ASU’s Torain out for season

Running back Ryan Torain is out for the season with a Lisfranc sprain of his left foot, dealing a heavy blow to his NFL draft stock and leaving Arizona State without perhaps its best offensive player.

Coach Dennis Erickson on Wednesday described the injury — sometimes referred to as a “fracture” — as a damaged mid-foot ligament that stabilizes the big toe. Torain, who was hurt during the second quarter against Washington last week, will have surgery on Friday.

“He’s given so much to this program and this team,” Erickson said. “Things like this happen. That’s part of the game of football. It’s unfortunate for our team, but it’s unfortunate for Ryan, more than anyone.”

Torain, a junior-college transfer, rushed for 1,882 yards and 12 touchdowns on 333 carries in his 19-game ASU career. Mel Kiper, ESPN NFL draft guru, lists him as the No. 2 senior running back in the nation.

The 6-foot-1, 213-pounder was at practice on Wednesday, in crutches. He was not available for comment.

“Everything is hard to replace when you lose a guy like Ryan,” quarterback Rudy Carpenter said. “We lose Ryan, but we’re fortunate to have two guys behind him who could probably start anywhere in the country. Other guys have to start stepping up, including myself. We’ll see who’s up to the challenge.”

Junior Keegan Herring and sophomore Dimitri Nance will get the majority of carries for the 12th-ranked Sun Devils (7-0), who are off this week before hosting No. 10 California on Oct. 27. Sophomore Jarrell Woods, who has not played this year due in part to an ankle injury, should return soon.

“We’ll continue to do what we do,” Erickson said. “That’s why you have 105 scholarships. Our guys will play through it.”

Since the start of last season, Herring has been considered the shiftiness to Torain’s between-the-tackles physicality. He is 101 yards away from becoming the 16th player in school history with 2,000 yards rushing in a career.

Herring has five 100-yard games for the Sun Devils. Against San Diego State on Sept. 15, he rushed for 161 as Torain sat out with an ankle injury, and last week, he had 119, including a career-long 76-yard run for a touchdown.

After rushing for 870 yards in 2005, Herring was expected to enjoy a long run as a starter. Then, Torain emerged.

“You don’t want to take the place of someone who got hurt by playing good, hard-nosed football,” said Herring, who on Wednesday wrote Torain’s number, 26, on the athletic tape covering his cleats. “I would rather have gotten it after battling him to find out who was better.

“But this is the way it is, and Dimitri and I have to step it up.”

Nance, who at 204 pounds is about 20 pounds heavier than Herring, played as a true freshman last year and is averaging 5.2 yards on 37 attempts in 2007. He had a 58-yard touchdown run (a career long) last week.

“I don’t think it’s going to be a lot of pressure,” Nance said. “We have to fill some big shoes, but we just have to do what we were brought here for.”

As for Torain, about six months of rehabilitation awaits, but Erickson said that “we won’t know for sure until after the surgery.” He will likely be unable to participate in NFL scouting functions during the spring.

Two Sun Devil players have suffered Lisfranc injuries in recent years.

Cornerback R.J. Oliver was hurt at Camp Tontozona and missed the entire 2004 season. After being granted a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA, he returned to play the next year but was never at full strength.

Offensive lineman Grayling Love was injured midway through 2005. He signed a free-agent deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers and was a late cut in training camp a year ago.

For a running back, whose front foot is vital to shifting and acceleration, a Lisfranc injury can be extremely difficult to come back from. And that is the uncertainty that Torain — a first- or second-round draft choice when healthy — now faces in his football future.

“The bottom line is that seeing Ryan get injured after seven games of his senior year is very tough,” Erickson said. “His future is involved in this, and he will play again after this level.”