Two "Country Strong" Giants Are Finding Way in the City Giants running back David Wilson is now a starter with Ahmad Bradshaw gone. EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - David Wilson and Rueben Randle each hail from Southern country towns, one-time Confederate strongholds that eventually endured the effect of shuttered mills and a declining rural economy. Their fathers worked long hours, or two and three jobs, to make ends meet, and Wilson and Randle were weaned on the value of hard work and perseverance. Separated by several hundred miles - Wilson in southern Virginia and Randle in northern Louisiana - each player also starred at football. Last year, Wilson, a running back, and Randle, a wide receiver, were united by an uncommon achievement - they were the Giants" top two draft picks. Wilson, the first-round selection, and Randle soon became good friends. They needed each other, as neither was playing much, except on special teams. "We'd get together and talk about returning kicks," Wilson said. Because that's all we were doing. All that is very likely to change this year. On a Giants offense stocked with veteran talent, it is two largely unproven second-year players who could assume pivotal roles. On Sunday in the Giants season-opening game against Dallas, Wilson will not only be the starting running back charged with replacing the departed Giants star Ahmad Bradshaw, he will be standing in the way of blitzing linebackers and asked to preserve the health and well-being of the franchise quarterback Eli Manning. Randle has assumed the third receiver's job, an essential responsibility with opposing defenses double-teaming the featured receivers, Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz. In single coverage, Randle could become a favorite receiver for Manning. "This year when we get together, the conversation has changed to how much return work might be left for us," Randle, who is still the team's principal punt returner, said last week. There's other things on our plates now. But new duties have not changed their off-the-field habits as the two remain close, living on the same floor of an apartment complex in Secaucus, N.J. "Usually if you see one of us," Wilson said, "the other one is in the vicinity. We're home boys. We relate to one another, we were kind of raised the same. The backgrounds and upbringings of both players have come up in the Giants" locker room during the last week as part of the story of how and why each feels prepared for an increased workload this season. When Wilson was being questioned about his height and weight (5 feet 9 inches and 205 pounds) and was asked whether he was sturdy enough to block for Manning, he smiled and insisted he was "country strong." "Don't be fooled by my size; I'm a physical, strong guy," he said. I grew up chopping wood and building houses with my dad. It takes a lot of strength to lug 50 pounds of shingles up a ladder and onto a roof. Especially if you are doing it when you are only 10. "David worked construction with me since he was probably 6 years old and by the time he was 10, he could lift and carry as much as anybody," said Dwight Wilson, David's father. And by the time he was in high school, we'd be unloading cinder blocks from a truck, and David would be taking two or three at a time while everyone else was grabbing one. Dwight Wilson was a graphic artist and elementary school art teacher who rebuilt and renovated houses to augment his income. The Wilsons lived in Danville, Va., on the border with North Carolina. Dwight Wilson bought broken-down homes, renovated them and resold them, always with the help of his sons, David and Ronald. "Rebuilding a roof in that part of the country during a hot July day is no cakewalk, let me tell you," Dwight said. David got more than strong, he learned toughness. He was also a standout track and football athlete, and understood that others were watching him. Beginning in his senior year of high school, Wilson started wearing a collared shirt and tie, with dress pants and shoes, to classes every day. For the most part, he did it throughout his tenure at Virginia Tech as well. "A lot of the kids were wearing their pants down, and I wanted to look neat," Wilson said. People treat you different when you're dressed nicely.