LINCOLN — It was around this time a year ago that Ndamukong Suh, fueled by great focus and determination, started his run toward one of the greatest seasons by a Nebraska defensive football player.
Pierre Allen remembers it.
“I definitely watched him, and I was always with him or next to him,’’ Allen said. “I definitely saw the leadership role and everything else he took on his shoulders. You could just see in his efforts and everything he did — weight room, speed work, conditioning — he was always first in his group.’’
Allen aims to follow that lead heading into his final season as a Husker. And being healthy through winter conditioning and into spring practice should help put Allen on the launching pad, NU defensive coordinator Carl Pelini said.
“I think he’s very hungry,’’ Pelini said. “I think he was sore a good portion of the year, and that had affected him mentally and physically. I really think this is his point.’’
Nebraska starts spring practice Wednesday, and Allen and defensive tackle Jared Crick will have a huge say in whether the Huskers’ defensive line can remain the force it was last season. Allen will be the only senior on a front four that could include sophomores replacing Suh at tackle (Baker Steinkuhler) and Barry Turner at end (Cameron Meredith).
Allen wants to lead the unit. “I need to start now,’’ he said. “Just talking about comparing it to Suh, I really saw him take off before the season. I can’t wait until fall camp to be a leader.’’
It’ll be easier without the turf toe. The two sore knees. The ankle. All the result of getting caught with his legs turned the wrong way at the bottom of a couple of piles. Freak things. Injuries he hadn’t had before.
The 6-foot-5, 265-pounder from Denver played through it all, including late-season contests in which he required pregame and halftime shots in his foot to manage the turf toe he had “to the worst degree.’’
“I took pride in that,’’ Allen said. “That’s just the type of attitude our coaches promote. I felt like I still did pretty well. I did everything the coaches asked of me.
“But I also know I could do a whole lot more if I’m 100 percent. It drives me to stay in the training room and do more rehab and get my body right.’’
Pelini said Allen still had a good season in 2009, finishing with 50-plus tackles for the second consecutive year. Among his 12 tackles for losses were five sacks, two of which came in the Holiday Bowl.
That happened after Allen was able to get some rest and heal up.
“The greatest thing is when he starts moving pain-free, his athleticism is really going to shine and stand out more than I think it has for a while,’’ Pelini said. “He did some things in that Arizona game where you’re really like, ‘Wow, that’s what he’s capable of doing when he’s healthy.’”
Pelini calls Allen a “physical, physical football player’’ and one of the smartest in the Husker system. Steady with the ability to be spectacular — kind of like Suh.
He spent the winter returning to good health and regaining some of his flexibility.
“I think right now he’s probably healthier than he was at any point during the season,’’ Pelini said. “And being healthy is going to allow him to even raise his game further.’’
Contact the writer:
444-1042, rich.kaipust@owh.com
Copyright ©2012 Omaha World-Herald®. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, displayed or redistributed for any purpose without permission from the Omaha World-Herald.
RSS Feeds