South Alabama quarterback Carter Bradley practiced in a limited fashion on Tuesday, splitting reps with freshman Gio Lopez and fellow senior Desmond Trotter.

Bradley sat out last week’s game vs. Troy with a knee injury, and wore a brace on his bad leg Tuesday. It’s still not known if he’ll be ready to play when the Jaguars (4-5, 2-3 Sun Belt Conference) host Arkansas State (5-4, 3-2) on Saturday.

“Carter was still limited but got reps at the end there with the (first team offense), which was nice,” South Alabama coach Kane Wommack said. “He’s still favoring it and we’ve got to be careful with him. But based off what I saw today, I think if he continues to (improve), he’s got a chance to be a game-time decision. “But I thought Gio and Dez looked really good. They took the majority of reps. But I feel like (Bradley) was in a really good place today.”

Bradley, who has passed for 2,156 yards and 13 touchdowns with seven interceptions in eight games this season, was injured late in the Jaguars’ loss to Louisiana on Oct. 28. Lopez made his first career start last week vs. Troy, completing 17 of 27 passes for 155 yards with an interception and also rushed for 39 yards on nine carries in a 28-10 South Alabama loss.

Potentially complicating matters is that Lopez has played in four games this season, and would be ineligible to redshirt if he plays in one more. However, with South Alabama needing to win two of its final three games to become bowl-eligible, it’s unlikely he’d sit out if needed to start.

Trotter, like Bradley a sixth-year senior, has made 16 career starts. He was the Jaguars’ primary quarterback in 2020, and has backed up Jake Bentley and Bradley the last three seasons.

Kickoff for South Alabama-Arkansas State is set for 4 p.m. Saturday at Hancock Whitney Stadium. The game will stream live via ESPN+.

• One South Alabama player who could soon return from injury is running back Braylon McReynolds, sidelined since suffering a broken collarbone in the season-opener vs. Tulane.

McReynolds was dressed out and wearing a gold (no contact) jersey Tuesday, but was participating in some drills. Wommack said the sophomore from Mobile — also the Jaguars’ primary kickoff returner before the injury — remains on track to return before the end of the season.

“He’s kind of limited in what he can do, but I feel like maybe there’s a chance in the near future here that he might get some playing time at the end of the season, which is really exciting,” Wommack said. “We could use a guy like him, for sure.”

McReynolds totaled 932 yards rushing, receiving and on kick returns as a true freshman in 2022. Because he played in only the season-opener, he could still play in three more games this season and retain a redshirt year.

• The various bowl projections remain split on South Alabama, which still must win two more games to become eligible for a postseason berth.

The bowl projections that do mention the Jaguars have them going to a variety of destinations. The Athletic and ESPN’s Mark Schlabach both have South Alabama in the Dec. 23 Camellia Bowl in Montgomery, against either Eastern Michigan or Northern Illinois.

ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura has South Alabama in the Dec. 21 Bacon Raton (Fla.) Bowl vs. South Florida, while USA Today pegs the Jaguars for the Dec. 16 Cure Bowl in Orlando vs. Utah State. Athlon has the Jaguars staying in-state, facing Central Florida in the Dec. 23 Birmingham Bowl.

One other bowl destination to monitor for the Jaguars is the 68 Ventures Bowl, which takes place Dec. 23 at Hancock Whitney Stadium on the South Alabama campus. South Alabama and bowl officials have been lukewarm about a pairing in the past, but momentum might be shifting if there’s a possible match this year.

• Despite the team’s overall struggles, two South Alabama offensive players are among the national leaders in key categories.

Running back La’Damian Webb has 14 rushing touchdowns, second only to Michigan’s Blake Corum, who has 16. Webb’s touchdown total leads the Sun Belt and is already a single-season South Alabama record.

Caullin Lacy is second nationally with 1,046 receiving yards, behind only LSU’s Malik Nabers (1,152). Lacy’s total leads the Sun Belt by 242 yards over second-place Joey Hobart of Texas State, who has 804 yards.