Mark Jackson grew up playing Gaelic football. He's taking a shot at the American kind in Pittsburgh
Placekicker Mark Jackson is hoping to trade one kind of football for another
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Mark Jackson does not look out of place.
Standing inside the Pittsburgh Steelers practice facility on Friday, Jackson's yellow No. 2 blends in with the other 42 players trying to catch head coach Mike Tomlin's attention during the team's rookie minicamp. At 6-foot-1 and a solid 214 pounds, Jackson practically towers over Caleb Shudak, the other kicker brought in for a look.
Things change, however, when Jackson starts to talk. Then it becomes very evident very quickly that while Jackson doesn't look out of place, he certainly sounds out of place.
An extended stint in the United States chasing a job he never saw coming has done little to take some of the edge off Jackson's Irish brogue. At one point, the 25-year-old from Baltinglass (just over an hour southwest of Dublin) is asked to spell out the name of his hometown for clarity's sake, a request Jackson happily obliges.
