The sophomore safety had his freshman campaign cut short by an ACL tear Oct. 17, 2013, against Michigan.
The hard-hitting defensive back said not being on the field had left him feeling depressed.
One year later, he’s healthy and leads IU with 46 tackles.
The IDS caught up with the soft-spoken Indianapolis native before the Hoosiers take on Penn State at noon this weekend.
IDS Last year you didn’t make it to this point in the season after getting hurt against Michigan. How does it feel being healthy and playing?
Allen It’s very nice. Last year, I was depressed around this time because I couldn’t play. It just feels good to be on the field.
IDS Being on the field, do you feel like the defense is getting better? To me, it seems like the run defense definitely is.
Allen I feel like we’re playing a lot better. We’re still young, too. So we’re all still learning and we’re all getting better. We’ve still got two more years together so I think we’re going to be pretty good.
IDS You’ve got some gold on your teeth. How did that start?
Allen I’ve been having these since freshman year of high school.
IDS That young? What did your family say about that?
Allen My dad has them, too. I just really liked them ever since I was younger so I wanted some. If somebody has a lip ring or something, they see somebody and they thought it was cool. That’s why I’ve got gold teeth. I thought it was cool.
IDS Did you have a player growing up that you looked up to?
Allen I kind of looked at (former Indianapolis Colt safety) Bob Sanders. I like Bob Sanders. He’s just out there making plays, running to the ball. I really looked up to (former Michigan State safety) Isaiah Lewis. He was the same, too.
IDS People call you “Woo.” Where did that actually start?
Allen I really got that name from my grandmother when I was younger. My sister had called me it at school and everybody just thought it was Woo from the field. Some people say it’s from the field, but I tell everybody else that it really comes from my grandma.
IDS That’s neat. I’d never heard that part of the story. What do you have to do this week to keep the defense moving forward?
Allen We’ve just got to go out there and fight hard. Give it our best and just go for 60 minutes.
