On Saturday, he was more nervous waiting to see what team would draft his son, Barrett, than the day he was drafted.

The nerves subsided when Barrett Ruud received a phone call around 5:30 p.m. CDT from the Bucs, telling the Nebraska linebacker he was their second-round pick.

``I was a lot more concerned, I guess, because he's my kid and I wanted him to go to the right place,'' Tom Ruud said. ``Tampa Bay is a good fit.

``It's the ultimate place to play if you're a defensive player.''

Tom Ruud knows his son is in good hands - defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin's. And he knows from experience what kind of guidance and expertise Kiffin can provide. Tom Ruud played at Nebraska from 1972-74, where Kiffin was his defensive coordinator.

``In my opinion, Monte Kiffin is one of the best football coaches alive,'' Tom Ruud said. ``I've got the utmost respect for him. Monte's a real special guy. It's a tried and true defense they play in Tampa Bay.

``They've got a lot of pride, and it starts at the top. Barrett's in a good situation there.''

Ruud provides depth at linebacker, something the Bucs need with their projected veteran starting lineup of weakside linebacker Derrick Brooks, middle linebacker Shelton Quarles and strongside linebacker Jeff Gooch. A ``natural middle linebacker,'' Ruud led the Big 12 last season with 143 tackles, which earned him All-America honors.

Though he played in the middle at Nebraska, the Bucs might also try him on the outside.

``The way we've always done things here is that we've never given anyone positions, they've always had to come in and earn positions,'' linebackers coach Joe Barry said. ``It's our job to make sure the guys fit, athletically and intelligently, into the defense, which he does. ... To say this kid can definitely come in and compete, there's no doubt about it.

``We wouldn't have drafted him in the second round if we didn't think he was capable of doing that.''

New England, Indianapolis and Philadelphia also showed interest in Ruud.

``It was pretty good until about that late first round, because that was kind of the earliest I was projected to go,'' Ruud said. ``Toward that time, I was getting real nervous. I had heard a lot of positive feedback from the Bucs and once their pick came up, I got real nervous. When I got the call, I was just ecstatic.''

Ruud grew up a Tampa Bay fan, but a ``bigger fan'' when they changed colors from orange to pewter and red in 1997. Brooks is his favorite football player and his cousin, John Howell, was the Bucs' fourth-round pick in 2001.

Ruud becomes the fourth second-generation NFL player on the Bucs roster, joining Brian Griese (Bob), Ryan Nece (Ronnie Lott) and Chris Simms (Phil).

``Without a doubt, we made a heck of a pick,'' Kiffin said. ``We need some depth at linebacker, we need a [middle] linebacker for down the road and years to come.''