Barrett Ruud

Barrett Ruud, Nebraska’s all-time leading tackler, spent five seasons as the Huskers’  linebackers coach from 2018 to 2022. Ruud entered the coaching ranks shortly after an eight-year NFL career.

Ruud spent his first four years in the profession in an off-field coaching role, but he was elevated to inside linebackers coach in January of 2018 at Nebraska. 

Ruud made a big impact with the Husker linebackers. In 2021 sophomore linebackers Luke Reimer and Nick Henrich combined for 207 tackles and both ranked among Big Ten leaders in tackles per game. 

It should come as no surprise that Ruud has produced prolific tacklers while coaching Nebraska’s inside linebackers. As a Husker linebacker himself, he recorded 432 tackles, 90 more than any other player in program history. Ruud then went on to make more than 650 tackles during his eight-year NFL career.

Nebraska (2014; 2018-22)

In his first season as a full-time assistant coach in 2018, Ruud’s inside linebackers helped Nebraska improve by 27 spots in the national scoring defense rankings from the 2017 season and by 61 spots in pass efficiency defense. Both of Ruud’s starting inside linebackers put together impressive seasons in 2018, with Mohamed Barry leading the team with 112 tackles, the best by a Husker linebacker since All-American Lavonte David had 133 tackles in 2011. Barry ranked second in the Big Ten in tackles per game and earned all-conference accolades. 

Dedrick Young II also had a career high in tackles in his lone season with Ruud as his position coach. Young totaled a career-high 83 tackles in 2018 to end his career with 284 tackles, the fifth-highest total in Nebraska history. In addition to his career high in tackles, Young also broke up a career-high five passes and intercepted the first pass of his career. 

In Ruud’s second season, Nebraska’s top three tacklers were inside linebackers. Barry led the Huskers in tackles for the second straight season with 89 stops, while Will Honas was second with 73 tackles, and Collin Miller was third on the team with 67 tackles. Barry earned All-Big Ten honors for the second straight season. 

Ruud adeptly rotated inside linebackers in 2020 as the Huskers battled injuries. Honas led the group with 57 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss and three sacks on his way to all-conference honors. Miller made 27 tackles in four games before a neck injury ended his playing career. The development of a pair of underclassmen highlighted Ruud’s coaching. Sophomore Luke Reimer made 40 tackles and five tackles for loss, while redshirt freshman Nick Henrich moved inside late in the season and finished the year with 27 tackles. The play of the linebackers helped Nebraska rank sixth in the Big Ten in total defense. 

Reimer and Henrich flourished under Ruud’s coaching in 2021, helping Nebraska allow just 22.7 points per game, the best by a Husker defense in 11 seasons. Nebraska’s 366.0 yards per game allowed also marked its best total in five years.

Reimer led Nebraska with 109 tackles, including five double-figure tackle games with 16 tackles against Buffalo and 19 against Purdue. Reimer also recorded six tackles for loss, broke up six passes and forced three fumbles and was an honorable-mention All-Big Ten selection. Henrich nearly joined Reimer in reaching 100 tackles, registering 98 tackles in his first full season as a starter. Henrich had three games with double-figure tackles, including a career-high 15 stops against Big Ten champion Michigan.

Both Reimer and Henrich dealt with injuries in 2022, including a season-ending injury to Henrich. Despite missing two games, Reimer still led Nebraska with 86 tackles en route to honorable-mention All-Big Ten honors for the second straight season.

Ruud also served as a defensive intern at Nebraska in 2014. That marked his first venture into the coaching profession and came two years after his NFL playing career ended.

Before Nebraska

UCF: Following an eight-year career as an NFL linebacker, Ruud got his start in coaching on the Nebraska staff as a defensive intern in 2014. Ruud then served as a quality control administrator at UCF in 2016 and 2017, helping the Knights to the greatest two-year turnaround in modern college football history, including a 13-0 record in 2017, when UCF was the nation's only unbeaten team and won the American Athletic Conference title and the Peach Bowl.

Ruud is in his fourth season overall working with defensive coordinator Erik Chinander. Ruud helped Chinander's UCF defense make dramatic improvements, especially in takeaways. The Knights were also among the top teams in the nation in takeaways, with their 58 takeaways in 2016 and 2017 ranking third among FBS schools in that time period.

Playing Career (Nebraska & NFL)

Ruud boasts extensive knowledge of the linebacker position from his playing days. He totaled a school-record 432 tackles in his Nebraska career, 90 more than any other Husker. He was a freshman All-American, a three-time All-Big 12 selection and a 2004 third-team All-American. Ruud played in the 2002 Rose Bowl, when Nebraska battled Miami for the national championship.

Following his NU career, Ruud was a second-round pick in the 2005 NFL Draft, when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected him with the 36th overall pick. Ruud spent eight seasons in the NFL, recording 658 tackles with six sacks, seven interceptions and six forced fumbles. He played six seasons in Tampa Bay and also played for Tennessee, New Orleans and Houston.

Personal

Ruud graduated with a degree in business management from Nebraska in 2005. He and his wife, Jenna, have two sons, Brooks and Hudson, and a daughter, Jaimes. 

Coaching Career

2018-22: Nebraska, Assistant Coach (Linebackers)
2016-17: UCF, Quality Control Administrator
2014: Nebraska, Defensive Intern