Young Bucs find their way quickly Ernest Hooper, The St.Petersburg Times, published 29 September 1997 The first instructions Bucs defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin gave rookie cornerbacks Ronde Barber and Floyd Young on Sunday may have been the most important. "We had to show them where the locker room was because they've never suited up before," Kiffin said. Barber and Young were last-minute additions to the game plan in the Bucs' 19-18 victory against Arizona. Cornerback Anthony Parker missed the game with a hamstring he injured against Miami, and second-year veteran Reggie Rusk, who had seen considerable action in Tampa Bay's nickel scheme, was cut Saturday so Young could be brought up from the practice squad. "We felt with Anthony going down, we felt we needed better cover guys," coach Tony Dungy said. GM Rich McKay said the team would like to sign Rusk to the practice squad or bring him back on the active roster. Less than 24 hours after being placed on the active roster, Young was donning a No. 31 jersey. And Barber, who had been inactive for the team's first four games, also was dressing out for the first time in the regular season. Neither had much time to think about what Bucs safety John Lynch calls one of the most difficult challenges in pro football. "It's one of the toughest positions in the league to come in and play as a rookie," Lynch said. "In some positions, you can hide, but at cornerback you're not going to be able to hide. You're on an island. They're young players, but I think they're going to be great players." Pressed into service, the rookies were simply hoping not to get flattened in their NFL debuts. "It's just unbelievable," said Young, one of several Bucs players culled from Division II Texas A&M-Kingsville. "My first NFL game. Think about it. Coming from a small school like A&M-Kingsville, it's just a privilege to suit up." Barber, a third-round pick out of Virginia, was equally grateful. "I was trying not to get too excited about it," Barber said. "You don't want to get too hot and melt yourself down. I basically took it in stride, not trying to blow it." Sixth-year veteran Tyrone Legette started in place of Parker and finished with a team-high 10 solo tackles as well as two passes defensed. Barber and Young, however, saw plenty of playing time. Of the two, Barber played more and seemed to have the more difficult time, including a 41-yard pass from Kent Graham to Rob Moore where Barber appeared to be in position but had his back to the ball. He finished with four tackles and no passes defensed. Young, who played primarily when the Cardinals used a four-wide receiver set, didn't record any tackles or passes defensed, but he wasn't beat for any significant plays. One of the primary reasons Young was brought in was his performance in practice. "That's an example of Coach Dungy's philosophy," Kiffin said. "He wants to reward players who have done well in practice, and he's just been getting better and better. Both those guys did a lot of growing up real quick today." Overall, the secondary remains a concern after allowing Graham to throw for 339 yards despite six sacks, some of which had to be attributed to the coverage. "But we come out with the victory, that's the bottom line," Young said.