KNOXVILLE — Chip Long has joined Tennessee’s football program in an off the field role.
Long comes to Tennessee following a three-year stint as offensive coordinator and tight ends coach at Notre Dame.
Long played at North Alabama from 2002–05 when Jeremy Pruitt was coaching at Fort Payne and Hoover High School in Alabama. He also played at Mountain Brook High School.
The 36-year old was an offensive graduate assistant under Bobby Petrino at Louisville (2006) and at Arkansas (2008–09) before his first on-field position as tight ends and fullbacks coach under Ron Zook at Illinois (2010-11).
Following the Zook-era at Illinois, Long went to Arizona State as tight ends coach and recruiting coordinator from 2012-15 under Todd Graham. Current Florida State and former Memphis head coach Mike Norvell served as offensive coordinator for the Sun Devils. Norvell became Memphis’ head coach in 2016 and brought Long with him to serve as offensive coordinator and tight ends coach.
Daniel Montiel played tight end for Long at Memphis in 2016. The former Tiger discussed what Long will bring to Tennessee’s football program in 2020.
“Coach Long is easily one of the brightest minds in the game and his work ethic is unmatched,” Montiel told Vols Wire. “A real family-oriented person once you get to know him and he is willing to do anything for his players. I wish I could have had four years under his belt, and I think Tennessee is gaining a huge asset to their staff in Chip.
“Players just need to understand that on the field is about football, and you can have a ton of fun playing this game when you play it right. If you are not playing it right, then he will let you know until you figure it out.”
Long’s offensive philosophies center around the unit being in the quarterbacks’ hands to make the right choice. His ideas parallel with what Pruitt wants to accomplish offensively with vertical, long plays and playing physical.
Taking shots down field coming from play-action, RPOs based off of game-planning what coverage they expect from their opponent from film, inside zone allowing running backs to hit the A backside to the B backside, an emphasis on a short passing game, tight ends in motion and an offensive line showcasing pulling guards, pin and pull and G-scheme are all examples of offensive philosophies and ideas that Long will bring to Tennessee.
“Tight ends are in motion a lot because defenses try to key on them for the run, but he uses them a lot for deception, as well,” Montiel said of Long’s offense. “The alley defender determines a lot of the offense, as every play has more than one option. Whether that is the SAM, nickel corner or tight safety.
“A short passing game is to encourage the tempo of the offense. Condensed routes allow for receivers to get lined up fast whether they get the ball or not, and it also keeps defenses on their heels for double moves. He would run power every play if he has the line to do it — he loves physical football. He will be a head coach at a big time program in the future, no doubt in my mind. Some schools are not ready to evolve. The game is completely changing, and I think with Tennessee adding Chip to their staff that they realize they need to hop on the wave before they get washed up on the shore. Ultimately the biggest thing people need to know is that he took care of his guys and coached them up hard, but he knew what they were capable of and loved them with all of his heart. He knows how to score points and built great confidence in the offense to go out each week and put on a show.”