J. Ryan Casey staff writer

With much of the controversies surrounding the ASU football program and the recent arrest of former runningback Loren Wade on charges of murder, many college football programs are re-examining their approach to recruiting.

The character of possible recruits is getting even more heavily examined and the debate begins about when it is acceptable to take a chance on a student-athlete, dismissing former problems as a young person making a mistake or marking it as a flaw in character.

The Arizona football program has a few players with some legal issues in their past, and head coach Mike Stoops has decided to take the side of giving young athletes a second chance. That decision appears to be one that could pay off for the players, Arizona football and Stoops.

Consider Ricky Parker, a defensive tackle kicked off ASU's team after he allegedly tried to attack his teammate with a 13-inch knife, according to an Arizona Daily Star article in March.

Dismissed from the Sun Devils after an arrest on the charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, Parker repeatedly violated "team, department and university policies," ASU head coach Dirk Koetter told The Arizona Republic in July of 2003.

Or even look to Byron Smith, a nose tackle who Stoops hypes as a "prototypical defensive lineman."

Originally committed to Nebraska, Smith was dropped by the Huskers when news spread alleging his involvement in a burglary. Next in line was ASU, but once they caught wind of his background, they backed off as well.

Who was there to swoop in?

Stoops.

Currently, Smith is awaiting a court date in Texas for the robbery charges, according to the same Star article.

It is important to note that while Parker was charged, he was never convicted after the July 2003 fight. There was also another notable coach hot on Parker's trail: Southern California's Pete Carroll.

The story here could be that these athletes have troubled pasts, and I could sit here and speculate on future problems they might cause, but that has already been written. Over and over.

Hidden underneath the arrival of these defensive linemen is the story of Stoops giving them a second chance at playing the game they love.

Stoops has acknowledged his players' past, so it's not as if he's pulling a Koetter - or a Gary Barnett for that matter - and acting like he wasn't aware of the problems surrounding his team.

Expect that if the two are not model citizens during their time here, Stoops will see to it that that time here is short.

There is, of course, the fear that Arizona football could turn into something that is becoming all too familiar.

Looking 100 miles to the north toward Koetter's ASU, is this a program that fans really want the Wildcats to model themselves after? It could be where the program's headed if it's not careful.

The folks in Tempe thought they had seen the worst in the mid-1990s basketball point-shaving scandal, but apparently not. After the March 26 arrest of Wade on charges of murdering a former teammate, ASU hit a new low.

Like the Wildcats' recruits, Wade came with a checkered past.

But remember, for every Wade, you have an example of a second-chance success story.

After a certain Sun Devil got in trouble with the law in the late '90s after an altercation at Circle K, ASU decided to give the young man another chance, and he remained with the team. That player, you ask? Pat Tillman.

Granted, Wade's history of crime far exceeds that of Parker and Smith, but Arizona football must tread lightly: Too many "second-chances" could lead to a Loren Wade-type situation.

Indeed, in a world where everyone anticipates immediate results, Stoops is trying his hardest to fulfill expectations. There are those who may say that in order to accomplish that goal, he has lowered his standards as far as his athletes' character goes, but I say that Stoops has raised expectations.

I'm not talking about going to a bowl game, or even a win-loss record, but instead about raising expectations within the athletes themselves. About making them believe that there will be a no-tolerance level as far as off-field altercations go. About holding Parker and Smith to higher standards than others on the team.

Stoops has started something in this town. The attitude has changed. No nonsense, just business.

J. Ryan Casey is a journalism sophomore. He can be reached at sports@wildcat.arizona.edu.