Jacob Huesman wanted the opportunity to prove himself as a quarterback at the NFL level.
He's going to get that chance.
The former University of Tennessee at Chattanooga standout who set 10 school records has been invited to the Pittsburgh Steelers' rookie minicamp this coming Friday through Sunday.
The 6-foot-1, 226-pounder finished his UTC career with 12,248 yards of total offense, ranking third in Southern Conference history. His 107 total touchdowns - 43 rushing, 64 passing - also rank third.
"It's a great opportunity," Huesman said Saturday by phone. "It's just on a tryout basis, but an opportunity is an opportunity and I'm very thankful that they liked me well enough to bring me in."
He ran for 4,051 yards in his UTC career and then continued to show his athletic prowess by running the 40-yard dash in 4.52 seconds at the Mocs' pro day in April, so there was talk that Huesman could possibly move to another position, such as H-back or defensive back. He went to Tennessee's pro day to throw to the Vols' receivers, and NFL scouts asked him to run some defensive back drills.
A position change could eventually be the case, but the Steelers are bringing him in as a quarterback, which was what he wanted the entire time.
"I'm very excited to have the opportunity to prove myself as a quarterback," he said. "It's what I hoped for.
"Pittsburgh likes me enough to give me a chance - not just to bring me in, but to bring me in at quarterback, so that's very exciting to me."
With news breaking Friday afternoon that Derrick Lott was cut by the Tampa Bay Bucs, there currently three former Mocs on NFL rosters: Buster Skrine (New York Jets), Davis Tull (New Orleans Saints) and Chris Lewis-Harris (Cincinnati Bengals).
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him at twitter.com/genehenleytfp.