teammates treated Havens as if he were one of them for a day -- the Steelers even staged a press conference to announce his signing to the team -- and I can only imagine what a thrill it was for Havens to experience something like that.

Reporters here that day weren’t privy to everything Havens did with the Steelers, but I’m sure ESPN will do a good job of taking viewers through the day that Havens will never forget as well as capturing how much it meant to him and his family.

Programming note: The date for the airing is listed as June 29th, but the times vary. ESPN is reporting that the segment will air at 6:00p.m.-but other places are saying it will air in the morning. The only consistent news is that the segment will air June 29th!

I posted an article about Akeem's day with the Steelers (located below in May 29 news), along with a picture of Brett and Havens.

June 24, 2008

The end of the OTA pictures.....

I added the last of the Offseason conditioning/OTA pictures today.

Don't worry.. training camp will be here soon-ending the photo drought!

To view the new pictures, click here.

Then click on the Offseason Conditioning 2008 album.

Enjoy!

June 17, 2008

Keisel wants more sacks in 2008

In an interview with Pro Football Weekly, Keisel said he would like to improve on his sack total from last season.

Steelers DRE Brett Keisel knows that defensive linemen in the Pittsburgh defensive scheme aren’t judged solely on their statistics.

“All of us know our defense is not made for us to make a lot of plays,” Keisel told PFW.

[DL coach John Mitchell] tells us, ‘I don’t care if you don’t make one play. Do your job.’ ”

All the same, Keisel wants to improve upon the two sacks he posted a season ago.

“I got close a lot last year,” he said. “I want to finish those plays.”

Keisel, 29, enters his third year as a starter after four seasons as a reserve.

Picking up Dick LeBeau’s defense, he said, is easier said than done, noting that he's seeing some of the Steelers' young defensive linemen having to work hard to pick up the scheme.

“His defense is awesome,” Keisel said, “but it can be complex. It took me about three years (to get comfortable).”

As a whole, the defense is looking to bounce back after struggling somewhat in the final weeks of the ’07 season. “We’ve learned from it,” Keisel said.

Also...

Brett talks about Aaron Smith's progress after his season-ending injury last year.

The article is in the Team News.

And...

I have added a few more pictures from the Hines Ward celebrity softball game Brett played in recently.

They can be seen in the Hines Ward celebrity softball game album.

June 15, 2008

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!

I hope everyone has a wonderful Father's Day!

Enjoy the day!

Also...

The Steelers finished up their last OTA this week. They will resume practice at training camp. Players report July 27.

To view training camp dates, click here.

For detailed training camp info, click here.

The latest OTA pictures of Brett can be seen in the Offseason Conditioning 2008 album.

June 10, 2008

The Steelers show off their bowling skills

Coach Tomlin decided to hold practice "off" the field on Tuesday.

The coaches, players, and Steelers personnel, hit the bowling lanes instead of the practice field.

The group showcased their bowling skills, and enjoyed a buffet lunch.

Evidently, the guys are just as competitive bowling as they are playing football!

They all looked determined to win as they took to the lanes.

Punter Danny Sepulveda had the best score, a 237, which was a big improvement from last year.

Danny admitted he was a bit upset with his poor score the year before, so he's been practicing so he could beat out this teammates. He even carries his own bowling ball and shoes with him!

To view a slideshow of the team bowling, click here.

Also, I have moved some of the previous news stories to the archives page.

You can find the archives page link at the bottom of this page, or just click here.

June 9, 2008

Steelers, Local Celebs Play Softball For Charity

The Steelers and local celebrities turned out to play a Pittsburgh Celebrity Softball game hosted by Hines Ward.

Ward, Ben Roethlisberger, Brett Keisel, and other players were on hand for the event held at North Allegheny High School.

The event raised money for the Hines Ward Helping Hands Foundation and Pittsburgh city schools.

Brett played on the black team (Team Hines). They lost to Ben Roethlisberger's gold team 15-13.

I vote for a rematch!

To view more photos of Brett at the game, check out the Photo gallery.

For a slideshow of the game, click here.

June 6, 2008

New photos added!

I have added some new pictures to all of the football season albums. I have also added a couple new albums, so check out the Photo gallery!

I really appreciate all the positive emails I have received from Keisel fans regarding the pictures and articles!

I am still adding content, and will update as quickly as possible.

Special thanks to Erin for sending more photos my way-including the Keisel Kam pic shown this week!

June 4, 2008

Kudos for Keisel

Rich Briggs, of the Weekly Recorder, mentioned an encounter with Brett during a basketball game this past winter. Mr. Briggs was announcing a game where Brett and some Steeler teammates were playing basketball for area fundraisers.

The Steelers play basketball games for charities at local schools during the offseason.

Briggs had this to say regarding Brett:

"On the heels of my two columns regarding manners and looking out for young people, my school hosted the Pittsburgh Steelers basketball team last Saturday night in a fundraiser, despite the snowy conditions.

