THE LONGO FILE
PERSONAL INFO

CAREER

BOWLS/PLAYOFFS

PLAYING EXPERIENCE

PROFESSIONAL ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• Veteran strength and conditioning coach with 24 years of experience at NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision schools.
• Worked in a similar capacity from 2007-09 at the University of Cincinnati and has worked alongside current Irish head football coach Brian Kelly as his speed, strength and conditioning coach since Kelly's first season at Central Michigan in 2004.
• Longo instilled a grueling strength and conditioning program at Cincinnati that helped the Bearcats become one of the top closing teams in the nation.
• In their first year at Notre Dame, Longo and Kelly helped the Irish secure a 6-1 record when leading after three quarters and are 8-1 when entering halftime with a lead.
• Under Kelly's watch at Cincinnati, the Bearcats were 32-0 when entering a fourth quarter with a lead and 29-2 when leading at halftime.
• Since 2005 at Central Michigan, Kelly's teams are 48-2 when leading after three quarters and 47-3 when taking the lead into halftime.
• Stops at Wisconsin (1987), Iowa (1988-98), Central Michigan (2004-06) and Cincinnati (2007-09) have helped Longo produce more than 50 NFL draft picks. Eight Bearcats were selected in 2008 and 2009 combined, equal to the combined total of NFL draft picks from Cincinnati in the previous five drafts.
• At Central Michigan, Longo served as the head strength coach and helped develop five NFL draft selections, including Longo's prized pupil, Joe Staley. Staley entered Central Michigan in 2003 as a tight end and graduated as a left tackle and the first Chippewa to be a NFL first-round draft pick.
• Staley caught 11 passes for 130 yards and one touchdown in his freshman season. Longo arrived with Kelly prior to the 2004 season and helped Staley pack on 80 pounds during his Chippewa career as he grew into an offensive tackle. He started 11 games at right tackle as a sophomore and moved to left tackle where he started all 25 games from 2005-06 and allowed only one combined sack in his final two seasons.
• After becoming just the fifth Central Michigan player to participate in the Senior Bowl, Staley became the 28th overall pick in the 2007 NFL Draft, picked by the San Francisco 49ers.
• From 1988-2003, Longo served on the strength and conditioning staff at Iowa and worked primarily with football from 1988-98.
• Worked with Hall of Fame coach Hayden Fry as Longo served as the assistant strength coach for the football program from 1988-92 before being promoted to head strength coach for the Hawkeye football team in 1993.
• Longo played a critical role in helping the Hawkeyes to seven bowl games including the 1991 Rose Bowl after Iowa claimed the Big Ten Conference championship in 1990.
• The 1991 Hawkeyes compiled a 10-1-1 record and finished second in the Big Ten with a 7-1 ledger. Iowa was ranked 10th in the final polls after tying BYU in the Holiday Bowl.
• Longo also made two trips to the Sun and Alamo Bowls and one appearance in the Peach Bowl.
• Longo began his career as an assistant strength and conditioning coach at Wisconsin in 1987.

PERSONAL INFORMATION

• He was a four-year starter at wide receiver on the Warriors' football team, set season and career receiving records and twice was the MVP.
• Totaled 91 career receptions for 1,154 yards at Wayne State and paced the Warriors in receiving from 1978-80.
• Longo went to training camps as a free agent with four professional teams in three different leagues.

DISTINGUISHED DISCIPLES

• WR Mardy Gilyard (Cincinnati), St. Louis Rams
• 2009 All-American; 2008-09 first-team all-BIG EAST
• T Joe Staley (Central Michigan), San Francisco 49ers
• 28th overall selection in first round of 2007 NFL Draft by San Francisco
• CB Tom Knight (Iowa)
• Ninth overall selection in first round of 1997 NFL Draft by Arizona
• OT Ross Verba (Iowa)
• 30th overall section in first round of 1997 NFL Draft by Green Bay

Tony Rolinski, a veteran member of the University of Notre Dame strength and conditioning staff since 1998, was named Director of Strength and Conditioning for Olympic Sports on July 1, 2010. Rolinski is responsible for the development and implementation of the strength and conditioning programming for 25 Irish sports while continuing to have day-to-day oversight for the men's basketball and hockey teams.

Rolinski's position is part of Notre Dame's Sports Performance Program, an initiative that began at the start of the 2009-10 school year. The Sports Performance Program focuses on the areas of strength and conditioning, athletic training/rehabilitation, sports medicine, sports nutrition, sports psychology and equipment with the goal of assisting all athletic teams to achieve maximum athletic success.

Rolinski had served as the associate director prior to his promotion for the past four years. Previous to that, he spent five years as the program's strength and conditioning coordinator and three years as an assistant strength coach. He will continue to be responsible for the day-to-day operation of the Joyce Center weight facilities and the supervision of the Olympic sport's strength and conditioning staff. Further, he will help facilitate new programming for the Sports Performance Program.

He joined the Irish strength and conditioning staff following a one-year stint as the head strength and conditioning coach at Duquesne University during the 1997-98 school year, where he implemented and oversaw programs for 20 varsity sports. A native of Pittsburgh, Pa., Rolinski received his bachelor's degree in health education with a minor in exercise science from Penn State in 1991. From 1994-96, while earning his master's degree in exercise physiology at the University of Pittsburgh, he served as an intern on the Panther football staff where he assisted with all aspects of the strength and conditioning program. Following his stint at Pittsburgh, Rolinski was the head strength and conditioning coach at North Hills High School in Pittsburgh (1996-97).

Rolinski also has earned certifications from the Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association (SCCC) and National Strength and Conditioning Association (CSCS).

Born December 10, 1968, Rolinski and his wife, the former Julie Connolly, have two daughters, Allie and Jaclyn, and two sons, Jake and Jared.

