Chuck Long
Encyclopedia
Chuck Long is an American football
coach. He played quarterback
in college at Iowa
for Hayden Fry
and professionally with the Detroit Lions
and the Los Angeles Rams. He is an inductee of the College Football Hall of Fame
. In the January 2008 issue of San Diego Magazine
he was chosen as one of the "50 People to Watch in 2008". He was fired by San Diego State University
as its head football coach on November 23, 2008. Long is the offensive coordinator for the Kansas Jayhawks
under new head coach Turner Gill
.
, Chuck Long attended Wheaton North High School
and played football, basketball, and baseball. He led his team to the 1979 state title in football as the starting quarterback and was named to the all-state championship squad. Long also gathered all-state honors in 1980.
Still, Long was not heavily recruited out of high school, as Long averaged only five to six pass attempts per game. As a result, he did not receive his first recruiting call until Thanksgiving of his senior year. Just three schools looked into offering him a scholarship: Northern Illinois
, Northwestern
, and Iowa
. Long eventually accepted a scholarship to play at Iowa for future Hall of Fame
coach Hayden Fry
.
in 1981. However, the redshirting rule was new, so Long was able to take a couple of snaps during his redshirt season. The rule has since been changed; now, a player cannot participate in a single play during his redshirt season. While Long played very sparingly in 1981, he did run a couple of plays at the very end of the 1982 Rose Bowl
.
Before the 1982 season, Hayden Fry
said that Long was "destined for greatness", which was a bold statement considering that Long was so lightly recruited out of high school. Chuck Long started in the first game of the 1982 season, but he was benched for a game after a loss to Nebraska. He was reinserted as a starter in the third game of the 1982 season and led Iowa to a win over Arizona
. Long never lost his starting spot again while at Iowa.
Long threw for 1,374 yards and eight touchdowns as a freshman. It was the third most passing yardage in a single season ever at Iowa, behind Gary Snook and Larry Lawrence. His 64.2 completion percentage was a school record. Iowa had a 7–4 record before defeating Tennessee
in the 1982 Peach Bowl. Long was the offensive player of the game after completing 19 of 26 passes for a career high 304 yards.
As a sophomore in 1983, Chuck Long passed for a school record 345 yards in a 42–35 win at Penn State
. It is still the most points ever scored against Penn State in Happy Valley as Nebraska's 1983 Turner Gill led 44-6 victory over Penn State was at the Meadowlands in the Kickoff Classic. A few weeks later, he completed just 12 of 27 passes in a loss to Illinois; it would be the only time in his college career as a starter that he failed to complete at least half of his passes. The following week against Northwestern, Long broke his own school record for passing yards and helped Iowa set a new conference record with 713 yards of total offense. He accounted for 398 yards of total offense, also a school record. By the end of his sophomore year, Chuck Long owned Iowa's school records for yards passing in a season and a career, touchdown passes in a season and a career, and total offense in a season and a career. He led Iowa to a 9–2 record in 1983 and a berth in the Gator Bowl
after being named first team all-Big Ten
.
Chuck Long was again an all-Big Ten selection as a junior in 1984, as he finished first in the Big Ten
in passing efficiency. Long completed 22 consecutive passes against Indiana
, setting an NCAA record. He also finished seventh in the Heisman Trophy
balloting as a junior. Iowa had a 7-4-1 record after the 1984 regular season and accepted an invitation to the Freedom Bowl
against Texas.
A windy, rainy day did not slow Long in what some felt might be his final college game. Iowa destroyed Texas, 55–17, the second most points ever scored against Texas and the most in 80 years. Long broke a 24–17 game at halftime wide open by completing 12 of 14 passes for 241 yards and four touchdowns in the third quarter alone. For the game, Chuck Long was easily the offensive MVP as he completed a school record 29 passes in 39 attempts for a bowl record 461 yards and a bowl record 6 touchdowns.
