After Practice with Alterraun Verner

On Day 1 of practice:
"You can see the playmaking and athleticism already; you can see the potential," Verner said. "But that's the one thing, the true testament will be Friday, when we actually get pads on. Hopefully, these younger guys can get it by then. It's probably good that we started out like this, so they can get used to everything. When the pads come on, it shouldn't be a huge shock."

On his own expectations, after being named to the Jim Thorpe Award preseason watch list:
"I expect a lot more out of myself than probably anyone else can," Verner said. "I just expect myself to help get this team back to where it should be, which is on top of the Pac-10, if not the country. That's what I expect. If we can do that, I'll be satisified, no matter what the stats say about me."