It’s not often the Pittsburgh Steelers dip their draft toe into the small school waters. And for the first time of the Mike Tomlin era, they did so along the offensive line. Though they’ve occasionally taken quarterbacks, defensive linemen, and cornerbacks from below the FBS division, fourth rounder and South Dakota State OG Mason McCormick becomes the first since Mike Tomlin’s hire in 2007.
McCormick is the first small school offensive lineman, defined as below FBS, the Steelers have drafted since Hofstra’s Willie Colon in 2006. That’s so long ago Hofstra’s football program doesn’t even exist anymore, folding after the 2009 season.