In Iowa's first game at #1, the Hawkeyes played Michigan State. A seesaw game had Michigan State
leading, 31-28, in the waning minutes. Long drove Iowa the length of the field, and the Hawkeyes faced fourth and goal from the two yard line with just 27 seconds remaining. Since college football had no overtime rule at the time, Iowa needed to go for the touchdown and the win rather than attempt a tie. Chuck Long faked a handoff to running back Ronnie Harmon
and then ran to his right. His fake had fooled the Spartan defenders, and Long ran into the endzone, holding the ball high above his head as he crossed the goal line to give Iowa a 35-31 victory. He completed a school record 30 passes on 39 attempts for 380 yards and scored five touchdowns (four passing and the game winning score rushing) in the game.
Two weeks later, #1 Iowa faced #2 Michigan
in Kinnick Stadium
. Iowa trailed 10-9 as the Hawkeyes regained possession of the football at their own 22 yard line with just 5:27 remaining in the game. Long led Iowa on a 66 yard drive against the nation's top ranked defense, twice converting third-and-eight situations by completing passes to tight end Mike Flagg. Long drove the Iowa team to the 12 yard line with two seconds remaining to set up kicker Rob Houghtlin's game winning field goal as time expired. Chuck Long completed 26 of 39 passes for 297 yards in Iowa's 12-10 win.
A loss to Ohio State
cost Iowa their #1 ranking, but the Hawkeyes still won the Big Ten title outright for the first time in 27 years. Chuck Long won many major national awards as a senior, including the 1985 Maxwell Award
, given to the nation's top player and the Davey O'Brien Award
, given to the nation's top quarterback. He was the Big Ten Player of the Year
and a consensus first team All-American
. Finally, Chuck Long was the runner-up for the Heisman Trophy
to Bo Jackson
of Auburn in the second closest race in the award's history, losing by just 45 points.
Though Iowa lost in Chuck Long's final game in the 1986 Rose Bowl
, the loophole with the redshirting rule allowed Long to play in his fifth bowl game
. He is believed to be the only collegiate player to participate in five bowl games.
Long's Iowa teams compiled a 35-13-1 record. He graduated with 10,461 passing yards and 74 touchdowns on 782 completions. He held every passing record at the University of Iowa
except one (passes attempted in a game) when he graduated. Long holds the best completion percentage of any college quarterback all-time who has attempted more than 1,000 career passes. He was also the first Big Ten player and just the second player in college football history to throw for more than 10,000 yards in a career. Chuck Long was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame
in 1999 and the Iowa Sports Hall of Fame
in 2001.
in 1986, Chuck Long's NFL career was disappointing. During Long's rookie season in the NFL, he was called into a game after an injury suffered by then-starting Quarterback Joe Ferguson
. On his first career NFL pass attempt, Long threw a 64 yard touchdown pass against Tampa Bay. His best season was 1987, in which he threw 2,598 yards, 11 touchdowns and 20 interceptions. Long played for the Lions from 1986–1989 before being traded to the Los Angeles Rams in 1990. After one year in Los Angeles, Long returned to Detroit for the 1991 season, though he did not attempt any passes.
Long switched to coaching Iowa's quarterbacks and special teams in 1998. After the 1998 season, Iowa coach Hayden Fry
retired, and though Long was considered for the job, Fry was ultimately succeeded by Kirk Ferentz
. Ferentz retained Long from Fry's staff, and Long served Ferentz in the same capacity for the 1999 season.
After five seasons coaching at Iowa, Long left the Hawkeyes to become the quarterbacks coach at Oklahoma. Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops
and Long were teammates on Iowa's 1982 Rose Bowl team. Long was an assistant on the Oklahoma team that claimed the 2000 Bowl Championship Series
national title. He coached quarterback Josh Heupel
to a second place finish in the Heisman Trophy balloting that year.
