Courtesy of Cincinnati Media Relations

When San Diego State football head coach Chuck Long looks across the field on Saturday, he’ll see a reflection. The mirror image might be a bit blurry, the picture will be slightly smeared, but when Long sees No. 24 University of Cincinnati leader Brian Kelly, he’ll see a replica of himself.The respective records aren’t identical, nor are the schedules or team concepts, but the coaches’ ideals and credentials are near duplicates.Kelly, hopping on board the Cincinnati express at the tail-end of a tumultuous 2006 ride, is almost as new to his environment as Long, who joined SDSU before the 2006 season began.Both men flaunt impressive resumes. Long boasts a national championship at the University of Oklahoma, and Kelly claims back-to-back NCAA Division II national championships with Grand Valley State University.The two green leaders, who face off at 7 p.m. at Qualcomm Stadium, also share analogous adversaries.”Any coach that comes into a new community has to be approachable and build support around the program,” Kelly said. “There’s got to be ownership in your program in order to cultivate a fan base. We’re similar to (the Aztecs) because we’re both in a pro sports-town, so we can’t wait for people to come to us.”Long and Kelly haven’t hesitated to reach out to their respective communities. And both, not coincidentally, have extended an open hand the best way they know how: claiming the ability to win immediately.Of course, here’s where the two deviate from one another. Long followed up his infamous 2006 “Win Now” press conference with a 3-9 first-season. SDSU (1-2) has mildly improved this year, but it’s still many difficult weeks away from respectability. Kelly, on the other hand, opened his tenure with a 27-24 International Bowl victory over Western Michigan University and has his Bearcats (4-0, 3-0 in the Big East) off to a blistering start in 2007, averaging wins by 37.5 points per game.Still, despite their initial results, the duo understands one another’s woes.”I’ve watched (Kelly),” Long said. “He’s a rising star in this profession, (and) I know he wants to make that (program) his own and put Cincinnati on the map.”To sustain success – or reach it at all – college football coaches must out-recruit their rivals. Some programs have a stranglehold over their communities because they’re the only destination to which local recruits aspire. SDSU and Cincinnati, on the other hand, have to fight for every athlete they lay their eyes on.The Aztecs have USC and UCLA in their backyards, while the Bearcats are in the shadow of Ohio State University.”Because of where we are, there are different business plans,” Kelly said. “We don’t have the bank roll that (OSU) does, but there are other ways to be successful. (SDSU) probably won’t be stealing kids from USC, but I’m sure Chuck has an eye toward the kind of guys he wants.”If only those kinds of players were easy to find. Long and Kelly dream of the days they’re able to find hardworking players willing to subjugate individual talents for the betterment of the team.And not just one or two of them, but several. Scores even. Enough to fill the roster for several seasons ahead.”It’s tough to please people right away because you have to determine what winning really is,” Kelly said. “For Long – and we’re the same way – it’s about doing the right things and building a good program. But it doesn’t do any good to talk about winning in four or five years.”Instead, Long and Kelly are both focused on winning the smaller battles today in order to be victorious tomorrow.That is, with the exception of Saturday’s game.”Cincinnati is an up-and-coming program,” Long said. “But we’re excited for (them). These are the measuring stick games where you see where you’re at as a football team, and I know our guys will be ready to play.”