After spending much of the spring and summer in a walking boot, Troy senior running back Jordan Chunn is back on the field and is a full participant at practice.

After becoming the ninth Trojan ever to rush for over 1,000 yards last season, Chunn spent much of the summer in a yellow jersey– making him a limited participant in practice. Chunn has been a full participant in the last five practices without any trace of yellow or a boot.

“I think he is excited,” said head coach Neal Brown. “He has practiced five days in a row now, which is probably the first time he has done that since the week leading up to the (Appalachian) State game last year. He feels healthy without the aid of medications. We have been careful with him. We were careful throughout the spring, in the summer and in fall camp. We will continue to monitor him as we go through the season.”

Chunn was one of Troy’s biggest offensive weapons a season ago. Along with rushing for over 1,000 yards he finished 16th nationally in touchdowns with 16.

Chun spent much of the off-season watching on the sidelines waiting for his opportunities.

“It was up and down,” Chunn said. “Some days, I would do too much. Some days, I would do less. They did a good job of protecting me so I wouldn’t beat up my body as much. Whenever I’m in there, I try to really go hard and not be shy. As hard as I practice, they did a good job of protecting me.”

While on the sideline, Chunn watched and helped, slowly growing into more of a leader of the offense.

“He is probably down 10 pounds,” Brown said. “Watching as much football as he has watched the last 10 months, I think he has learned and has a greater appreciation. I am really proud of how he has grown as a leader. He and Silvers are our two best players, but they are also probably our two best leaders. That is critical and he has grown a lot in that aspect.”

After all the hard work and rehabbing, Chunn is ready to take on his first game on Saturday afternoon.

“That’s one thing everybody looks forward to,” Chunn said. “That’s to get the nervousness out of you. That first hit is always the best hit of the season.”

Chunn wasn’t alone on the injury front. Fellow running backs, Jabir Frye and B.J. Smith also were limited for much of the summer.

“They’re all ready,” said offensive coordinator Kenny Edenfield. “I think more than anything that was precautionary. We, as coaches, knew what they could do and they knew what they could do. We wanted to make sure everybody else on the team knew what they could do. We just kind of took a little care of them at times.”