Denver Broncos QB Trevor Siemian

Quarterback Trevor Siemian #13 of the Denver Broncos walks off the field after defeating the Carolina Panthers 21-20 at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on September 8, 2016 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)

(Justin Edmonds)

Midway through the first quarter of the NFL season-opening telecast, NBC play-by-play announcer Al Michaels said Denver Broncos quarterback Trevor Siemian selected Northwestern over Harvard and Rutgers.

Rutgers?

We went back and checked, and the Broncos second-year quarterback -- who turned in a solid performance in Denver's 21-20 triumph over Carolina Panthers on Thursday night -- was indeed recruited by Rutgers for the 2010 recruiting class.

According to a report by ScarletNation.com, an affiliate of the Rivals.com network, Rutgers was among nearly a dozen schools to offer a scholarship to Siemian, who was rated as a three-star prospect after throwing for 2,597 yards and 25 touchdowns during his junior campaign at an Orlando., Fla., high school.

"(Rutgers has) been in touch with my coach since the fall and they offered me about two months ago,'' Siemian told the website in June 2009.

The 6-3, 180-pound Siemian said Ed Pinkham, a defensive backs coach who mainly recruited Florida for then-Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano, was his main recruiter.

"He's a really cool guy and easy to talk to,'' Siemian said of Pinkham, who is currently an assistant under P.J. Fleck (also a former Rutgers assistant) at Western Michigan. "I really like all of the (Rutgers) coaches there.''

According to a DenverPost.com report earlier this week, Rutgers was in the mix at the end but Siemian chose the first school -- Northwestern -- that offered him a scholarship.

Although Siemian was rated as the nation's 39th-best pro-style quarterback by Rivals.com at the time, it hardly seemed like a big deal at the time. Tom Savage appeared entrenched as Rutgers' starting quarterback after a 2009 campaign in which he started 11 games and earned Freshman All-America honors.

Rutgers signed one quarterback for the 2010 recruiting class: Chas Dodd, an undersized signal caller who, despite putting up eye-popping passing stats at his South Carolina high school, didn't receive another Division I-A scholarship offer.

Dodd defied the recruiting experts by unseating Savage as Rutgers' starting quarterback during his freshman campaign in 2010, and Savage ultimately transferred the following offseason.

Siemian became one of the most accomplished passers in Northwestern history, finishing fourth in all-time in passing yardage (5,931), fourth in completions (550), sixth in total offense yards (5,908) and seventh passing touchdowns (27) while starting 2 1/2 seasons from 2010-14.

Looking for another New Jersey connection? After injuring his knee late in his redshirt senior campaign in 2014, Siemian reportedly prepped for the NFL Draft at Parabolic Performance and Rehabilitation, working out with trainer Brian Martin and ex-Miami Dolphins quarterback Jay Fiedler at the North Jersey facility.

Martin has a long history of prepping Rutgers football players for the NFL Draft.

Wishing Trevor lots of luck in his first NFL start tonight against the Panthers! #teamparabolic #training #nfl #football #broncos #panthers Posted by Parabolic Performance & Rehab on Thursday, September 8, 2016

The Broncos selected Siemian in the seventh round of the 2015 NFL Draft, with pick No. 250 overall. After serving as the third-string quarterback behind Peyton Manning and Brock Oswiler for Denver's Super Bowl championship team last year, Siemian beat out Mark Sanchez for the starting job this summer.

In his first start Thursday night, Siemian threw for 178 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions on 18-for-26 passing in a come-from-behind win over Carolina. He proved clutch by leading Denver to two fourth-quarter TD drives and drew strong praise afterward from Broncos coach Gary Kubiak, who said, his 24-year old QB "handled his end of the bargain.''

Keith Sargeant may be reached at ksargeant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @KSargeantNJ. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.