Chris Long
From NCAA College Football Information & Resource
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Chris Long (Born Christopher Howard Long on March 28, 1985 in Santa Monica, California) plays defensive end for the Virginia Cavaliers in the NCAA college football tournament. Son of Hall-of-Fame defensive end Howie Long, Chris is slowly making a name for himself as the leader of the Cavaliers' defense. From playing just half of the Cavs's scheduled games in his freshman year, to being the anchor of his defensive team as a senior, Chris has made quite a transition in his four years at Virginia. As a senior, Chris received the Ted Hendricks Defensive End of the Year Award after a solid season that saw the California native register league-leading numbers in sacks and tackles for loss. With the honor he received from The Hendricks Foundation, Chris became only the third Cavalier to claim a national individual football award.
Contents |
[edit] Personal Life
Chris is best known as the son of Hall of Fame defensive end and former Oakland Raider Howie Long and wife, Diane. He has two younger brothers named Kyle and Howie, Jr. Aside from football, Chris, a sociology major at Virginia, also plays basketball, baseball, and lacrosse.
[edit] High School
Chris attended St. Anne’s-Belfield School where he played four different sports. As a basketball player, Chris won the 2003 YMCA Slam Dunk Contest for high school students. As a football player, Chris played under coach John Blake and was a highly-touted and widely recognized football player not just on defense but on offense as well after being named as a three-time first-team all-state selection (defense & offense) and earn first-team All-Central Virginia honors as an offensive lineman. As a junior, Chris registered 85 tackles with 12 sacks and more than 20 tackles for loss enroute to being named as the 2002 Student Sports Junior All-American. As a senior, the three-time first-team All-Conference and two-time conference Defensive Player of the Year recorded 91 tackles, including 44 solo tackles, 23 tackles for loss and 15 sacks to help lead the team stay undefeated that year and claim the state title. The 2003 Gatorade Player of the Year in Virginia concluded his prep career with 43 sacks and 66 tackles for loss and had his jersey retired.
Among the many accolades he received include being named as a SuperPrep All-American, PrepStar All-American, honorable mention All-South by the Orlando Sentinel, and Central Virginia Defensive Player of the Year by the Daily Progress. He was also one of the top-ranked players in high school after being ranked No. 74 on Tom Lemming’s list of the top recruits in the nation, No. 6 Strongside Defensive End in the nation by Rivals.com, No. 8 defensive end by Tom Lemming and No. 11 by Collegefootballnews.com, No. 20 defensive tackle by TheInsiders.com, No. 26 on SuperPrep’s list of the top defensive linemen in the country, No. 19 player on TheInsiders.com’s Atlantic Hot 100 list and 24th on the Atlantic East Amazing 80 by Rivals.com, No. 3 by the Roanoke Times and No. 4 by SuperPrep and Rivals.com, and the no.2 best player in Virginia by the Charlottesville Daily Progress “Gold List.” In addition, Chris was named as a 4-star player by Rivals.com and a 3-star player by TheInsiders.com.
[edit] College
Chris committed to the University of Virginia when he was just a junior in high school.
[edit] 2004
During his true freshman year, Chris was a valuable addition in the Cavaliers' defensive line. However, Chris was hampered by mononucleosis and was limited to playing only six games. He saw limited minutes in his first three outings and after missing the next five, played in the last three to end the season with five tackles and two tackles for loss. He made his first collegiate tackle against North Carolina and registered his first tackle for loss upon his return from injury.
[edit] 2005
As a sophomore, Chris was honed in training camp and practices after being matched up with All-American offensive lineman D'Brickashaw Ferguson. He eventually earned a nod to start in all 12 games. In his first career start against Western Michigan, Chris recorded seven tackles to become the first Cavalier defensive lineman since 1987 to register that many tackles in his first start. Chris also had several outstanding performances in his first year as a starter, including the Georgia Tech game where he registered three tackles and hounded QB Reggie Ball with 10 quarterback pressures. He ended his sophomore season with another remarkable game in the Music City Bowl win over Minnesota where he finished with a then-career-high nine tackles, one of which coming from the backfield. He ended the season ranked no.2 among defensive linemen in tackles with a 3.8 tpg average, no.1 in quarterback hurries with 26, and a tie with Marcus Hamilton in pass break ups with seven. He also registered 46 tackles with 10 tackles for loss.
