Sports Illustrated: Latest Cal Super-Sub Shane Vereen Ready to Become Leading Man

By Jordan Conn When college recruiters visited Shane Vereen at Valencia High in the fall of 2006, most saw him as a change-of-pace speed back. The fast but undersized Vereen had the tools to make plays, scouts believed, but lacked the frame to carry a team. Cal running backs coach Ron Gould saw something different. "I was standing in the corner of the end zone, with the team on fourth-and-goal from the 2-yard-line," Gould said, recalling his Friday night trip to the Southern California school. "They gave him the ball on a fly sweep, and he got hit two yards in the backfield. He fought his way out of that and then got hit again at the line of scrimmage, and he just carried a guy into the end zone." Not exactly the performance you'd expect from scatback. "His passion and determination and commitment to get into the end zone was incredible," Gould said. "You saw his toughness right there." Gould believed Vereen had the tools to carry a tea...