Jason Werner may have appreciated the time he did spend on the field for Purdue the past six years a little more than others.

That's because the outgoing senior linebacker went through extraordinary physical hardship just to get to play.

Werner, who came to Purdue as a heralded recruit and Indiana's Mr. Football Award winner out of Indianapolis' Roncalli High School, underwent a series of back surgeries that might have retired many others in his situation. Then, he had to appeal the NCAA for a sixth year of eligibility just to get to play a third full season for the Boilermakers, finishing out his career as a starter in 2009 and 2010.

A few weeks ago, GoldandBlack.com caught up with the two-time team captain for this Exit Interview.

Werner: "I'm glad I got to finish it out (my sixth year), for one thing. I fought through a lot and found out a lot about who I was and found out I can play at that level. It was my goal to get a starting spot and have a couple years playing there.

"There were a lot of obstacles, but I fought through it and I'm proud of the way I finished. I think I found out how tough I was."

Werner: "I just know that any time you have an injury like that, football is a question mark. You don't know if you'll be able to play again. I am glad I did have an injury serious enough that a lot of people might have stopped playing, but I was able to come back from it a couple of times and keep playing."

Werner: "I still feel like my career is still over-shadowed by the fact I was injured a lot, but I did get to play some and make some memories on the field. I wasn't just the guy who never did play."

Werner: "Exactly. You don't want to take anything for granted, because you might lose it. That's something that definitely went through my head the past couple years: 'Just go out and play.' It was hard getting back out there, and you just never knew when you might be done. I just tried to enjoy it."

GoldandBlack.com: You'd had such a great high school career and brought the title of Indiana Mr. Football to Purdue with you. Was it a burden trying to live up and did that make it even more maddening to sit out?

Werner: "I wouldn't say it was difficult going in, but maybe more once you get injured and can't live up to that expectation. But that's just part of it. I did have a (successful) high school career and people are going to talk, but when you have an injury, you kind of disappear.

"But you can't control injuries. All I could do was try the best I could to get back out there. My situation was obviously different, which was unfortunate, but I think I made the best of it."

Werner: "I think probably my sophomore year when I first started playing it after my surgery, I felt like one, but I didn't feel like I was (big enough) my first year. But I did feel good about my ability to get to the ball and stuff like that. After that first year of preparation, I did get to feeling a lot more comfortable."

Werner: "Definitely the physicality. At safety, you're up on your feet and out in space, but once you get closer to the line of scrimmage, the physicality and the size of the linemen is a big difference."

Werner: "The obvious answer is beating Ohio State (in 2009). That was a blast. In that part of our season, to come out and beat a team like that at home is still a great memory. The same for winning at Michigan.

"And beating Northwestern this year was fun because we were at a point in our season where we really had to rally."

Werner: "I think Notre Dame last year, on that last play. I feel like if I ever wanted anything back, it would be that last down toward the end. ... That whole last drive will just haunt me forever, I think."

Werner: "Probably Anthony Spencer or Ryan Kerrigan. The things I saw them do were just amazing to me."

Werner: "That's tough. There are a lot of good ones out there. If we're talking position-wise, about a player who blocked me, (Michigan's) Jake Long, that wasn't fun. But there's just so many."

Werner: "I didn't mind people making jokes. I just hated being told I was old. But I liked the creativity people had and enjoyed it. It comes with the territory."

Werner: "Yeah, I'm glad to have gotten to finish out my career and make a couple more memories and maybe do a few things over that a lot of guys would never have gotten the chance to."

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