After the 2001 season, Long was promoted to Oklahoma's offensive coordinator position. Oklahoma won the Rose Bowl following the 2002 season, and in 2003, the Sooners set a Big 12 Conference
record by averaging 51.5 points per game.
In 2004, Long was named as a finalist for the Broyles Award as the nation's top assistant coach. He was an assistant coach at Oklahoma for six seasons, including four as an offensive coordinator, and Oklahoma compiled a 67–11 record during his time there.
After the 2005 season, Long landed his first head coaching position when he was hired as the 16th head football coach at San Diego State University
. Long had a record of 9–27 in three seasons as SDSU's head coach. On November 23, 2008, college president Stephen Weber announced that Athletic Director Jeff Schemmel had dismissed Long prior to the final game of the season. Coach Long finished his third season only winning 2 out of 12 games, including the one conference win on his final night. San Diego State finished the 2008 season with a 2–10 record, the first and only ten-loss season in school history. Long also had the distinction of having his team lose two games to Division 1-AA Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (in his first and third seasons with the Aztecs, respectively).
Chuck Long is currently the offensive coordinator for the Kansas Jayhawks. Long became part of the coaching staff under head coach Turner Gill after the departure of Mark Mangino, Long's former co-worker at Oklahoma.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
coach. He played quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
in college at Iowa
Iowa Hawkeyes football
The Iowa Hawkeyes football team is the interscholastic football team at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa. The Hawkeyes have competed in the Big Ten Conference since 1900, and are currently a Division I Football Bowl Subdivision member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
for Hayden Fry
Hayden Fry
John Hayden Fry is a former American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at Southern Methodist University , North Texas State University, now the University of North Texas , and the University of Iowa , compiling a career college football record of 232–178–10...
and professionally with the Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
and the Los Angeles Rams. He is an inductee of the College Football Hall of Fame
College Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. Located in South Bend, Indiana, it is connected to a convention center and situated in the city's renovated downtown district, two miles south of the University of Notre Dame campus. It is slated to move...
. In the January 2008 issue of San Diego Magazine
San Diego Magazine
San Diego Magazine is a monthly publication concerning life in the San Diego region. This is the city’s longest running lifestyle publication and has continued to prosper and evolve throughout its 60-year history...
he was chosen as one of the "50 People to Watch in 2008". He was fired by San Diego State University
San Diego State University
San Diego State University , founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, is the largest and oldest higher education facility in the greater San Diego area , and is part of the California State University system...
as its head football coach on November 23, 2008. Long is the offensive coordinator for the Kansas Jayhawks
Kansas Jayhawks
The sports teams at the University of Kansas are known as the Jayhawks. They are one of three schools in the state of Kansas that participate in NCAA Division I. The Jayhawks are also a member of the Big 12 Conference...
under new head coach Turner Gill
Turner Gill
Turner Hillery Gill is an American football coach who most recently served as the head coach at Kansas from 2010-2011, and was one of 11 African-American head coaches in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision at the time of his hiring.-College:Gill graduated from Arlington Heights High...
.
Background
Raised in Wheaton, IllinoisWheaton, Illinois
Wheaton is an affluent community located in DuPage County, Illinois, approximately west of Chicago and Lake Michigan. Wheaton is the county seat of DuPage County...
, Chuck Long attended Wheaton North High School
Wheaton North High School
Wheaton North High School, or WNHS, and locally referred to as "North," is a public four-year high school. It is located at the corner of Geneva Road and Gary Avenue in the northwest corner of Wheaton, Illinois, a middle-class western suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States...
and played football, basketball, and baseball. He led his team to the 1979 state title in football as the starting quarterback and was named to the all-state championship squad. Long also gathered all-state honors in 1980.
