SYRACUSE — Delone Carter and Curtis Brinkley have finally moved on since suffering season-ending injuries a year ago.

The casts and crutches are gone, and the injury talk has subsided. Carter and Brinkley are no longer saddled up on the training room tables, nursing hip and leg injuries, respectively. The Syracuse University running backs are on the field, sprinting straight ahead — preferably to the end zone — as only backfield comrades can.

With the duo healthy for the first time since the end of the 2006 season, the Orange hopes Carter and Brinkley can help SU gradually regain the glory the program once knew. They open the season at noon Saturday at Northwestern. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN2.

"It's a different attitude with everyone," said Brinkley, one of the Orange's 20 seniors. "The younger guys are pushing the veterans. Everyone just wants it."

Brinkley's biggest demand was to recuperate immediately after breaking his right tibia against Buffalo last season. The Philadelphia native had started the first eight games for the Orange, but the injury robbed him of keeping the role as the No. 1 running back.

Carter knew the feeling, except he had been stuck on the sidelines since spring camp. A former Mr. Football in Ohio, Carter was SU's best back during his freshman year in 2006, rushing for 713 yards and four touchdowns. Entering a seemingly limitless sophomore season, Carter dislocated his hip in a passing drill. While he redshirted the season, he wondered if future years would be lost.

"The toughest part was whether I was going to come back or not from that type of injury," said Carter, who will be a sophomore this season. "It was a real tough mental struggle."

Carter and Brinkley fostered a tighter bond through hours spent in the training and weight rooms. They convalesced together and didn't need to look far for motivation.

"I told him we were in it together, and we were going to battle back together," Carter said.

"It's bigger than football with us," Brinkley said. "We grew a strong relationship on and off the field and that came from being injured."

Though their injuries curtailed their participation in contact drills this past spring, Carter and Brinkley competed in workouts and ran through plays without absorbing hits.

Four months later, the rehabilitated running backs trotted out for Syracuse's first practice. No limp, no pain, no problems. Carter and Brinkley were 100 percent healthy.

"I'm pleased to see that they're both back from serious injuries," said Randy Trivers, SU's running backs coach. "They're really hungry to improve every day. It's a good thing to see because they were so frustrated being on the sidelines for so long."

Brinkley, at 5-foot-9 and 203 pounds, is showing that playful exuberance he exhibited last season with what Trivers calls "a darting, dashing style." Carter packs a punch with his 5-foot-10, 214-pound frame. Hitting oncoming tacklers is something he can do again with confidence.

"Seems like I can do it even better now," Carter said.

What needs to improve, however, is Syracuse's rushing numbers. The ground game appeared hapless at times last season without Carter and Brinkley. The Orange averaged two yards a carry, which was the worst mark in the country. Despite missing the final four games of the season, Brinkley was easily the team's top rusher with 371 yards.

"At the end of the day, the running backs should be the guys to step up and spark the offense," Brinkley said.

Brinkley and Carter are prepared to boost the trifling statistics — no matter who gets the starting job. According to the depth chart, head coach Greg Robinson has left the No. 1 spot open to Brinkley, Carter and sophomore Doug Hogue, and it's likely that the trio will share carries early on.

As for Brinkley and Carter, they're just glad the injury discussions are fading away, and the recovered duo can help turn the Orange's misfortune around.

"It's been in the pit of my stomach for the whole year," Carter said. "That's not our standard here at Syracuse. We're known for running backs. We're going to bring that tradition back."