Name: AJ Long
Position: QB
Year: Sophomore
Height: 6'0"
Weight: 177
Hometown: Bethlehem, PA
High School: Friendship Christian School
2014 Stats: Due to Terrel Hunt's injury, Long took over the starting role of QB for a stretch. He played in six games, starting five and completed 89-of-165 passes for 935 yards with four touchdowns and eight interceptions. His stats aren't world-beating but he was a freshman thrown to the wolves. He's bound to get better.
2015 Projections: While there was some talk of redshirting early on, that's seemingly been thrown out the window and Long is competing with Austin Wilson for the backup spot. He is recovering from a broken bone in his throwing hand, so we'll have to wait and see how that affects him.
How'd He Get Here: Tim Lester convinced AJ to come aboard, turning down offers from a host of other schools, including (most notably) UCLA, Arizona, Ohio, and USF (amongst others).
What'd Recruiting Sites Say: Rivals said three stars and rated him the 20th-best prospect in the state of Tennessee. ESPN said four stars and thought he was the state's ninth-best prospect. Scout said two stars.
Money Quote: Here's Long talking about his injury vs. FSU last year.
"At first, I was angry," Long said. "I was distraught It sucked because I only played, what, three, four games? It was bad because you hear people say, 'Oh, he's not big enough to play at the college level.' And it's not something I can control.
"It's not like I didn't try to play or I chose not to go, it was the fact that I couldn't and that was the part that probably hurt the most."
Links Of Wonder: Syracuse football quarterback AJ Long's training mask simulates high-altitude elevation
Twitterfeed: @FoeBoy_Cuse4
Tweets Of Wonder
DREAM CHASER!!!! #MADQB #QbVillage #S4G #SyracuseFootball #SavageProfessionalism #AlphaLifeStyle #TeamLong pic.twitter.com/BiIWxCecu2
— $AVAGE Williams (@Mad_Qb) August 4, 2015
What Does Shafer Think Of Him?: He likes him.
AJ is his own biggest critic. He wants to win. He wants to do well. He wants to please.
I don't know if I've really been around anyone that was worth a grain of salt that wasn't that way. He's fun to coach. He's working hard at it.
Interesting Nugget O' Interest: AJ's cousin is some guy named Jarrod West...
Let's Get A Good Look Atcha: