Ben Roethlisberger is no stranger to making headlines over the offseason. More often than not, it has resulted in controversy for the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback.

Well, Big Ben popped up in the news again this weekend, except this time, it was something Pittsburgh can be proud of.

Roethlisberger graduated from Miami University of Ohio on Sunday and received a bachelor’s degree in education.

It appears Big Ben is learning, and not just in the classroom.

Over the course of his career, the two-time Super Bowl winner’s off-the-field shortcomings have been well documented.

• Roethlisberger crashed his motorcycle in June of 2006, leaving him with a broken jaw along with a slew of other injuries. Accidents happen, but the star quarterback was widely — and rightfully — criticized for not wearing a helmet.

• In July of 2009, he was sued by a woman who claimed he raped her in 2008 at a Lake Tahoe casino and hotel. However, no criminal charges were filed.

• He was again accused of sexual assault less than a year later in March of 2010, this time by a 20-year-old student at a Georgia bar. Again, he never faced criminal charges, but was suspended for the first four games of the following season.

No matter how one feels about the validity of the allegations, this much is clear: Roethlisberger was far from a role model.

Big Ben entered the NFL as a first-round draft pick of one of the league’s most successful franchises. He burst onto the scene with surprisingly solid play in his rookie year and soon established himself as one of the premier quarterbacks in the NFL.

Roethlisberger was a young, dumb millionaire. After a wildly impressive start to his career, he was basically a football-slinging rock star — and acted like it.

It’s tough to judge a man from a distance, though.

He might have just been a young guy with good intentions who enjoyed living the dream a little too much. Heck, I turn 27 tomorrow and God knows I’ve made my fair share of mistakes.

Regardless, he was putting himself in position to fail. His personal life had become a punch line.

His activities off the field were the equivalent of heaving a Hail Mary into triple coverage.

One more misstep and his NFL future could be down the drain.

I firmly believe the Steelers would have kicked him to the curb — also known as the Oakland Raiders — if not for his supreme talent and on-field track record.

He was given a chance at redemption, though.

Now married, he has successfully stayed out of trouble and went back to school to get his degree. These are signs of maturity the 30-year-old Roethlisberger has seemed to have lacked over the years.

More importantly, the young fans who idolize his play on Sundays finally have reason to appreciate what he’s doing as a person.

Roethlisberger has two Super Bowl rings and is a two-time Pro Bowler. He’s thrown 165 touchdown passes and has engineered 26 game-winning drives.

But even a man with a $100 million contract understands the worth of an education.

Jason Orfao is a staff writer for the Butler Eagle.