Great Day for Wisconsin’s Dayne: 222 Yards

One down, one to go for Wisconsin’s unstoppable Ron Dayne.

With 222 yards in 32 carries in the Badgers’ 28-21 victory over Purdue Saturday, Dayne passed Tony Dorsett for second place in NCAA major-college career rushing, 98 yards behind Heisman Trophy winner Ricky Williams’ year-old record of 6,279.

“I was just out there having fun, doing what I had to do to help the team win,” Dayne said.

Now with 6,181 yards, he can break the record next Saturday at home in Madison, Wis., where the No. 10 Badgers, 8-2 overall and 6-1 in the Big Ten, finish the regular season against Iowa.

“I can’t wait,” said Dayne, who also had a 41-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter against the No. 17 Boilermakers (6-4, 3-4). “As long as we’re back home in front of the fans, that would be great to break the record.”

Purdue’s Drew Brees passed for 350 yards and one touchdown and ran for a career-high 85 yards and two touchdowns, but he had two passes intercepted by Jamar Fletcher, including one returned 34 yards for a clinching touchdown with 4:43 to go.

“It really came down to two things, turnovers and what you do with them,” Purdue Coach Joe Tiller said.

Brees tied the game at 14-14 in the third quarter with an 11-yard touchdown pass to Tim Stratton, then completed six more passes following a Wisconsin punt and took the Boilermakers to the Badger 19. Receiver Vinny Sutherland took the ball on a reverse and tried to pass to Stratton, but the throw was intercepted in the end zone by Bobby Myers on the second play of the final period.

The Badgers then moved 80 yards, including the 41-yard scoring run by Dayne, a Big Ten-record 69th touchdown of his career.

“I don’t think there’s any player that’s ever meant more to a program,” Wisconsin Coach Barry Alvarez said. “He’s what our program is all about, blue collar, tough, hard-nosed, not doing it the easy way, just doing what you have to do to win.”

Brees scored on a one-yard run late in the game, but Wisconsin covered the ensuing on-side kick.

Several hours before the game, the ex-wife of an ABC cameraman pulled a gun and fired two shots at him inside Ross-Ade Stadium. Samuel Tamez, 42, a freelancer, was not injured, and he wrestled Terry M. Tamez, 37, of San Antonio to the ground and held her for university police. The cameraman, at his request, was sent home. An ABC official said he believed the couple was involved in a child-custody dispute.