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| OH OT Sam Longo - Ohio State |
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Sam Longo
6'5"/260/4.70
Bellbrook, OH
Offensive Tackle
Committed to Ohio State this afternoon
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| Re: OH OT Sam Longo - Ohio State |
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Posted by Vico in Recruiting | Jul.07.08
I
knew this one wouldn’t take long, but after finally getting the offer
he coveted the most, Sam Longo — an offensive lineman from Bellbrook,
OH — verbally committed today to the Buckeyes.
“It’s a big deal for me,” Longo said today, July 7. “I
cut it down to two schools (Ohio State and Penn State) and kept going
back and forth.
“I just thought if the offer closed up, could I live with it? I stopped worrying and jumped on it.”
Sam Longo
For those unaware, Sam Longo comes from the same high school as
current Buckeye Austin Spitler. Further, his dad — Gene Longo — is a
Bruce-era alum, having played for the Buckeyes from 1981 through 1984.
Longo was a big Buckeye fan, but it seems that his commitment followed
from the same reason Jonathan Newsome committed when he did: making
sure that the Tressel Vessel didn’t set sail without him. Indeed, Sam
is the 24th commitment in the class and, barring anything unforeseen,
there couldn’t be anymore than 5 scholarships available. I don’t know
the exact number, of course… I’m just more or less expressing amazement
by how big this class is going to be.
To be frank, I was shocked when word of the offer went public,
thinking that a guy like Sam Longo (as well as John Martinez out of
Utah) were contingency offers if Chris Watt decided to go somewhere
other than Ohio State. However, it appears the staff is looking to
take five offensive linemen in this class (they tried to take 5 in the
last class), and Longo will compliment previous commitments from Corey
Linsley (who I get sold on more and more with each day) and Jack
Mewhort. The Buckeyes are still in the thick of it for Chris Watt and
Marcus Hall. What this does mean is that previous plans for two tight
ends in the 2009 class and an extra defensive back or two might no
longer be on the table. Vlad Emilien might not be a Buckeye after all
if the Buckeyes take Hall and Watt.
I don’t know for sure, but the height and frame potential has me
thinking that Longo might be a left tackle for the Buckeyes in the
future. As always, Ohio kids who aspire to play at Ohio State are
always welcome. http://www.ourhonordefend.com/2008/07/07/sam-longo-commits-to-the-buckeyes/
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| Re: OH OT Sam Longo - Ohio State |
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Sam
Longo, an offensive lineman from Bellbrook High School, has verbally
committed to play football at Ohio State beginning with the 2009-10
season.
Longo is the 24th player in Ohio State's 2009 recruiting class and
is the third player from the Miami Valley to commit to the Buckeyes,
joining Northmont defensive back C.J. Barnett and Coldwater linebacker
Adam Homan.
"It's a big deal for me," Longo said today, July 7. "I cut it down
to two schools (Ohio State and Penn State) and kept going back and
forth.
"I just thought if the offer closed up, could I live with it? I stopped worrying and jumped on it."
Longo said he had offers from 32 different schools including Penn
State, Nebraska, Miami (Fla.), Florida State, Cincinnati and Boston
College.
He received an offer from the Buckeyes on June 25, and after more
than a week of consideration, including talking with former Bellbrook
linebacker and current Buckeye Austin Spitler, decided on OSU.
"I went out with an open mind," Longo said. "The people and the
coaches are the greatest guys in the world. I can trust them and in the
end of the day that's all that matters."
Longo said that he is 6 feet, 5½ inches tall and weighs 275 pounds and projects as an offensive tackle.
Longo's father, Gene Longo, was an outside linebacker for the
Buckeyes from 1981-1984 after transferring from Miami (Ohio) in 1980.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-0652 or modonnell@DaytonDailyNews.com. |
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| Re: OH OT Sam Longo - Ohio State |
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Worth The Long(o) Wait
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Longo is a Buckeye.
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Staff Writer
Posted Jul 7, 2008
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Ohio State added a big commitment when
Sam Longo issued his verbal to the coaching staff, but as it turns out
the rest of the nation is a little bit late in learning that fact. Get
the timeline leading up to Longo's decision and why he chose the
Buckeyes in this report.
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Sam Longo is a man who knows how to keep a secret.
On Thursday, July 3, the three-star offensive tackle prospect
decided that he was done waiting and issued a verbal commitment to
become an Ohio State Buckeye. But rather than call a press conference or speak publicly about the fact, Longo opted to take a different path.
