Getting to Know … Rudy Niswanger

Name: Rudolph Nelson Niswanger.

Born: November 9, 1982 in Monroe, Louisiana. Located in northeast Louisiana Monroe and its twin sister West Monroe are separated by the Ouachita River, pronounced wash-eh-taw. That’s an Indiana name for good hunting grounds. The first name for the city was given to it by the French: Poste du Ouachita Parish. There are approximately 170,000 people in Ouachita Parish. Monroe was the birthplace for Delta Airlines, which was headquartered there from 1926 to 1941. There have been a host of pro football players who have come from Monroe, including Bubby Brister, Billy Joe Dupree, Stan Humphries, current Minnesota DT Pat Williams and Chiefs Hall of Famer Johnny Robinson. It was also the birthplace of basketball great Bill Russsell.

Family: Parents are Joe and Dee. Joe runs a truck parts business and some logging and regular dump trucks. Dee is a retired school teacher, who taught French and England for over 20 years. He has an older sister Jody and older brother Fritz. His family now includes his wife Patricia and daughter Emory.

Where does Rudolph Nelson come from? “Niswanger is a German name and my Dad when he and my Mom were having my brother and me and they were naming us, he wanted to go with German heritage names. So my brother is Fritz and Rudolph for me. It could have been worse, knowing some of the German names out there.

Attended: Ouachita Christian High School and Louisiana State University, class of 2006. He graduated with a degree in Kinesiology and a perfect 4.0 GPA.

Why LSU? “Growing up in Louisiana, there’s really only one place to go. I went on visits to Florida State and Texas A&M. But when I came down to it, I was born in Louisiana, I was raised there, I had pride in that state. I felt like that was where my heart was. I even tell that to recruits now coming out of high school: go to your in-state school. There’s so much more pride when you are playing for them, when it’s your team. It’s not just a team you are part of for a few years. It’s part of a team that you grew up loving. When you go back home, there’s nothing like having played for your state school.”

You were recruited by the infamous Nick Saban and his coaching staff to go to LSU. Tell us about Nick Saban and your impression of him: “He is a businessman 100 percent. He is there to win. He is there to be the most out of players. He is not there to coddle you. He’s not your best friend, he’s not your daddy. He’s your coach. It’s a work attitude. When he came into LSU, he made it about discipline. When he got there he saw there were little things that weren’t right, like when players went through the Friday walkthrough with shoes untied and their shirt wasn’t tucked in. They were little tiny things, but that whole attitude of not doing things correctly, carries over into people’s personal lives. He tries to create the atmosphere that every little thing you do it right, because that’s the way you are supposed to do it. Not because somebody is watching you and not because you are going to get something for it, you do it right because that’s the way it’s supposed to be done. That’s the way he is.”

Favorite meal: “I’m a steak and potatoes guy. And, because I can’t get it up here like back home, some great boiled crawfish.”

Favorite movie: “Shawshank Redemption. Whenever it’s on TV, I sit down to watch a few minutes of it and before you know it, I’ve watched the whole movie. It’s like Dancing with Wolves or Braveheart. It’s one of those movies that draws you in and keeps your attention.”

First Job: “I worked summers for my Dad’s companies, but my first real job came at LSU a summer job before my first year where I worked in this warehouse for Industrial Specialist Contractors. We went around and picked up trash, we swept up the warehouse, we dusted off shelves. That summer there was a flood and this company had an accountant and his house got flooded and we had to go out and pull up his carpet. Sometimes we were laying down in two, three-feet of water, disgusting mildew water and stuff. They obviously give the freshmen the worst jobs. It wasn’t like you clocked in and left. You had to work.”

What’s your ride? A 2001 GMC Sierra.

What was your first car? “A 1982 baby blue Cadillac. It was my grandmother’s car that she gave to my mom. When I was 15, that’s what I drove; I learned to drive in that car. I drove that for a few years before I got a used truck that my Dad got for me.”

How did you meet your wife? “We actually met in junior high. We went to high school and college together. We started dating my senior year in high school. I knew I wanted to marry her from the time I saw her; that was it.”

What’s the best thing about being a Dad? “Just coming home and you walk in and whether she’s playing or no matter what she’s doing, I say hello to her, and just how her face lights up. When I flew home from Carolina, she didn’t know we lost, nor would she have cared if she did know. She was just happy to see me. There’s nothing better than that.”

What was the hardest class you had in college? “The second physics class I took at LSU. I took the first test and I got 55 out of 100 on it. I figured I’m going to bomb this class. I kept studying and kept going and ended up pulling out an A. It was all this theoretical stuff with magnetism and electricity; it wasn’t up my alley.

Who is your hero? “My mom raised us as a single parent early on. The things she went through, the sacrifices to keep us in food and clothes. She raised three kids on a teacher’s salary. I still don’t know how she did that.”

What’s on your I-Pod? “Well, Damon (Huard) just loaded like 48 gigs of music on my I-Pod and on Brodie’s (Croyle), so I’ve got a lot of new stuff on there. But I’ve got different things. I’ve got my slow mix for coming home after games, just very chill calm music; some stuff is just instrumental, very slow. Then I’ve got a pre-game mix for going to the game, something totally different.

If you are on a road trip driving back to Monroe, what do you have to have with you? “If it’s me by myself, I have to have my I-Pod and a really good cigar; a Churchill cut, something like a Cohiba, Romeo & Julieta, maybe a Montecristo No. 2. If I’m with my wife, then it’s just the I-Pod.

What’s your bucket list? “My wife and I want to travel around Europe, six weeks, two months or so and travel all over. Before that, it’s win a Super Bowl. I won a state championship in high school, a national championship in college and there’s one more level. I want to win a Super Bowl here with the Chiefs.