Breath of Fresh Hair

DETROIT — Troy Polamalu is among the NFL's most humble stars. All the success he has had in his three seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers hasn't gone to his head.

But it has gone to a lot of others.

The wavy locks that spill out of his helmet and down the back of his jersey are all the rage in the Steel City, where costume stores can't seem to keep Polamalu wigs in stock.

"They're our best seller," said Wendy Chambers, manager of Costume World Inc. in downtown Pittsburgh. "It caught on really fast. We've been ordering them on a daily basis, two dozen at a time."

Her store sells two versions, one for $18 and another more realistic one for $40. They have vastly outsold the giant Afro wigs or yellow-and-black "bumblebee" wigs that some Steeler fans have purchased.

The success of the Steelers -- and, in particular, that of All-Pro strong safety Polamalu -- has created "a second Halloween" for the store, Chambers said.

"Last weekend, we basically had to have crowd control in here," she added.

Polamalu, a former USC standout, has joined Jerome Bettis and Ben Roethlisberger as the most recognizable and respected Steelers. He's the soft-spoken defensive leader for a storied franchise that today will play in its first Super Bowl in a decade.

At 5 feet 10, 212 pounds, he has earned the nickname "Tasmanian Devil" for his disruptive style of lining up and making plays anywhere and everywhere. He drops back into coverage, darts up in run support, and rockets through soft spots in protection to reach the quarterback.

"His talent lets us do a lot of things that you could not do with many people who might be pretty good football players," said Dick LeBeau, Pittsburgh's defensive coordinator. "Troy has that rare ability to play at all levels of the defense -- deep, intermediate, at the line scrimmage, and blitz. Those types of people don't come along every day."

Polamalu and linebacker Larry Foote share the team lead with 19 postseason tackles, 11 unassisted, as compiled by the club. In the regular season, he had 91 tackles, three sacks, two interceptions and two fumble recoveries -- and helped set the tone as far as Steeler work ethic was concerned.

"He is a madman on the field, but the thing that makes him be able to do that on the field [are] things that he is able to do in the classroom," cornerback Deshea Townsend said. "The way that he studies film, the in and outs, the little things that people don't see, makes him the player that he is."