A Loss In Our Bruin Family

There was some sad news out of Westwood this week:

Jerry Long, who served as an assistant football coach at Oregon State and UCLA and also spent over a decade in athletic administration at UCLA, passed away Wednesday morning, December 17. Long, who had been in a hospice for several months, died from a heart attack at his home with his wife Dorothy at his side. He was 79.

Long was born in Portland, Oregon and attended Franklin High School. He served in the Navy during World War II. Following his time in the Navy, Long played football at Oregon State, earning three letters as a guard and graduating in 1950. After five years as a high school coach, he spent six years as an assistant at Willamette University in Salem, OR. In 1961, he was hired as an assistant at Oregon State under Tommy Prothro. In 1964, the Beavers won the AAWU to earn a berth in the Rose Bowl.

Long moved to UCLA in 1965 as a member of Prothro's staff. In his first year in Westwood, the Bruins earned their first win in a Rose Bowl, defeating Michigan State. Overall, he spent 11 years as a Bruin assistant under Prothro, Pepper Rodgers and Dick Vermeil - 10 as coach of the defensive line and his last (1975) working with Terry Donahue on the offensive line. In his final year, the Bruins won the Pac-8 title and defeated Ohio State in the Rose Bowl.

Long spent over a decade in athletic administration prior to retiring in 1990, working in the areas of fundraising, event management and booster club development.

Per the official site services are scheduled for Monday, December 22 at 11:00 am at Pierce Brothers Valley Oaks Griffin Memorial Park, 5600 Lindero Canyon Road, Westlake Village 91362. In lieu of flowers, a donation may be made to the American Heart Association or the UCLA Department of Athletics.

Our thoughts and prayers are with Mr. Long's family.

GO BRUINS.