At halftime, one of the players, Brett Keisel, decided to sit next to me, as I was announcing the game at our scorer’s table, while signing autographs for some of the fans in attendance.

I will go on record as saying that Brett Keisel is one of the nicest guys to wear the Black and Gold. He was very personable and was great with the fans.

However, I noticed one thing that bothered me. There were a number of young people, with their parents, or a parent, who asked Mr. Keisel to autograph an item. He did so without hesitation, yet I rarely heard a thank you from these young people, and even from some so called adults.

I blame the adults in this instance for not telling these young people to say thank you to Mr. Keisel for signing their items.

He was most gracious no matter the situation, but I had a hard time with these people not even saying thanks, saying it half-heartedly, or not correcting their children for not saying thanks.

It was the least they could do, especially since the players did come out in such horrible conditions, even though the event had been planned for two months.

To Brett Keisel, I say thank you for being warm, generous, and friendly. The Steelers are fortunate to have you, as we all are in the Pittsburgh Region."

***I also attended a game where Brett played basketball to support his teammate Ben Roethlisberger's hometown athletic department.

The story is in the archives dated April 5, 2008.

I noticed how gracious and friendly Brett was with the fans. They surrounded him every time he came to the sidelines. He signed as many autographs as he could before the break ended. He also signed autographs after the game ended.

And, this was not a regular Steelers basketball game, where the players are supposed to stay after and sign autographs. There was no formal autograph session, yet he stayed anyhow.

Many people around me commented on how impressed they were with how well he interacted with the crowd. He joked around and really seemed to be enjoying himself. And again, this was all to support his teammates charity, not his own.***

May 29, 2008

Keisel and teammates help Ben Roethlisberger fulfill a teen's dream.

Ben Roethlisberger always has the help of his teammates on the field, but today they helped him in a different way.

Brett and teammates helped Ben grant Akeem Havens wish of becoming an honorary member of the Pittsburgh Steelers team.

KDKA gives an account of how Havens spent his day:

Akeem Havens, of Georgia, spent the day with Big Ben at Steelers Headquarters on the South Side.

He was also signed on as part of the Pittsburgh Steelers Rookie Class of 2008 and attended practice with the entire team.

"It's just one of the best things I've done," said Havens, "probably one of the 'funnest' days of my life."

Havens was paralyzed and is suffering from kidney failure from an accident that he was in at the age of 7.

On Wednesday, Havens was treated to a tour of Heinz Field and a visit to the Sports Museum.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Pennsylvania and Southern West Virginia is celebrating 25 years of making the dreams come true for children with life-threatening medical conditions.

Ben's teammates took pictures with Akeem and spent time talking with him.

To view other pictures of Brett with children from the Make-A-Wish Foundation click here.

Then click on the Make-A-Wish album.

To see pictures of Akeem with Ben Roethlisberger, please visit Big Ben News.

May 28, 2008

Keisel helps tackle the childhood obesity epidemic

Brett Keisel and teammates helped children stay in shape by teaching them how to punt, pass, and kick recently.

The children were able to watch how the pros do it, and then show off their own skills for the players.

Keisel has been part of the What Moves U campaign for awhile now.

WHAT MOVES U is a curriculum-based activity program designed to fight the childhood obesity epidemic by motivating middle school students to get up and move. Under the program, teachers incorporate physical activity into their lesson plans to help children become more fit while they learn.

The WHAT MOVES U program was developed by the NFL and the American Heart Association to encourage children to adopt a healthy lifestyle. The statewide program is sponsored by the departments of Health and Education, the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Philadelphia Eagles.

Keisel is a firm believer in keeping in shape, and has donated his time over the last couple years to helping kids learn how to exercise and stay in shape.

“As a player I need to eat well and exercise, and using these tools to be a role model and inspire our children to be healthy is a great passion of mine,” said Brett Keisel. “This program teaches students that they don’t have to be a professional athlete to incorporate physical activity into their everyday lives.”

You can visit the Articles and Photo Gallery sections to view more on Keisel's involvement with the program!

For more photos from the Punt, Pass, and Kick event click here.

They are located in the Punt, Pass, and Kick album.

May 27, 2008

Proud daddy

If Keisel seems to be walking around with a permanent grin on his face these days, it is not due to his latest sack or tackle.

It's too early in the offseason for sacks and tackles, but Keisel certainly has reason to be happy.

Tribune-Review writer, Scott Brown, in his column, View from the Press Box, reported that Brett, and his wife Sarah, welcomed to their family a baby boy in March.

Brown wrote, "Defensive end Brett Keisel is a daddy.The glow on Keisel's face when he talked about his son, who was born in March, is all you need to see to conclude that fatherhood agrees with him."

Could this bring another Keisel to the Steelers in 2030?

Too soon to tell at this point, but it sounds like Brett is definitely a proud daddy!

Congratulations to the Keisel family!