[edit] 2006
During his third year, Chris was one of the main anchors of the Cavalier defense that held opponents to only 289.5 yards per game which was ranked no.7 in the nation by season's end. He posted a season high 3 tackles for loss against East Carolina and recorded a career-high 10 tackles against Western Michigan. The team captain finished the season ranked no.4 in the team in tackles (57), no.4 among ACC defensive linemen in tackles per game (4.8), no.1 in the team in tackles for loss (12) and quarterback pressures (21) and was in on five sacks (4 solo, 1 assist). Chris' tremendous junior season campaign brought him several team awards that include the Ned McDonald Award (UVa’s top defensive player), the Colonel F.C. McCue Award (team’s outstanding interior lineman), and the Joe Palumbo Award (honors UVa player for self-sacrifice, dedication and enthusiasm). The three-time letterman was also honored as a Dudley Award finalist, a first-team all-state by the Virginia Sports Information Directors and the Roanoke Times, and a second-team All-ACC selection.
[edit] 2007
Chris, selected team captain for the second straight year, was a Preseason All-American and a Preseason All-ACC in his senior year. He started his final year of college football campaign with 7 tackles, two sacks, and six QB pressures (2nd-highest total in career) against Wyoming. He also produced several noteworthy performances throughout the season including games against Duke (team high 8 tackles, 2 sacks, 3 QB pressures), North Carolina (4 tackles, 1 sack, 1 INT), Georgia Tech (team high 9 tackles which also is the 3rd highest total in career to go along with a career high 3 pass break-ups), Middle Tennessee State (5 tackles, 2TFL, 1 blocked FG), Maryland (career high 10 tackles, 5TFL, 2 sacks to earn ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week honors), and Wake Forest (career-high 10 tackles and was named ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week for the 2nd time). Prior to the final home game of his collegiate career against rival Virginia Tech, Chris was honored with the retirement of his jersey then went on to end the game with 6 tackles and 2 sacks.
Chris ended the regular season as no.3 in the team and no.4 in the nation among linemen in tackling (6.3 tpg), no. 10 in the nation in TFLs (1.58/g), tied for no.6 in the nation in pass break-ups among defensive linemen (7), and tied for no.5 in the nation in passes defended among defensive linemen (8). He also recorded 14 sacks (tied for third in UVa history), and 21 TFLs (17 solo, 4 assist) which matches the school record. Chris finished the year with hordes of postseason recognition that include a spot at the First Team All-America (AFCA and Rivals.com), First Team All-ACC, ACC Defensive player of the year award, and the Ted Hendricks Defensive End of the Year Award.
[edit] Highlights
| Interview with Chris Long. |
[edit] Achievements
- 2007 First-Team All-America by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA)
- 2007 First-Team All-America Rivals.com
- 2007 Atlantic Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Year
- 2007 First-Team All-Atlantic Coast Conference
- 2007 One of four finalists for the Rotary Lombardi Award as the nation's outstanding lineman
- 2007 One of five finalists for the Bronko Nagurski Trophy as the nation's outstanding defensive player
- 2007 One of four finalists for the Ronnie Lott Trophy as the outstanding college defensive player of the year who has had the biggest IMPACT on his team both on and off the field
- 2007 Ted Hendricks Defensive End of the Year Award
- 2007 Semifinalist for the Bednarik Award as the nation's outstanding defensive player
- 2007 Dudley Award, given annually to the top player in the state of Virginia sponsored by the Richmond Times-Dispatch
- 2007 Mid-Season All-America team selected by CBSSports.com, CollegeFootballNews.com, SportsIllustrated.com, Rivals and Phil Steele’s College Football Preview
- 2007 ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week for his play against Maryland (Oct. 20)
- 2007 ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week for his play against Wake Forest (Nov. 3)
- 2007 Currently listed as the nation's sixth-best player by Rivals (Oct. 23)
- 2007 Listed as the No. 2 Defensive Draft Prospect by SI.com (Oct. 31)
- 2007 Listed second among the Top Ten Defensive Draft Prospects by SI.com (Oct. 31)
- 2007 Preseason All-American
- 2007 Preseason All-ACC
- 2006 Second-Team All-ACC
- 2006 First-team all-state by the Virginia Sports Information Directors and the Roanoke Times
- 2006 Ned McDonald Award as UVa’s top defensive player
- 2006 Joe Palumbo Award honoring UVa player for self-sacrifice, dedication and enthusiasm
- 2006 Colonel F.C. McCue Award as team’s outstanding interior lineman
- 2006 Dudley Award Finalist
[edit] References
- Chris Long Depends on Hard Work More Than Famous Name
- Chris Long Virginia Profile
- Chris Long Wikipedia
- Howie Long gives son Chris the room to grow as a player
