There is a concern about the availability of Hawai'i's leading rusher for Saturday's football game against arch-rival Fresno State.

Kealoha Pilares, a freshman from Damien Memorial High School, did not practice yesterday because of a sore right knee. He said he suffered the injury against San Jose State three weeks ago.

Pilares said an MRI showed a "sprain" of the medial collateral ligament. By definition, a sprain involves some degree of tearing.

Although there is no significant damage to the ligament, the discomfort has been "getting worse the past three weeks," Pilares said.

"It's really weak," Pilares added. "It feels dead. ... It doesn't give back when I push down. Just lateral movement is sore. I can't really make cuts."

Since suffering the injury, Pilares practiced during two bye weeks and played in the Oct. 27 game against New Mexico State.

"I didn't give it time to rest, I guess," Pilares said. "I kind of rushed into it. It got worse and worse."

Pilares attended yesterday's two-hour practice wearing a long brace on his right leg.

He said he will undergo further tests on Friday.

Still, head coach June Jones remains hopeful Pilares will be able to play.

"I expect him back real soon," running back Leon Wright-Jackson said. "Just because he has that brace on doesn't mean anything. He wants to be on the field. I expect him back."

Pilares leads the Warriors with 294 rushing yards on 50 carries. He is fifth in receiving (18 catches for 187 yards), and seventh in scoring (four touchdowns).

Wright-Jackson (153 rushing yards), David Farmer (13 yards) and Daniel Libre yesterday rotated at running back with the first-team offense.

Wright-Jackson, a third-year sophomore who played for Nebraska in 2005, said he has recovered from a bruised right knee.

"It was nothing big," Wright-Jackson said. "Just a little owwie."

Wright-Jackson attended a community college in Washington last year, and the coaches projected he would need several games this season to adjust to the Warriors' four-wide offense. But he said he was not locked into any timetable.

"I'm just trying to take it a game at a time," Wright-Jackson said. "I'm not worried about what mark where I need to be at my best. I feel I'm at my best right now. I'm going to go out there and give 110 percent and try to better myself every day."

Because Wright-Jackson did not practice last week, there were times yesterday when his legs "felt like Jell-O." But he promised to be at full strength today.

He also proved his blocking has not been affected. He was able to stop Adam Leonard's blitz during team drills.

"He's a great linebacker," Wright-Jackson said. "I had to try and take him as best as I could. He put all of his weight into me. It was a hard block."

Farmer is the Warriors' best backfield blocker — a distinction not lost on opposing defenses. He is used mostly as a blocker. Of his five carries, all on draw plays, Farmer mused: "Maybe (Jones) had a dream or vision and he decided to give me the ball once."

Asked if he prefers running or blocking, Farmer said, "I like winning. If we're winning, I don't care what happens. When I first came here, all I wanted was to get on the field one time, on the kickoff coverage or anything. I accomplished that the very first year."

Farmer, a fourth-year junior, said he has lost about 10 pounds each year, and now weighs 225.

"I would love to be 250 and run the same way I do now, but that's not the law of physics," Farmer said.

He keeps fit with early-morning weight-lifting sessions before the Warriors' two-hour practices.

"I'm already here in the morning," Farmer said. "I might as well get up a half-hour earlier."

JONES TOUTS BRENNAN

Jones yesterday told the Honolulu Quarterback Club audience that quarterback Colt Brennan remains as a Heisman Trophy candidate.

"We're in a position where we have four games left," Jones said. "Team goals and team success (have) to be a requisite to any kind of personal success. I think everybody understands that on our team, in particular Colt. If we win the last four (nationally televised) games, that means he played pretty well. If he does pretty well on national TV, he'll win the Heisman Trophy."

Visit Tsai's blog at www.HawaiiWarriorBeat.com.

Reach Stephen Tsai at stsai@honoluluadvertiser.com.