“I just wanted to take time to call the coaches that had
offered me to tell them that I wasn’t going to their school,” Longo
told BuckeyeSports.com. “I think I’ve got two or three more, but I’m
almost done. I wanted to tell them personally rather than them hear
over the internet that I’m not going to their school.”
It was not an easy task with a list of offers that
numbers in the 30s, but Longo has opened up and has gone public with
his commitment – the 24th for OSU’s class of 2009.
One month ago, this date was just a far-fetched dream
for the senior-to-be at Bellbrook, Ohio. Although the Buckeyes had been
in contact since his sophomore season concluded, they had not offered
him until he made an unofficial trip to Columbus in mid-June.
There, he got the offer he wanted but did not immediately jump on it.
But when it came time to make his commitment, the 6-5, 260-pound Longo said the Buckeyes had an idea it was coming.
“I had sent (OSU offensive line coach Jim Bollman)an
e-mail earlier that day saying I was 100 percent sure I wanted to be a
Buckeye but I was just trying to find that one thing that pushed me
over the edge to commit,” Longo said. “I think they were both kind of
anticipating it a little bit but they definitely were happy to have me
be a part of Ohio State.”
That one thing that helped push him over the edge was
some advice from his father, Gene, who was an outside linebacker for
the Buckeyes from 1981-84.
“My dad just asked me, ‘Could you live with the fact
that you could never go to Ohio State if the offer went away?’ ” Sam
Longo said. “I just thought that I probably couldn’t, so I just jumped
on it because I didn’t know what I was waiting for anymore. I told (the
coaches) I was ready to be part of the family, and if they’d still have
me I’d be happy to be a Buckeye.”
In addition to Bollman, Longo said he spoke with OSU head coach Jim Tressel on Thursday as well.
Longo will join Bellbrook alumnus Austin Spitler on the OSU roster next season. Scout.com ranks Longo as the No. 42 offensive tackle prospect in the country.
His final decision came down to OSU, Cincinnati and Penn State.
When asked why he selected the Buckeyes, Longo said, “The
coaches, the people at Ohio State are great, I can trust the coaches,
they’re always competing for a national championship, my dad played
there, they’re right next door and I grew up in Ohio. “It’s every Ohio kid’s dream to play at Ohio State.”
The Buckeyes now have commitments from three offensive
linemen for their class of 2009. Longo joins Youngstown (Ohio) Boardman
guard Corey Linsley and Toledo St. John’s Jesuit tackle Jack Mewhort in the class.
“This is a real humbling experience, and I’m just glad to be a Buckeye,” he said. |
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| Re: OH OT Sam Longo - Ohio State |
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Ohio State football: Tressel has long history with '09 recruit's family
Wednesday,
July 9, 2008 3:06 AM
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel is not stalking the Longo family. It just looks that
way.
Sam Longo, an offensive lineman from Bellbrook High School, near Dayton, announced his
commitment to the Buckeyes' 2009 recruiting class Monday.
That will continue a relationship that began when Sam's father, Gene, played linebacker at Miami
University in 1980. Tressel was on that staff, coaching quarterbacks and receivers.
Gene transferred to Ohio State in 1981. Two years later, Tressel was hired as a Buckeyes
assistant.
That history was not the deciding factor in choosing Ohio State, Sam said, "but it was an added
bonus. (Gene) has been around coach Tressel and knows what kind of guy he is, so when he tells me
what coach Tressel is like, I could believe it."
And what was Tressel like in Gene's playing days?
"Always very personable to everyone," Gene said. "I was pretty low on the totem pole (he was a
walk-on at Ohio State and never earned a letter), but I had some nice conversations with him. I
didn't think he'd remember me, but he did."
Sam Longo, 6 feet 5 and 270 pounds, is ranked the No. 20 offensive tackle in the nation by
Rivals.com. He sorted through roughly 30 scholarship offers before choosing Ohio State.
As part of that process, he and his father took a three-week nationwide tour of campuses in
June.
"California, Boston College, (University of) Miami, Michigan State … a lot of places," Gene
said. "It was an expensive trip but worth it."
Sam said, "It was tiring, but it was a great experience. You only go through recruiting
once."
Longo is the 24th commitment to the class of 2009. Teams are limited to bringing in 25 new
scholarship players each fall, which means that if OSU exceeds that number on signing day, several
players would have to enroll early.
By doing that, they would count against the prior year's total.
kgordon@dispatch.com
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