Long attended the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where he played for coach Bob Woodruff's Florida Gators football team from 1950to1952.[3] In an era when the college football rules permitted only limited player substitutions, Long played on both offense and defense, and was a standout halfback and defensive back. Memorably, as a senior in 1952, Long ran seventy-seven yards for a touchdown in the Gators' 30–0 upset of their rivals, the Georgia Bulldogs.[3] Long was a key member of the Gators' 1952 backfield that included fullbackRick Casares and quarterbackDoug Dickey and led the Gators to an 8–3 season and a 14–13 victory over the Tulsa Golden Hurricane—their first-ever NCAA-sanctioned post-season bowl game.[4] Memorably, as a senior, he had 77-yard touchdown run to help defeat the rival Georgia Bulldogs 30–0.[4] Bob Woodruff ranked Long as one of the three best backs to play for the Gators during the 1950s.[4]
During his senior season, Long rushed for fourteen touchdowns, and was a third-team All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) selection.[3] He finished his college career with twenty-five rushing touchdowns, which still ranks eighth on the Gators' all-time career records list.[3] Long also earned varsity letters as a member of the Florida Gators baseball and track and field teams.[5]
The New York Giants selected Long in the fifth round (fifty-eighth pick overall) of the 1953 NFL Draft,[7] and he played for the Giants for three seasons from 1953to1955.[8] In his three-year NFL career, Long played in twenty-six games, rushed fifty-two times for 164 yards and a touchdown, had thirty-three receptions for 462 yards and four touchdowns, made three interceptions, and returned twenty-three kickoffs for 607 yards.[1]
Long died September 1, 2006, at his home in Wauchula; he was 74 years old.[9]
Carlson, Norm, University of Florida Football Vault: The History of the Florida Gators, Whitman Publishing, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia (2007). ISBN0-7948-2298-3.
Golenbock, Peter, Go Gators! An Oral History of Florida's Pursuit of Gridiron Glory, Legends Publishing, LLC, St. Petersburg, Florida (2002). ISBN0-9650782-1-3.
Hairston, Jack, Tales from the Gator Swamp: A Collection of the Greatest Gator Stories Ever Told, Sports Publishing, LLC, Champaign, Illinois (2002). ISBN1-58261-514-4.