Still, Long was not heavily recruited out of high school, as Long averaged only five to six pass attempts per game. As a result, he did not receive his first recruiting call until Thanksgiving of his senior year. Just three schools looked into offering him a scholarship: Northern Illinois
Northern Illinois University
Northern Illinois University is a state university and research institution located in DeKalb, Illinois, with satellite centers in Hoffman Estates, Naperville, Rockford, and Oregon. It was originally founded as Northern Illinois State Normal School on May 22, 1895 by Illinois Governor John P...
, Northwestern
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
, and Iowa
University of Iowa
The University of Iowa is a public state-supported research university located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the oldest public university in the state. The university is organized into eleven colleges granting undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees...
. Long eventually accepted a scholarship to play at Iowa for future Hall of Fame
College Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. Located in South Bend, Indiana, it is connected to a convention center and situated in the city's renovated downtown district, two miles south of the University of Notre Dame campus. It is slated to move...
coach Hayden Fry
Hayden Fry
John Hayden Fry is a former American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at Southern Methodist University , North Texas State University, now the University of North Texas , and the University of Iowa , compiling a career college football record of 232–178–10...
.
Early years
Chuck Long redshirted for the Iowa HawkeyesIowa Hawkeyes football
The Iowa Hawkeyes football team is the interscholastic football team at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa. The Hawkeyes have competed in the Big Ten Conference since 1900, and are currently a Division I Football Bowl Subdivision member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
in 1981. However, the redshirting rule was new, so Long was able to take a couple of snaps during his redshirt season. The rule has since been changed; now, a player cannot participate in a single play during his redshirt season. While Long played very sparingly in 1981, he did run a couple of plays at the very end of the 1982 Rose Bowl
Rose Bowl Game
The Rose Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game, usually played on January 1 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. When New Year's Day falls on a Sunday, the game is played on Monday, January 2...
.
Before the 1982 season, Hayden Fry
Hayden Fry
John Hayden Fry is a former American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at Southern Methodist University , North Texas State University, now the University of North Texas , and the University of Iowa , compiling a career college football record of 232–178–10...
said that Long was "destined for greatness", which was a bold statement considering that Long was so lightly recruited out of high school. Chuck Long started in the first game of the 1982 season, but he was benched for a game after a loss to Nebraska. He was reinserted as a starter in the third game of the 1982 season and led Iowa to a win over Arizona
University of Arizona
The University of Arizona is a land-grant and space-grant public institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States. The University of Arizona was the first university in the state of Arizona, founded in 1885...
. Long never lost his starting spot again while at Iowa.
Long threw for 1,374 yards and eight touchdowns as a freshman. It was the third most passing yardage in a single season ever at Iowa, behind Gary Snook and Larry Lawrence. His 64.2 completion percentage was a school record. Iowa had a 7–4 record before defeating Tennessee
University of Tennessee
The University of Tennessee is a public land-grant university headquartered at Knoxville, Tennessee, United States...
in the 1982 Peach Bowl. Long was the offensive player of the game after completing 19 of 26 passes for a career high 304 yards.
As a sophomore in 1983, Chuck Long passed for a school record 345 yards in a 42–35 win at Penn State
Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University, commonly referred to as Penn State or PSU, is a public research university with campuses and facilities throughout the state of Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1855, the university has a threefold mission of teaching, research, and public service...
. It is still the most points ever scored against Penn State in Happy Valley as Nebraska's 1983 Turner Gill led 44-6 victory over Penn State was at the Meadowlands in the Kickoff Classic. A few weeks later, he completed just 12 of 27 passes in a loss to Illinois; it would be the only time in his college career as a starter that he failed to complete at least half of his passes. The following week against Northwestern, Long broke his own school record for passing yards and helped Iowa set a new conference record with 713 yards of total offense. He accounted for 398 yards of total offense, also a school record. By the end of his sophomore year, Chuck Long owned Iowa's school records for yards passing in a season and a career, touchdown passes in a season and a career, and total offense in a season and a career. He led Iowa to a 9–2 record in 1983 and a berth in the Gator Bowl
Gator Bowl
The Gator Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played at EverBank Field in Jacksonville, Florida. Held continuously since 1946, it is the sixth oldest college bowl, as well as the first one ever televised nationally...
after being named first team all-Big Ten
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
.
