As a free agent ahead of the 2001 season after four seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars, McKeesport native and former West Virginia standout Mike Logan had only one place he wanted to play.
Back home with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
He didn’t care what the offer was going to be; he just wanted to come home to be around his ailing parents.
It turns out, it wasn’t just coming back home to be around for his parents. It was bringing everything full circle for his entire family, something he didn’t even know about until he was set to sign.
Appearing on The Christian Kuntz Podcast that published Thursday, Logan recalled coming home to the Steelers and what the moment was like when he signed with the Black and Gold.
“I actually went over to, this is when they first got the South Side Facility. I went over there, I’m sitting there, and I’m ready to sign. And my agent’s on the phone like, ‘calm down, alright?’” Logan recalled his signing with the Steelers, according to video via the show’s YouTube page. “I called my dad, my dad’s still working as a photographer editor for KDKA at the time. I said, ‘dude, this is breaking news. Come over here ASAP.’
“But my dad comes over, we’re sitting in the South Side Offices, Omar [Khan] is talking to my agent on the phone, and my dad looks out and says, ‘Do you know that your grandfather used to work on these same grounds over here?”
That moment with his father really resonated with Logan. While sitting in the new South Side practice facility for the Steelers, waiting to sign with his hometown team, he shared a powerful moment with his father. In that moment, Logan’s father told him about his grandfather, who became one of the first African American safety supervisors for J&L Steel on those very same grounds where the practice facility sits today.
The Steelers began building on that land in June 1999, and it was opened in September of 2000. It was previously the site of the J&L Steel Mill, and later the LTV Steel Mill.
So, Logan was about to not only join the Steelers but also work on the same grounds that his grandfather once did, providing for his family and creating the Logan legacy.
“So my dad is looking out the window and almost in tears. And I’m like, what’s he reflecting on?” Logan added. “He [grandfather] never got to see that story; he passed away before that. But it’s like, this is like a movie for me. This is a lifetime special going on right here. So I got to share with my dad, and him reflecting on his father, is something so great, man. And that’s what I tell my kids now.
“Some of these moments that happened to us in life, they’re so special and they’re so cherished, man. And we gotta really appreciate ’em. And I love telling the story because it makes me feel good, man.”
Eventually, Logan got the deal done with the Steelers, even stating on the Kuntz podcast that he didn’t care what the offer looked like; he was taking it regardless. Logan got off to a slow start in Pittsburgh, playing in 30 games with just one start across two seasons. But in 2003, he broke out as the starting safety.
That season, Logan recorded a career-best 94 tackles, adding one sack, one forced fumble, and three fumble recoveries, starting 15 games for the Black and Gold. He also became a valuable piece for the Steelers’ defense as the mentor for future Hall of Fame safety Troy Polamalu.
Logan eventually took a backseat in the ensuing three seasons in Pittsburgh, missing most of the 2004 season with injury, but then was a key special-teams piece in 2005 when the Steelers won Super Bowl XL, putting a fitting cap on his career.
He ultimately retired after the 2006 season, spending six years with the Steelers. In those six years, Logan played in 73 games with 17 starts. He finished with 229 tackles, 3.5 sacks, three interceptions, five forced fumbles, and five fumble recoveries.
Getting that chance to come full circle through the game of football remains special for Logan. It’s one heck of a story for a Pittsburgher that made good with his potential on the gridiron, putting together a storybook ending to his athletic life.
Check out the full episode of “The Christian Kuntz Podcast” featuring the Logan interview below.
