Wide receiver Kearis Jackson’s left hand has kept him out of half of the games this season, but he is working his way back to full participation on game days.

“My hand’s doing pretty good,” said Jackson, a redshirt freshman. “Still doing extra work outside of the training room. Putting my hand in a bucket of rice every night before I go to sleep to strengthen up my hand.”

It seems to work for phones.

“It’s kind of tough, especially when you get down at the bottom and try to open it up. It gets tough, but it’s for the better. It’s helping me out. I’m doing it all season,” Jackson said.

The receiver suffered the injury in the season opener against Vanderbilt. He caught a 32-yard pass and was immediately hit, causing him to fumble on the play. He doesn’t know the exact moment it broke, but that play was the culprit.

This was a deeper concern considering Jackson suffered a broken left wrist in high school. Against Vandy, he suffered three broken bones on the top of his left hand and underwent surgery. Jackson asserted that he is healed and anxious to play.

“Right now, I’m healthy. I'm ready to go. I'm ready to play and show the world what I can do.”

Jackson claims the recovery has transformed his game and caused him to work harder at his craft.

“I feel like I’m catching it better,” Jackson said. “My focus is a whole lot better because I’m focusing on the ball more. I feel like my hands got better. And late nights, I come up here and have a friend shoot me jugs every night just to get better. I try to at least catch 200 a night. That’ll equal 1,000 a week.”

Jackson has worn a splint recently but says he ditched it once he figured out he could block without pain in his hand.

“This week, I stopped wearing it because I knew I was going to be able to play this week. I just wanted to see how it feels. Basically, I just wanted to see how I could block. I told coach ‘If I can’t block, I don’t need to be playing because blocking takes a lot.’

“We got the best backs. I tell them every day. If I’m on the field, I’ve got your block. I’ve got your back. Running the ball wins games and also opens up the passing game. If you can block, you can play.”