Chuck Long was again an all-Big Ten selection as a junior in 1984, as he finished first in the Big Ten
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
in passing efficiency. Long completed 22 consecutive passes against Indiana
Indiana University
Indiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...
, setting an NCAA record. He also finished seventh in the Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
balloting as a junior. Iowa had a 7-4-1 record after the 1984 regular season and accepted an invitation to the Freedom Bowl
Freedom Bowl
The Freedom Bowl was an annual post-season college football bowl game played at Anaheim Stadium in Anaheim, California, from 1984 to 1994. Beginning with the 1995 season, the Freedom Bowl's WAC tie-ins were merged with that of the Holiday Bowl and the game was dissolved...
against Texas.
A windy, rainy day did not slow Long in what some felt might be his final college game. Iowa destroyed Texas, 55–17, the second most points ever scored against Texas and the most in 80 years. Long broke a 24–17 game at halftime wide open by completing 12 of 14 passes for 241 yards and four touchdowns in the third quarter alone. For the game, Chuck Long was easily the offensive MVP as he completed a school record 29 passes in 39 attempts for a bowl record 461 yards and a bowl record 6 touchdowns.
The 1985 season
After much consideration, Chuck Long delighted Iowa Hawkeye fans by declaring that he would return for his senior season. He became an instant Heisman Trophy candidate, and Iowa was a preseason top five team. After three weeks in 1985, the Hawkeyes ascended to #1 in the national rankings.In Iowa's first game at #1, the Hawkeyes played Michigan State. A seesaw game had Michigan State
Michigan State University
Michigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
leading, 31-28, in the waning minutes. Long drove Iowa the length of the field, and the Hawkeyes faced fourth and goal from the two yard line with just 27 seconds remaining. Since college football had no overtime rule at the time, Iowa needed to go for the touchdown and the win rather than attempt a tie. Chuck Long faked a handoff to running back Ronnie Harmon
Ronnie Harmon
Ronnie Keith Harmon is a former professional American football player. After a standout career at the University of Iowa in the Big Ten Conference, he played for 12 seasons in the NFL. A 6", 220-lb...
and then ran to his right. His fake had fooled the Spartan defenders, and Long ran into the endzone, holding the ball high above his head as he crossed the goal line to give Iowa a 35-31 victory. He completed a school record 30 passes on 39 attempts for 380 yards and scored five touchdowns (four passing and the game winning score rushing) in the game.
Two weeks later, #1 Iowa faced #2 Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
in Kinnick Stadium
Kinnick Stadium
Kinnick Stadium, formerly known as Iowa Stadium, and known in the area simply as Kinnick, is a stadium located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the home stadium of the University of Iowa Hawkeyes, in the sport of college football...
. Iowa trailed 10-9 as the Hawkeyes regained possession of the football at their own 22 yard line with just 5:27 remaining in the game. Long led Iowa on a 66 yard drive against the nation's top ranked defense, twice converting third-and-eight situations by completing passes to tight end Mike Flagg. Long drove the Iowa team to the 12 yard line with two seconds remaining to set up kicker Rob Houghtlin's game winning field goal as time expired. Chuck Long completed 26 of 39 passes for 297 yards in Iowa's 12-10 win.
A loss to Ohio State
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
cost Iowa their #1 ranking, but the Hawkeyes still won the Big Ten title outright for the first time in 27 years. Chuck Long won many major national awards as a senior, including the 1985 Maxwell Award
Maxwell Award
The Maxwell Award is presented annually to the collegiate American football player judged by a panel of sportscasters, sportswriters, and National Collegiate Athletic Association head coaches and the membership of the Maxwell Football Club to be the best football player in the United States. The...
