Kansas coach Turner Gill said he used to talk to former Iowa quarterback Chuck Long about the pair being on the same staff, even when Gill was the head coach at Buffalo and Long had the same job at San Diego State.

Long was fired after a 2-10 season with the Aztecs in 2008 and was out of coaching when Gill called about joining him at Kansas as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.

The Heisman Trophy runner-up to Bo Jackson in 1985, Long spent eight years in the NFL with Detroit and the Los Angeles Rams and started his coaching career with his alma mater in 1995. Four years later, he went to Oklahoma and coached Heisman runner-up Josh Heupel when the Sooners won the 2000 national championship. He also coached Heisman winner Jason White at OU.

"You can go on and on about the accolades he's done as a coach. That speaks for itself," Gill said. "But more importantly, I really love what he's all about as a man. A lot of the guys that I hire on the staff, I really try to hire people who really have a passion to develop young people."

Courtesy: Associated Press