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James Conner has been through the acclimation and the conditioning; now he's ready to play. The redshirt junior running back met the media on Tuesday to talk about his road back and more.

So where are you today as far as readiness and conditioning?
I feel good. Just taking it day-by-day still. I’m going, though. I’m full-speed and everything is great.

Once you got into the grind of camp, taking hits and running all the time, did it take some acclimation?
Yeah, it took acclimation. All the roughing and thudding up and a couple live tackling periods, it was all good for me. It was good to get my feet wet again and get back into the rhythm of things. It’s not getting rough; I need all the contact I can get to get back to my old self. So I’m good.

What was the feeling of running the ball at Heinz Field again?
It was cool, you know. It’s a great place to play, a lot of history at Heinz. That’s our home field, so it’s always awesome when we get to bus over there and do a mock game.

What was the first hit on your knee like?
I didn’t even notice a hit on my knee. I don’t even think about my knee. I cut as hard as I can. The knee is way behind me. I don’t feel any pain there.

Your coaches mentioned they wanted to pull you out of the scrimmage early because they wanted to pay attention to how many reps you’re getting, but did you feel like you could have done more?
Yeah, the coaches, they’re taking care of all of us. Of course, I can go two hours straight if I had to, but they’re not going to make us do that. So they’re being smart with everybody; they go when they feel like. They’re the boss. So when they say that’s enough, that’s enough.

How eager are you to see the depth at running back?
Oh yeah, anybody who gets a carry, they’re going to do some great things with the ball. Very talented room. I feel like we have th most talented running back room in the nation. All of those guys run so hard and we all just pick each other’s brains and learn from one another and compete. We’ll see. I’m excited for it.

What do you think your reception is going to be when you come running out of the tunnel for the Villanova game?
Just embrace it all. I know we’ll have a great audience and it will be a memorable day. September 3rd. My doctor will be in the building; Dr. Stanley Marks is coming and some of the nurses and family and friends nad supporters all around Pittsburgh and my hometown Erie. So it’s just going to be a great day.

Are you going to be a little more pumped up for that game than maybe some others in the past?
Yeah, you could say that, making my return. But I take every game the same. There’s a job that needs to be done.

It’s probably going to be an emotional moment; are you kind of bracing for that a little bit?
Even when we go to Heinz, my emotions start flowing because there was a chance of me not ever playing football again. So I always get a little emotional thinking about it and I’m just forever grateful.

Have there been any moments where you make a play or whatever it is and you just kind of feel like, ‘That’s it, I feel like I’m back’?
Yeah, you know, the first time I was getting contact again. So just getting wrapped up again. We have a great defense, and those guys thudding me up - big Tyrique and Bam and Ejuan and everybody over there roughing me up and getting me ready for the season.

So they’re not taking it easy on you, are they?
No, they’re not taking it easy. But they’re my boys, though.

Has camp been emotional for you, just going through each day?
Day One coming out; that was a great day. But I put it behind me. It’s bigger than me. Every day is just a blessing to be out here.

How do you approach expectations? Everybody thinks of 2014.
Yeah, 2014 was a long time ago, you know. I have to prove myself again, but I don’t feel any pressure. I’m just going to go out there and compete. Every day I give it everything I’ve got. So the numbers - to me, God already has a plan for me and the numbers are already set and I’m going to do what I’m going to do. It’s His plan. So as long as I give everything I’ve got, I don’t have any regrets.

How much do you weigh these days?
Enough. Run fast and I don’t really pay attention to the scale. I’m just eating healthy and getting my conditioning down. I’m really not checking the scale.