The principle of taking one step at a time carries added weight in Rodney Bradley's outlook.

It'll be a while before the Hawaii receiver returns to the field as he continues his comeback from a devastating leg injury that ended a promising season last fall.

While getting back up to game speed beckons in the distance, getting there requires focus on the step directly ahead.

“;From little things like learning how to walk again,”; Bradley said.

Bradley enrolled in school last spring as a junior college transfer and the head start eventually led to a starting job at left wide receiver in fall camp. He quickly emerged as a big-play threat, catching the game-winning touchdown against Central Arkansas in his Division I debut. He followed with a 150-yard performance against Washington State and covered 189 at UNLV.

He appeared to be on his way to another big day with two catches for 58 yards when UH visited Idaho on Oct. 17. But as he cut across the field on his final reception, a hit resulted in a gruesome broken leg that required surgery that night.

Simply getting back on his feet was his first challenge, then getting off crutches and now rehabbing the leg to gradually move toward game speed.

“;It's intense,”; Bradley said of the rehab process. “;It's my senior year and I have to get back. Time is passing by fast, so I'm trying to work as hard as I can.”;

Bradley said he's started some jogging and striding while working with a physical therapist to rebuild the muscles in his leg that went unused during his recovery. He hopes to start running in another month and a half.

“;My leg strength is probably about 85 percent,”; said Bradley, who is also playing catch-up in the classroom to make up for the time he missed following his injury. “;So once I get that back to 100 percent, I can start running and build up to where I can run full speed.

“;Through the summer I'm going to try to get back to where I was, cutting in and out, the explosiveness.”;

So far this spring, Bradley has been on the periphery of the Warriors' workouts, joining in conditioning work with teammates nursing injuries while the team gets its work done on the field.

“;It's a little frustrating at times,”; he said of watching the first three practices. “;You want to be out there.”;

Hitting his stride

As Bradley strives to get back into game shape, freshman Billy Ray Stutzmann is enjoying running unhindered this spring.

Stutzmann dealt with an ankle injury for much of the fall while he sat out as a redshirt. He's now back to full speed at right wideout, where he's been working behind Royce Pollard. He's been a playmaker so far in spring practice, chasing down several deep balls.

“;I'm running the routes I want to run, making all the cuts, just feel good,”; Stutzmann said. “;That's the best feeling in the world knowing you can get there. It's good to have that extra gear.”;

Stutzmann's older brother, former UH slotback Craig Stutzmann, recently accepted a job at Memphis and they remain in contact as they prepare for their respective seasons.

“;We usually text each other from time to time,”; Stutzmann said. “;We just talk about life in general.”;

Early impressions

The Warriors quarterbacks put together an efficient performance overall in the team's first session in pads on Saturday. They went 27-for-35 in a 7-on-7 period, with Bryant Moniz completing all eight of his throws, including a strike to Pollard down the sideline for a long gain.

“;I thought 7s was very good, a lot of good reads,”; offensive coordinator Nick Rolovich said. “;Bryant and Shane (Austin) are holding their own right now at the top of the list, but I feel very good about the production of the quarterback group.

“;They know they can move up and down the initial depth chart by their performance in practice. We're having a little competition, they're excited and it means a lot to them.”;

The defense got the better of the action in an overtime scenario as the quarterbacks went 3-for-8 in four drives, with Brent Rausch throwing the lone touchdown to end the day.

“;We lost in the overtime drill, but that's why there's spring; we'll get better at it,”; Moniz said.