SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- It was 2 in the morning when Jarious Jackson finally returned home to Tupelo, Miss.

He was dead tired after spending the weekend at Notre Dame on a recruiting visit in early 1995. All he wanted to do was fall in bed and go to sleep.

"But when I opened the door at our house, I looked up and there was (Tennessee assistant) coach Randy Sanders sitting on our couch waiting on me," Jackson said Tuesday, recalling the experience almost five years ago.

"How was your visit?" Sanders asked.

"I was exhausted and didn't want to hear 900 million questions, so I waited until the next day or so to tell him I was going to Notre Dame," Jackson said with a laugh.

Nearly five years later they meet again.

On Saturday, Notre Dame's fifth-year senior quarterback plays at Tennessee, whose offense is directed by Sanders.

Jackson is so highly regarded by his teammates he is the team's lone captain -- only the third Notre Dame player in the last 32 years to be singled out in such a manner. More than two dozen of Jackson's relatives from Mississippi plan to attend the game.

"My uncle, Patrick Gillard, is probably already there sitting on one of those boats on the (Tennessee) River," Jackson said.

"He's a die-hard Tennessee fan. He said he was going to sit in the Notre Dame section, but he's going to be wearing orange and white."

It was his uncle who encouraged him to consider signing with UT. Jackson admits at one time he "bled orange and white."

He first set foot on Tennessee's campus in 1994 when he went the Vols' summer football camp. Coach Phillip Fulmer came to his high school to recruit him after his senior season.

"I loved Tennessee's coaches," Jackson said. "I told them to be straightforward with me. I talked with coach Sanders a lot and asked him if I was going to get my chance at quarterback. They recruited me as a quarterback/wingback.

"They wanted to see me at another position, but they were give me an opportunity at quarterback."

Of course, he would have had to beat out Peyton Manning.

"I thought about that, and that was a big deal to me," Jackson said. "I think that affected my decision a whole lot."

Lou Holtz, who was Notre Dame's coach, met with Jackson and promised not to move him to another position.

"I knew Notre Dame was the place for me because I knew I'd have better opportunities than if I went to Tennessee," Jackson said.

A year later, another quarterback prospect named Tee Martin came to South Bend to visit. Jackson was his host.

"I tried to get him to come here," Jackson said. "But this game isn't about Jarious against Tee. It's way bigger than that."

During his freshman season in 1995, Jackson was the third-string quarterback and didn't play. However, he came within seconds of wasting a year of eligibility, meaning he would not be playing this season.

First, Ron Powlus suffered a broken arm. Then in the Orange Bowl, backup Tom Krug took a hard hit and went down.

If trainers had rushed on the field without Notre Dame calling timeout, Krug would have been forced to sit out a play, and Jackson was the only other quarterback on the roster. However, the Irish did call timeout and Krug caught his breath and was able to finish the game.

In 1996 and '97, Jackson saw only limited action. It wasn't until last season that he became a starter. In his first start in '98, he led the Irish to a victory over then-No. 5 Michigan.

"It's amazing to see how far I've come as a passer," says Jackson, whose career completion percentage of 57.4 is better than Joe Theismann's 57.0.

But Jackson is noted more for his ability as a runner than a passer. He's like a "running back playing quarterback," tailback Tony Fisher says.

Jackson struggled in his last outing against Navy, yet he has played well most of the season under new offensive coordinator Kevin Rogers. The new system is complex. Jackson often refers to 70 plays written on his wristband.

However, he says he doesn't feel any pressure on the field.

Pressure is recruiting. Pressure is walking in the front door of your home at 2 a.m. and a coach is sitting there on your couch waiting for an answer.

(Gary Lundy writes for The Knoxville News-Sentinel in Tennessee.)