Giants coach Jim Fassel may want to use a similarly witty retort this week. With Tiki Barber, one-half of the Giants relatively equitable two-back system, in danger of missing Sunday's home game against the Washington Redskins with a pulled hamstring, second-year pro Ron Dayne assumes a greater responsibility for keeping the rushing attack moving.

In 19 regular season games with the Giants, Dayne has averaged 14.1 carries a game, with a high of 25 rushing attempts last Oct. 29 against Philadelphia. This season, Dayne's carries have increased from six on opening night in Denver to 16 in Kansas City to 19 against New Orleans last week, when he set a career high with 111 rushing yards.

If Barber is sidelined, Dayne could set a new career standard for number of carries in a game.

This week, both Dayne and Fassel have been asked repeatedly whether the young back is up to the task. Dayne thinks the question is, well, ridiculous. He probably would like to pull a McKay and remind everyone that the ball is not that heavy. What he does instead is point to his track record.

At the University of Wisconsin, Dayne was the most prolific rusher in NCAA history. Including bowl games, he rushed for a collegiate-record 7,125 yards. More to the point, he carried the ball 1,220 times, or an average of 26 times a game. As a freshman, he had 50 carries in a game against Minnesota. Two years ago as a senior, he took the ball 337 times in 12 games, or 28.1 a game.

Getting more carries in Barber's absence shouldn't be a problem for Dayne.

"I'm ready for it," Dayne said. "I was getting 30 back in school."

So why all the queries about whether he can assume a heavier load?

"I think it's kind of silly," Dayne said. "Like when they asked me if I hit a wall last year. How can you hit a wall when it's two backs and we're splitting time and toward the end of the year I wasn't getting any carries? I certainly didn't hit any wall. I think I can go out and carry the ball as many times as they give it to me."

Fassel, of course, isn't saying how many that will be. And even if he has a specific number in mind, there's a good chance the circumstances of the game will dictate changes in his plan.

Dayne's workload has been a constant source of discussion since he joined the Giants as their first-round choice last year. In college he assumed the vast majority of his team's rushing attempts and enjoyed the constant work. But with the Giants he has to share the load with Barber. And when Barber got hot late in the year, Dayne's role diminished. He had 25 total carries in the last three regular season games and never touched the ball in Super Bowl XXXV.

Dayne harbors no illusions that a big game Sunday will cause Fassel to re-evaluate his two-headed backfield.

"I had to change my mindset and get used to two backs," Dayne said. "I know it's going to go back to me and Tiki. We're a two-back team. There are going to be weeks where Tiki gets the load and I get fewer carries and there will be weeks when I get the load and Tiki gets fewer carries.

"Hopefully I'll tire out the defense (if he has to work solo on Sunday). I never got to carry the ball 30-35 times, so I can't really tell. I can see when I'm in there and they put Tiki in for an outside play - or even an inside play - he might break a long one. If they have Tiki in there running side-to-side and then they throw me in, you can see the defense is kind of worn down."

Another factor in the equation is that Dayne, at approximately 245 pounds, weighs about 15 pounds less than he did last year. Which begs the question, can a lighter back assume a heavier role?

Fassel believes he can. This week the coach was asked if he had more faith in Dayne now than he ever has.

"Yes, without a doubt," Fassel said. "I've always had confidence in him, even when people were asking certain questions about him last year. I've always believed that he's a competitive young man that has a lot of pride in the way he performs. He's done everything that I've asked him to do. He's trimmed down, he's in better shape, he's quicker, he's faster, and he knows what we're doing and he understands the game. Yes, I have no qualms about playing Ron Dayne the entire game."

His teammates are equally certain that Dayne will respond favorably if Barber becomes a temporary spectator.

"I think Ron has been preparing for this since he was a rookie," fullback Greg Comella said. "He's done a good job of paying attention, watching and learning. I'm confident in Ron. I think Ron's confident in Ron, and that is as important as anything."

Dayne admits his confidence is greater than it was a year ago when he was a rookie that was uncertain what to do on some pass plays. As with anyone in his position, he is more comfortable with a year of seasoning.

"The year's experience I had gave me a chance to almost sit back and watch," he said. "I didn't really run all the outside plays like I run this year, probably because he wasn't sure I could get to the outside. But with a year under my belt, I feel more confident and the coach feels more confident in me."

Dayne wants to display all of his talents - rushing inside, running outside, even catching passing. He had just one reception as a senior at Wisconsin and three last year. Last Sunday he caught his first pass of 2001, a 7-yarder. Dayne would even like to be used on third down, which has become almost exclusively Barber's.

"If you keep me in there on third down, I 'm good for it," Dayne said. "I can go out and catch a pass. It's not like I'm scared and don't want to catch a pass. If they want to throw me some balls, I'll catch them. They threw one to me and I caught it. Whenever they throw it, I plan on catching it."

Dayne is so happy to have had a reception, he rated it higher on his personal happiness meter than his career-long 55 yard run.

"Because I got caught on the run," Dayne said. "Next time I break out on my own like that, I plan on scoring."

It's all part of carrying the load Dayne may have to assume.

Related links - Michael Eisen Archive

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