Early in spring football practices, ASU junior quarterback Rudy Carpenter said he has seen a big difference between the players' efforts from last season and early on in spring practices under new head coach Dennis Erickson.
"[Former ASU coach Dirk] Koetter always preached to us to practice fast and play fast," said Carpenter, who threw for 21 touchdowns last season. "The one thing was that practice was so long and drawn out that guys would conserve energy and try and pace themselves.
"Coach Erickson preaches we are going to practice fast and hard, but we always know that practice is going to start at the same time everyday and end at the same time no matter what, so you don't have to pace yourself. You know that you might be tired but you're not going to be spent dead, where you can't walk that next day."
Carpenter added another noticeable different between former Koetter and Erickson is their approach off the field.
"Off the field, you see (Erickson) in the office because his door is always open," Carpenter said. "You can always go in there and talk to him about your personal life, about football, and I do that.
"Coach Koetter was tighter and all about business and I think that can affect the way you play sometimes."
Howard throws in towel
Loren Howard will not play with ASU next season.
The sixth-year eligible defensive end has had consistent injury problems over his collegiate career and made the decision to not dress up with the Sun Devils in the fall.
"(Loren) and I had a long conversation and he has decided not to play," said Erickson. "With all the things that he has had to deal with over the long period of time, I totally agree. Our doctors feel it's not good for him to play."
Howard was granted an extra year of eligibility by the NCAA after missing the entire 2006 season due to injuries. He also sat out the 2005 season after transferring from Northwestern University to ASU.
Smith looks to improve
Brandon Smith is looking to make some noise after a relatively quiet 2006 campaign.
The sophomore wide receiver from Baskersfield, Calf., has formed a bond with Carpenter, who has seemed to take Smith under his wing this spring.
"(Rudy) has told me that I am needed in this offense and he has shown a lot of faith in me," Smith said. "I am going to try and give that back to Rudy and give it all I have on the field.
"Hopefully, I can make Rudy look good and he can make me look good."
Last season, Smith caught five passes for 130 yards, including two touchdowns.
With exceptional speed as the fastest receiver on the team with a 4.3 second, 40-yard dash, Smith hopes Carpenter can work with him to become a bigger part of this offense.
"(Rudy) is always like, 'Let's catch the ball today, let's get better at this and that today.' One day I was slow on my breaks and he said, 'Lets just focus on getting out of your breaks today.' We take it day by day."
Hargis moves again
A day after suiting up as an offensive lineman, redshirt freshman Jon Hargis was on the defensive line in what Erickson described as a depth move.
"Originally, we had him in the offensive front," Erickson said. "That's an area where we have to develop some depth. It didn't have to do with anything he was doing offensively."
Hargis joined ASU in 2006 from Mesa Red Mountain High School as one of the top-rated defensive lineman in the state.
Reach the reporter at: russell.brooks@asu.edu.