, given to the nation's top player and the Davey O'Brien Award
Davey O'Brien Award
The Davey O'Brien Award, officially the Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award, named after Davey O'Brien, is presented annually to the collegiate American football player adjudged by the Davey O'Brien Foundation to be the best of all National Collegiate Athletic Association quarterbacks. The...
, given to the nation's top quarterback. He was the Big Ten Player of the Year
Chicago Tribune Silver Football
The Chicago Tribune Silver Football is awarded by the Chicago Tribune to the college football player determined to be the best player from the Big Ten Conference. The award has been presented annually since 1924, when Red Grange of Illinois was the award's first recipient.The winner of the Silver...
and a consensus first team All-American
College Football All-America Team
The College Football All-America Team is an honor given annually to the best American college football players at their respective positions. The original usage of the term All-America seems to have been to the 1889 College Football All-America Team selected by Casper Whitney and published in This...
. Finally, Chuck Long was the runner-up for the Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
to Bo Jackson
Bo Jackson
Vincent Edward "Bo" Jackson is a former American baseball and football player. He was the first athlete to be named an All-Star in two major American sports, and also won the Heisman Trophy in 1985....
of Auburn in the second closest race in the award's history, losing by just 45 points.
Though Iowa lost in Chuck Long's final game in the 1986 Rose Bowl
1986 Rose Bowl
The 1986 Rose Bowl was a college football bowl game played on January 1, 1986. It was the 72nd Rose Bowl Game. The UCLA Bruins defeated the Iowa Hawkeyes 45-28. UCLA tailback Eric Ball was named the Rose Bowl Player Of The Game. He ran for a Rose Bowl record four touchdowns.-Iowa Hawkeyes:Iowa...
, the loophole with the redshirting rule allowed Long to play in his fifth bowl game
Bowl game
In North America, a bowl game is commonly considered to refer to one of a number of post-season college football games. Prior to 2002, bowl game statistics were not included in players' career totals and the games were mostly considered to be exhibition games involving a payout to participating...
. He is believed to be the only collegiate player to participate in five bowl games.
Long's Iowa teams compiled a 35-13-1 record. He graduated with 10,461 passing yards and 74 touchdowns on 782 completions. He held every passing record at the University of Iowa
University of Iowa
The University of Iowa is a public state-supported research university located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the oldest public university in the state. The university is organized into eleven colleges granting undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees...
except one (passes attempted in a game) when he graduated. Long holds the best completion percentage of any college quarterback all-time who has attempted more than 1,000 career passes. He was also the first Big Ten player and just the second player in college football history to throw for more than 10,000 yards in a career. Chuck Long was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame
College Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. Located in South Bend, Indiana, it is connected to a convention center and situated in the city's renovated downtown district, two miles south of the University of Notre Dame campus. It is slated to move...
in 1999 and the Iowa Sports Hall of Fame
Iowa Sports Hall of Fame
The Iowa Sports Hall of Fame, sponsored by the Des Moines Register, honors outstanding athletes and sports contributors. To be eligible, members must have either been born in Iowa or gained prominence while competing for a college or university in Iowa....
in 2001.
Professional career
Drafted #12 overall by the Detroit LionsDetroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
in 1986, Chuck Long's NFL career was disappointing. During Long's rookie season in the NFL, he was called into a game after an injury suffered by then-starting Quarterback Joe Ferguson
Joe Ferguson
Joseph Carlton Ferguson, Jr. is a former American football quarterback in the NFL. Ferguson played college football at the University of Arkansas, where he still holds the school's single game record for most completions and in that same season was named the Southwest Conference's Offensive...
. On his first career NFL pass attempt, Long threw a 64 yard touchdown pass against Tampa Bay. His best season was 1987, in which he threw 2,598 yards, 11 touchdowns and 20 interceptions. Long played for the Lions from 1986–1989 before being traded to the Los Angeles Rams in 1990. After one year in Los Angeles, Long returned to Detroit for the 1991 season, though he did not attempt any passes.
