Joe Avery envisions a future in medicine.

For the moment, he’s focusing on helping the Hawaii receiver corps overcome a painful run of injuries.

One of the longest-tenured members of the group, Avery has seen limited playing time in his UH career while pursuing a biology degree with an eye on a career in pediatrics.

He has yet to catch a pass in his senior season and wasn’t getting much work in practice, either. But with injuries thinning the unit, Avery saw an uptick in his repetitions while rotating with junior Darius Bright at left wide receiver during Wednesday’s practice as the Warriors prepared for Saturday’s game at Nevada.

"Darius has got game experience, he’s at one of his healthier points this year," said offensive coordinator Nick Rolovich, who anticipates Bright will start against the Wolf Pack. "He hasn’t played the last couple weeks, so he’s been able to rest and get healthy.

"(Avery’s) had some good practices, he’s working hard, tremendous guy, just a great part of the Warrior family. He’s had a good week of practice and it’s good to see."

Injuries have dramatically altered the two-deep at wideout over the past three weeks. Allen Sampson, who started four games at X receiver, suffered a season-ending knee injury against New Mexico State on Oct. 22.

With Bright dealing with various ailments as well, freshman Trevor Davis started on the left side last week against Utah State. But Davis has since moved back to the right side — where he had practiced most of the season — in place of Royce Pollard, who is not expected to play against Nevada after hurting his knee and ankle in last Saturday’s loss.

Justin Clapp played slotback and both wideout spots last week, but suffered fractured ribs in the game and is recovering from a collapsed lung.

Bright hasn’t played since the New Mexico State game. He has 16 catches for 166 yards and a touchdown. He said he’s physically still "not exactly where I want to be, but I’m getting better and better. … As time goes by, things get better with treatment."

The shuffling — which included backup quarterback David Graves taking a few repetitions at receiver this week — has bumped Avery up the depth chart.

Since joining the program in 2007, the 6-foot-5 Avery has eight receptions in 17 appearances. Three of those catches came in a loss at Idaho in 2009, when he stepped in for an injured Rodney Bradley.

He played sparingly again last year and has gotten on the field in just two games so far this year. But the lack of playing time hasn’t soured his view of his role with the team.

"It’s never been an issue with me playing or being frustrated," Avery said. "It’s just being patient and whenever the team needs me I’m going to be ready. Ultimately what the team needs is more important. Being frustrated with not playing is selfish."

Now in his fifth year at UH, Avery’s grasp of the offense is one of his assets and could give him a chance to snag more throws.

"I think Joe sees an opportunity," Rolovich said." Joe’s been one of the best teammates I’ve been around as far as how hard he works every day and his knowledge of the offense."

As he’s worked on progressing in football, Avery has pursued defined goals beyond the game. While he wants to see how far he can go in the sport, his plans after football are centered on someday practicing medicine as a pediatrician.

"I love playing football, so I was hoping to use it as a tool to eventually be able to help other people," Avery said.