And Now The Smooth Christian Rock Stylings Of Ben Utecht

Cincinnati tight end Ben Utecht just dropped his first album, a collection of gospel-tinged inspirational power ballads—because when you think "Bengals football" you should also think about the Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Ben isn't giving up on the sport, but he is looking to spread the good word through the power of music. His self-titled debut hit the streets last month, but there's no need to steal it on BitTorrent, because it's streaming online. (Plus, I think file sharing is in the Ten Commandments.) It's actually not bad. The dude's got a decent voice and writes his own stuff and it's at least as good as anything you'll hear on the Creed comeback tour. (Except "Higher." That one fucking rocks.)

As long as you aren't put off by all the God stuff.

"Ben Utecht is a talented football player. He started at Tight End for my team, the Indianapolis Colts, in Super Bowl XLI and helped us beat the Chicago Bears," says former NFL head coach, Tony Dungy, who was Utecht's coach for four years. "However, I always thought his real impact would be in Christian music. Ben has a tremendous voice and a passion for music, but more than that, he believes in the gospel message and that comes through when he sings. I believe God is going to use his musical gift in a special way."

I'm sure it will be on the list of Magary's pre-game wall smashers for most of next fall.

Ben Utecht [Ben Utecht; auto-playing audio warning] NFL Superbowl Champion Ben Utecht Releases Debut Album [CBN Music] Ben Utecht's gospel rock should be a hit in Cincy's locker room [Shutdown Corner] Ben Utecht is one of us, and one of His [Star-Tribune]