Ad Disclosure
There was a point early on in Brandon Allen’s career where the Arkansas quarterback wasn’t exactly the most popular man on campus.
That was painfully evident after someone torched his truck less than a week before the start of the 2014 season. The angst, not the arson, was somewhat understandable. Allen didn’t do much to inspire the masses in Fayetteville during his first two seasons with a combined 1,738 passing yards, one more touchdown (14) than interceptions (13), and an 0-8 conference record after earning the starting role as a sophomore.
Worst of all, the Fayetteville High School alum who played his ball less than a mile down the road from Donald R. Reynolds Razorback Stadium, had nowhere to hide. Flash forward two years, and you might find some fans in Hog Country ready to build a statue in the quarterback’s honor.
So what happened in those two years?
Allen’s transformation began his junior year. He finished with a respectable 2,285 yards, good enough for ninth overall in the SEC — ahead of Georgia’s Mason Hutson and behind Nick Marshall of Auburn, who he tied for No. 8 in the conference for touchdowns throws (20).
He showed flashes of brilliance early on during his senior year in 2015 with 720 yards in the first two games, including the fourth-highest single-game passing total in Razorbacks history with 412 yards through the air against Toledo. Allen then fell back into a comfortable, almost game-manager zone — one of the earlier knocks on him — failing to toss for more than 265 yards in a game.
But something clicked after coming out of a bye week, which had been preceded by a narrow loss to Alabama. Allen threw for the second-highest single-game yardage in program history with a 442-yard effort in a thrilling four-overtime win over Auburn. More important than the stats was Allen’s composure, guiding the Hogs to the win on a gimpy leg he injured hustling out a first down late in the game. He was a new man.
Allen continued his torrid stretch over the balance of the season. He added his third 400-plus yard game as the Razorbacks went 6-1 to close out their 2015 slate with monumental upsets over Ole Miss and LSU. Two weeks after the Auburn game, Allen tied the team record for touchdowns in a contest with six against the No. 19 Rebels.
Not to be outdone, he broke the record another two weeks later with seven scoring strikes in yet another gritty game, this time in a loss to Mississippi State.
When the last of the pats on the back were doled out after soundly beating Kansas State in the Liberty bowl, Allen stood as the program leader for career touchdowns (64) and third overall in yardage (7,463). He finishes ranked No. 10 in program history for interceptions thrown (26), but that’s not terrible considering that Allen is the team’s third-most accurate passer (.574).
All this comes in a year when Bret Bielema’s squad wasn’t expected to be much of an aerial team. Not with the likes of Alex Collins and Jonathan Williams returning their combined 4,447 yards to the Arkansas backfield.
A preseason foot injury shelved Williams, but not necessarily the Razorback run game. Collins, after all, would finish a monster year of his own as the Hogs’ second-leading rusher of all-time. Allen concluded his senior year third in the SEC in passing with 3,440 yards and second in touchdowns (30). He did so after his Keon Hatcher, his leading receiver from 2014, was also lost for the season with a foot injury.
Over the course of 2015, the hometown product also transformed himself into an NFL prospect in the process.
Perhaps now, he can buy himself a new truck to drive to the Senior Bowl.
Chris Wuensch is a contributing writer for Saturday Down South. He covers South Carolina and Tennessee.
