Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BY JORDAN WELLS P aul Longo, Notre Dame's di- rector of football strength and conditioning, has worked with top college athletes since 1987, when he was at the University of Wis- consin. Since that time, there have been many changes in his field of work. Longo's methods have evolved with the adjustments, including utilizing new technology when it comes to ath- letes recovering from injuries faster. Some issues that used to keep players permanently on the sidelines are now seen as setbacks that can be overcome in just a few months time. So as difficult as it may be to see an athlete like freshman Shaun Crawford suffer a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) Aug. 19, it's at least a positive sign that recovery time continues to improve. Even sophomore safety Drue Tranquill, who suffered a torn ACL late last November, began mov- ing around well in the spring and has demonstrated that he is no worse for the wear when August training camp began. "I'd mostly attribute the improved recovery times to the teamwork of the doctor, the trainer and the strength coach," Longo said. "They're all on the same page. The condition that these guys are in as well, when they come in that really helps. "In the old days, we'd use the train- ing camp to get in shape. Now, they never get out of shape. It used to be guys with an ACL injury, sometimes they were never the same player again. They'd put a guy in a cast for six months and not move it, etc. Now