Bengals rookie center Seth McLaughlin did the anti-Joe Burrow and took off for the Buckeyes from the Southeastern Conference, and now both have found an NFL home in Cincinnati. That’s southwest Ohio and, as McLaughlin is finding out, the AFC North.

“I’ve been an SEC football guy. That’s what I know. I didn’t really watch a whole lot of NFL growing up,” McLaughlin says. “I know who’s in the division. I know about half the AFC teams now. I’m learning.”

Which McLaughlin does quite well as a 4.0 student at Buford High School on the leafy side of Atlanta. He snapped another summa cum laude 4.0 to graduate from the University of Alabama. He finished his career with the Buckeyes last season majoring in heartbreak.

The Bengals did enough homework on him to make sure the most coveted undrafted offensive lineman stayed in Ohio.

Long-time Buckeyes strength guru Mickey Marotti, who coached both Burrow and McLaughlin in Columbus, thinks it’s a no-brainer.

Here’s a guy who played 47 games in the middle of two of the bluest-bloodest programs in the nation.

“He just knows how to play the game. Great personality. He’ll fit right into that locker room.” Marotti says. “He’s got a little bit of Joe in him, now. Their humor is very similar. Little dry humor.”

Then Burrow, an ancient 28, would probably get a kick out of this arid story. The SEC kid followed that LSU team Burrow took all the way.

“I grew up watching him through the whole high school process,” McLaughlin says. “He’s a hell of a quarterback. The offense is always going to be good while he’s here.”

Burrow is a factor in McLaughlin choosing the Bengals in those hectic moments after the draft. “Yeah, that helps. A really good program that wins a lot of games and scores a lot of points.”

But there are plenty of other reasons. Start with that once strange place called Ohio and add Bengals offensive line coach Scott Peters’ strike system, a version of which the Buckeyes’ line used this past season.

“I love Ohio after being here for a year and a half now. I just fell in love with the place, and being an hour and a half down the road, it wasn’t a very hard move,” McLaughlin says. “There’s a lot of carryover in the fan base and support that I have. I’m super close to Columbus if I ever need anything there.

“Nothing really made sense like staying in Ohio and coming down to Cincinnati. Great technical coaching and a great training staff to help me get fully healthy. Just having the best opportunity to get developed with really good vets in the room to help me along. This just made the most sense.”