Thursday, February 08, 2007
Younger Long brother becomes UVa object No. 1
London to stay at UVa. Full statement available on roanoke.com
Doug Doughty
Doug Doughty's UVa Insider is exclusive to roanoke.com and is posted by 5 p.m. Thursdays in season.
See Doug and Randy talk sports every week with the Sports edition of the TimesCast
Recent columns
Virginia football coach Al Groh had barely taken his seat Wednesday when he advised reporters that he might need to interrupt his signing-day news conference to speak to a recruit.
By then, Virginia already had received faxes from each of its 24 signees. The recruits to whom Groh might be talking would be juniors.
The first time his blackberry rang, Groh checked out the number, hit the mute button and kept on talking.
When it rang later in the news conference, Groh’s eyes lit up.
“This is a good one,” he said as he excused himself.
“Kyle, how are you?” Groh could be overheard as he walked out of the room.
Does anybody have to wonder who that was?
Could it have been Kyle Long, a 6-foot-7, 290-pound offensive lineman and defensive lineman who is rated the state’s No. 1 junior by The Roanoke Times?
Long is the younger brother of Chris Long, one of the Cavaliers’ co-captains as a junior this past season and the on-field face of the program for 2007. Their father is Howie Long, a former star defensive linemen for the Oakland Raiders, member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and Fox Sports Analyst.
Chris Long, rated one of the top five prospects in Virginia by The Roanoke Times, owed some of his attractiveness as a recruit to the Long name. Even when he signed with Virginia, there were questions about the level of competition he had faced at St. Anne’s-Belfield in Charlottesville.
The interest that Kyle Long has drawn to this point also has something to do with the Long name, the Chris Long name. The oldest brother has answered any and all questions about private-school players at the college level.
(It’s worth noting that STAB’s opponent in this year’s private-school state championship, Christchurch, boasted a UVa recruit in J’Courtney Williams who is rated the No. 3 linebacker in the country by SuperPrep).
Even on a day when Peter Lalich became the most celebrated quarterback to sign with Virginia during the Al Groh era, the point could be made that the Kyle Long recruiting represents a watershed for the UVa coach.
The Longs live in Albemarle County, an older brother is the star of the team and dad Howie recently voiced his support for the program in an interview with Charlottesville sports editor J. Hootie Ratcliffe (J’Hootie, we call him).
I remember standing on the sidelines during the 2004 Nike camp at Virginia, where Kyle Long was helping with security. More of a baseball player at that point, he had only begun to emerge as a football prospect but said his goal was to play both sports at UVa.
What would it say, then, if Kyle Long rejects Virginia and signs with Ohio State or one of the other perennial national powers that are recruiting him?
Nobody is going to say that Virginia has a better program than Ohio State, but the Cavaliers had made four straight bowl appearances before dropping to 5-7 this year. With the options he will have, Kyle Long doesn’t have to settle for mediocrity.
Virginia’s mission in the days ahead will be to convince Kyle Long that better days are ahead. I have never spoken to Howie Long, but he does not strike me as the kind of guy who will tell his son to go to Virginia or not to go to Virginia.
I can imagine brother Chris talking up the Cavaliers when he goes home, but, as close as the Longs are to the situation, they will know what kind of future son No. 2 faces.
The nature of recruiting noawadays is that recruits commit so early that Kyle Long could make a decision before the 2007 season is under way. That’s where the power of persuasion comes in.
Who could blame Groh for keeping his phone open?