Coaching career
Chuck Long transitioned to a career as a football coach. He returned to his alma mater in 1995, serving as Iowa's defensive backs coach. Though Long had no coaching experience and had played on the offensive side of the ball for his entire career, he quickly became a respected defensive coach. In his three seasons coaching defensive backs from 1995–1997, Iowa posted a 24–12 record and advanced to a bowl game all three years. Iowa led the nation in interceptions returned for touchdowns in 1995, while the 1997 squad led the Big Ten in interceptions.Long switched to coaching Iowa's quarterbacks and special teams in 1998. After the 1998 season, Iowa coach Hayden Fry
Hayden Fry
John Hayden Fry is a former American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at Southern Methodist University , North Texas State University, now the University of North Texas , and the University of Iowa , compiling a career college football record of 232–178–10...
retired, and though Long was considered for the job, Fry was ultimately succeeded by Kirk Ferentz
Kirk Ferentz
Kirk James Ferentz is an American football coach and former player. He is currently the head football coach at the University of Iowa, a position he has held since 1999. From 1990 to 1992, Ferentz was the head football coach at the University of Maine. He has also served as an assistant coach...
. Ferentz retained Long from Fry's staff, and Long served Ferentz in the same capacity for the 1999 season.
After five seasons coaching at Iowa, Long left the Hawkeyes to become the quarterbacks coach at Oklahoma. Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops
Bob Stoops
Robert Anthony "Bob" Stoops is the head coach of the University of Oklahoma football team. During the 2000 season, Stoops led the Sooners to an Orange Bowl victory and a national championship....
and Long were teammates on Iowa's 1982 Rose Bowl team. Long was an assistant on the Oklahoma team that claimed the 2000 Bowl Championship Series
Bowl Championship Series
The Bowl Championship Series is a selection system that creates five bowl match-ups involving ten of the top ranked teams in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision , including an opportunity for the top two to compete in the BCS National Championship Game.The BCS relies on a combination of...
national title. He coached quarterback Josh Heupel
Josh Heupel
Josh Heupel, , is the current co-offensive coordinator at the University of Oklahoma. He was the quarterback for the Oklahoma Sooners football team in 1999-2000, and led Oklahoma to the 2000 national championship.-Personal:...
to a second place finish in the Heisman Trophy balloting that year.
After the 2001 season, Long was promoted to Oklahoma's offensive coordinator position. Oklahoma won the Rose Bowl following the 2002 season, and in 2003, the Sooners set a Big 12 Conference
Big 12 Conference
The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference of ten schools located in the Central United States, with its headquarters located in Las Colinas, a community in the Dallas, Texas suburb of Irving...
record by averaging 51.5 points per game.
In 2004, Long was named as a finalist for the Broyles Award as the nation's top assistant coach. He was an assistant coach at Oklahoma for six seasons, including four as an offensive coordinator, and Oklahoma compiled a 67–11 record during his time there.
After the 2005 season, Long landed his first head coaching position when he was hired as the 16th head football coach at San Diego State University
San Diego State University
San Diego State University , founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, is the largest and oldest higher education facility in the greater San Diego area , and is part of the California State University system...
. Long had a record of 9–27 in three seasons as SDSU's head coach. On November 23, 2008, college president Stephen Weber announced that Athletic Director Jeff Schemmel had dismissed Long prior to the final game of the season. Coach Long finished his third season only winning 2 out of 12 games, including the one conference win on his final night. San Diego State finished the 2008 season with a 2–10 record, the first and only ten-loss season in school history. Long also had the distinction of having his team lose two games to Division 1-AA Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (in his first and third seasons with the Aztecs, respectively).
Chuck Long is currently the offensive coordinator for the Kansas Jayhawks. Long became part of the coaching staff under head coach Turner Gill after the departure of Mark Mangino, Long's former co-worker at Oklahoma.