Associated Press
The NFL notebook …
PITTSBURGH ó Ben Roethlisberger will marry a 26-year-old physicianís assistant whom he said he met during training camp in 2005 and has been friends with ever since, the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for a story in Thursdayís editions.
Roethlisberger, speaking publicly for the first time since the Steelersí loss to the Green Bay Packers in the Super Bowl, talked about his fiancee, her family and the impact their engagement has had on everyone involved since it leaked out in various media outlets late last year.
Roethlisberger confirmed his July 23 wedding plans to Ashley Harlan, who lives in New Castle, about 45 miles northwest of Pittsburgh. Roethlisberger was interviewed Wednesday at his home north of Pittsburgh.
ěI think a small part of her is hoping we hold out for a week so we can honeymoon,î Roethlisberger told the Post-Gazette. ěI told her I was laughing with coach (Mike) Tomlin; he said, ëYou guys might have to have the honeymoon suite at St. Vincent.íî
The 29-year-old quarterback also addressed the scrutiny he faced after he was accused of sexual assault in a Georgia nightclub in March 2010. He said his engagement is not a ploy to rebuild his public image.
ěWe were kind of on and off for five years ó almost six years now ó so Iíve known her for a while. Itís not like a random new person. We dated a while ago; we have been friends ever since,î Roethlisberger told the Post-Gazette.
He did acknowledge working on repairing his reputation and trying to become a better teammate.
ěPeople will always have opinions of everybody and me, and thatís fine, theyíre entitled,î Roethlisberger said.
FRIDGEíS RING
CHICAGO ó Chicago Bears great William ěThe Refrigeratorî Perry has his 1985 Super Bowl ring back on his finger thanks to a 10-year-old boy.
Cliff Forrest of Fox Chapel, Pa., took $8,500 out of his college savings account to buy Perryís Super Bowl ring in New York.
ěHe only played in one Super Bowl,î Cliff said. ěI thought he would want it more than I did.î
So the boy asked his dad if he could give the back to Perry, who has been diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndrome. The autoimmune disease attacks the nervous system and can cause paralysis.
Cliff Forrest Sr. said he wouldnít have approved the purchase.
ěI would not have permitted the purchase myself, but his mother is a little more soft-hearted,î Forrest said.
But Cliff admires Perry and had heard of the famous Chicago Bears Super Bowl XX-winning team. Cliffís parents agreed and set out to return the ring to Perry, taking a flight to Chicago and giving the former football player his ring before an autograph session.
ěHe was very appreciative and he said, ëThank youí,î Cliff said.
In return, Perry gave the boy two autographed jerseys signed: ěThe Fridge, Thanks!î
LABOR UPDATE
WASHINGTON ó A day after the judge handling the NFL lockout lawsuit urged the sides to go “back to the table,” the players and owners both expressed a willingness to do so. The hitch: Each offered to meet for talks in a setting the other finds unpalatable.
A lawyer representing MVP quarterbacks Tom Brady, Peyton Manning and other players suing the NFL wrote U.S. District Judge Susan Richard Nelson on Thursday to say they’re willing to engage in mediation overseen by her federal court in St. Paul, Minn.
And NFL executive vice president Jeffrey Pash sent a letter Thursday to another lawyer representing players, James Quinn, with a copy going to Nelson, proposing to resume talks about 1,000 miles from her courthouse ó instead returning to the Washington office of federal mediator George Cohen.