[LeeCoUKFan]

TE Long closing in on decision

Justin Rowland
Special to CatsIllustrated.com

Westerville (Ohio) South tight end Darryl Long will be announcing his college destination in less than a week and he previewed that choice when Cats Illustrated caught up with him over the weekend.

The three-star tight end attended the Rivals Camp Series presented by Under Armour in Cincinnati on Saturday and according to many in attendance he has continued to show big improvement in many respects.

Long said he knows he has come a long way especially since last year.

"I spent the whole off season in the weight room. I was trying to put on 15 pounds," Long said. "I think I was a lot better than the last time everyone saw me and that's always a good thing. I've been working with the people at D1, like Chuck Grisham, and trying to get my skills down.

"I did have that raw mark about me. But playing more and coming to this camp, trying to get my skills down, I'm trying to get rid of that raw name."

That doesn't mean Long was entirely satisfied with his performance in Cincinnati. He has improved from where he was a year ago but the 6-foot-4, 235-pound tight end admit that he's not where he wants to be just yet.

"I thought I performed well," he said. "I went through the drills and they were good. I had a good showing (on Saturday) against good competition. There's always something you can do better."

On the recruiting front things are winding down. Cats Illustrated first reported that Long would make his decision on April 27 at a camp in Columbus, and Rivals.com will once again have a presence at that event.

While at one point Long was hinting that he might push his announcement date back he thinks he will stick to the plan.

"It will probably be next Saturday," he said. "If something comes up I will definitely talk it over with my family but it should be next Saturday."

Long has a good idea of what he wants to do but said his finalists were, in no particular order, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Kentucky, Purdue and, to a lesser extent, North Carolina.

While he believes his commitment will be solid he won't rule out the possibility that things could change.

"I still definitely want to take the five visits because this is a lifetime commitment. As of right now I feel like the school I commit to will be the school I go to."

http://kentucky.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1498536