Lorenzo Guess begins his second season as an assistant director of strength and conditioning at Notre Dame. Guess was a member of Brian Kelly's coaching staff at the University of Cincinnati in 2009.

Guess helped guide the Bearcats to a 12-1 season in 2009 and an appearance in the Allstate Sugar Bowl following Cincinnati's second straight BIG EAST championship.

Guess coached the Cincinnati tight ends in 2009 and helped Ben Guidugli earn second-team all-BIG EAST Conference honors. Guidugli ranked fourth on the team with 27 receptions and totaled 364 receiving yards and three touchdowns.

Prior to Cincinnati, Guess worked on the strength and conditioning staffs at South Florida (2009), Alcorn State (2008), Kentucky State (2007), Cincinnati (2006) and Tiffin (2005).

At USF, Guess served as the assistant strength and conditioning coach and worked with the men's basketball team. In 2008, Guess was the head strength and conditioning coach at Alcorn State.

In 2007, Guess coached the secondary coach at Kentucky State and doubled as the assistant strength and conditioning coach. He held the same positions in 2005 at Tiffin.

Guess first worked with head strength coach Paul Longo and Kelly in 2006 as a staff assistant for Cincinnati's strength and conditioning staff, focusing on the football team.

Guess earned a bachelor's degree from Michigan State in 2002. He graduated from Tiffin University in 2007 with a master of business administration degree.

While at Michigan State, Guess was a four-year letterman in football and also earned two letters with the Spartans' basketball team. He was part of two Big Ten titles and an NCAA Final Four appearance (1999) with the basketball team. As a defensive back, Guess helped Michigan State defeat Florida in the 2000 Citrus Bowl and Fresno State in the 2001 Silicon Valley Bowl.

Guess was an academic all-Big Ten selection in 1998. He was a major component of the 1999 defense that ranked number one in the Big Ten and seventh nationally under head coach Nick Saban. During the 2000 and 2001 seasons, his defensive units led the Big Ten in pass defense and were among the nation's top 10 in those categories.

Born Sept. 16, 1978, Guess attended Memorial High School in Wayne, Mich. He is married to the former Bianca Williams. The couple has one daughter, Nadia, and reside in Mishawaka.

Elisa Angeles is in her third year at the University of Notre Dame. She is responsible for the strength and conditioning programs for women's soccer, women's lacrosse, women's cross country, and swimming & diving.

Prior to arriving at Notre Dame, Angeles spent three years at Iowa State, two as a full time assistant and one as a graduate assistant. She is certified the United States Weightlifting Federation (USWL) and the National Strength Coaches Association (NSCA).

Elisa Angeles is in her second year at the University of Notre Dame. She is responsible for the strength and conditioning programs for women's soccer, women's lacrosse, women's cross country, and swimming & diving. Prior to arriving at Notre Dame, Angeles spent three years at Iowa State, two as a full time assistant and one as a graduate assistant. She is certified the United States Weightlifting Federation (USWL) and the National Strength Coaches Association (NSCA).

Craig Cheek is in his second year as an assistant strength and conditioning coach at the University of Notre Dame. He is responsible for the strength and conditioning programs for women's lacrosse and men's & women's fencing, and he also assists with men's & women's basketball and hockey.

Before arriving at Notre Dame, Cheek was the head strength and conditioning coach at Nicholls State (La.) for two years. There, he oversaw all varsity athletic programs and the strength & conditioning staff. Cheek also spent one year as an assistant strength coach at the University of Minnesota-Duluth.

Jacob Flint
Assistant Director of Strength and Conditioning
Central Michigan '07

Jacob Flint begins his second year at Notre Dame this spring as assistant director of strength and conditioning. Flint previously served as a member of strength and conditioning staff at the University of Cincinnati from 2007-09.

Flint served the 2009 season as an assistant strength coach with the Bearcats and helped Cincinnati win the BIG EAST championship for the second straight season.

Flint had been a member of Cincinnati's strength and conditioning staff since 2007, helping the Bearcats to a 33-6 record during that time. He played for Kelly at Central Michigan as a walk-on and was rewarded for his dedication to the football program with a scholarship.

Following his graduation, Flint worked as a staff assistant at Central Michigan, serving primarily in the weight room and assisting the development of the running backs.

Flint competes in the 85-kilogram weight class in USA weightlifting and qualified for nationals in 2009. He is currently ranked 25th in the nation in his weight class.

Born Oct. 19, 1982, Flint is a native of Shepherd, Mich. He was a four-sport letterwinner at Shepherd High School and was twice named an all-league running back. Flint graduated with honors from Central Michigan in 2007 with a bachelor's degree in education. He is married to the former Katie Schafer and they have one daughter, Blayke.

Chris Sandeen is in his second year as an assistant strength and conditioning coach at the University of Notre Dame. He is responsible for programming for Volleyball and Softball.

Prior to Notre Dame, he was a Strength Assistant with the Cincinnati Bengals. Other experiences include a Graduate Assistantship at Central Michigan and worked at Athletes Performance, Milwaukee Brewers, Arizona State University.

A graduate of Arizona State University in Exercise Science, he was also awarded a Masters Degree in the same concentration from Central Michigan University. He is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist by the NSCA, and has Sports Performance certification by USA Weightlifting.

Erika Whitman is in her second year as the sports nutritionist at the University of Notre Dame. She oversees the education, monitoring and guidance for nutrition of all student-athletes for all 26 varsity sports.

Prior to coming to Notre Dame, Whitman spent 10 months as the coordinator of sports nutrition at the University of Florida. She also worked as a program health educator for Health and Nutrition Technology in Indianapolis for three years. In addition, she was an assistant sports nutritionist at Penn State University for three months and also completed an internship at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fla.