Rudy Carpenter’s been around a long time now. He’s a tough kid -- given Arizona State’s offensive line and his tendency for hanging on to the ball just a little longer than his doctor recommends, he has to be. Saturday was Rudy’s 37th consecutive start since coming on as a redshirt freshman in 2005, a run that included the highest passer rating in the country as a redshirt freshman; the popular coup that deposed recently-appointed starter Sam Keller at the start of the 2006 season and probably contributed to Dirk Koetter’s firing at the end of the year; at least half a season hampered by a broken wrist that Carpenter apparently kept under wraps, so to speak (which also didn’t help Koetter’s cause); a memorable bloody lip, courtesy a brutal Thanksgiving beating at the hands of USC; and an epic junior sack total that hasn’t improved much through the first half of this year. You can’t say he hasn’t taken his lumps.

But there’s gutting it out through some pain, and then there’s playing on a broken ankle. It’s not quite as inspiring as it initially sounds:

Carpenter walked into the post-game press conference with a boot on his ankle. Later, two sources said the ankle is broken, and that ASU is calling it a sprain because it’s a nonweight bearing bone.

Whatever the extent of the injury, it clearly hampered Carpenter. He was 11 of 20 for 126 yards, with one interception that was returned for a touchdown. It was the first time since 2006 that Carpenter failed to throw a touchdown pass.
Although Erickson said Carpenter “looked ready to roll,” it appeared Carpenter was favoring the ankle. He threw off his back foot on several occasions rather than planting his left foot then throwing. Most notably, he underthrew wide-open receiver Chris McGaha on ASU’s first play, turning what might have been a touchdown into a 39-yard gain.

“I know I didn’t have as much as I needed to on a lot of my throws,” Carpenter said.

As the game wore on and he absorbed more hits, Carpenter’s ankle worsened. He finally left the game midway through the third quarter after a vicious hit by USC linebacker Rey Maualuga.

“I couldn’t even really walk that well,” Carpenter said.

True, in light of his usual punishment, it’s probably not very easy to tell the difference between Carpenter’s “moving normally” and his “noticeably limping.” The Arizona Republic suggests Rudy will start again off ASU’s upcoming bye week, even though, at 2-4 and 0-2 in the Pac-10, there’s not much to play for beyond the sake of playing. That shouldn’t be worth it for a guy who can barely limp off the field with a cracked bone in his ankle, but for someone with Carpenter’s tenacity and/or masochism, they might have to strap him down. Seriously, double up the restraints: the human body – even Rudy Carpenter’s -- can only take so much.