Verk garners first Division I offer

<p><strong>Clay Verk</strong>—one of the most improved Colorado players on the grassroots scene—now has a Division I offer to show for it.</p><p>Stetson University, from the Atlantic Sun Conference, has offered the 2016 ThunderRidge forward, according to his Twitter account.</p> <p>At 6-foot-8 and 220 pounds, Verk is an imposing presence who has quickly grown into one of the state’s best big men. He’s a high energy, high activity player who was dominant on the glass over the summer, one reason he was named to our All-Grassroots 17U First Team. Verk has become more consistent knocking down shots and he’s more mobile than many players his size.</p> <p>Stetson is the first DI program to offer the senior. The Hatters finished the 2014-15 season with a 9-22 record.</p> <p>Verk averaged 6.1 points and 3.4 rebounds for ThunderRidge, the Class 5A runner-up, as a junior. He was largely overshadowed by near 7-footer Zach Pirog, now at the University of Nebraska-Omaha, but should step into a much bigger role in his final season for one of the state’s elite programs. </p>