Jack Allen: Lifeblood of the Offensive Line
12/31/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
By Hanna Sprague, MSU Athletic Communications Student Assistant
Confetti crumbled from the rafters as the clock ticked to zeros at AT&T Stadium. The MSU football program rushed the field while tears of joy and unexplainable excitement filled the air after the come-from-behind victory over Baylor in the 2015 Cotton Bowl on New Year's Day. A million distractions paired with a million emotions, but Jack Allen only had eyes for one thing -- his brother, Brian.
"He and I were kind of running around on the field, and I think everyone was in the locker room celebrating already," said Allen. "We were walking around just looking for our parents."
It's a scene worth repeating -- possibly in the same year -- as the Spartans face Alabama on New Year's Eve in the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Cotton Bowl Classic.
Not many people get to say they're Division I football players. Fewer get to say they're Cotton Bowl Champions. The Allen brothers may be the only two who can say they've accomplished the feat alongside their own blood. Jack and Brian Allen are a pair of Spartan linemen, and they just so happen to be brothers.
"Brian isn't a very emotional person and seeing him be excited and smile was something really cool," said senior center Jack Allen. "A lot of guys come here and play with people they meet here, but that's a kid that I've gotten in fist fights with since we were little kids. Now we're here going up against other people."
From the day Jack was dropped off at his first football practice to the day he'll take the field for the final time as a Spartan, the Allen family has watched the oldest of three brothers grow into a man both on the football field and in life.
"I'm pretty blessed with my parents (John and Leslie), because they bend over backwards for me," said Allen. "My brothers and I are the center of my parents' lives, and we're blessed to have them. We probably don't deserve to have parents like them."
The family has traveled the United States week in and week out to see their children live out their dream on a national stage. Whether they're on the sidelines or they're in the starting lineup, the support has never faltered.
"I remember my freshman year we went to Ohio State to play and I kept telling them, `Don't come. Don't waste your time coming to watch me stand on the sideline,'" said Allen. "My dad would say, `I'm going to come and watch you watch.' They haven't missed one game."
The Allen brothers stand alongside each other each week at center and left guard, but, when they get on the field, the brotherhood extends throughout the entire program.
"Everyone on this team cares about each other like a brother, and we'd do anything for each other," said Allen, who even played left tackle for two games due to injuries along the Spartan offensive line. "It's a second meaning or a second definition of family. There's nothing like it."
Named a captain in his final season, Allen's respect for the people who have come before him and his expectations for the people who will come after him is what this Spartan program thrives on.
"I would say we've always had a great culture here, but each year I just see it improving and getting better and better," said Allen. "I always expect my brothers to be better than me. I want them to do things right and exceed in everything I've done. I want them to be better than I was."
Jack Allen greets MSU head coach Mark Dantonio while taking the field on Senior Day vs. Penn State on Nov. 28.
When you tune into ESPN's Sportscenter, you seldom see offensive linemen starring in the SC Top 10, but, without them, there is no game of football. And Allen's play hasn't gone unnoticed -- he is just the third Spartan offensive lineman in school history to earn first-team All-America honors twice.
"To play the offensive line, I'd say it's more of a selfless position," said Allen, a Rimington Trophy finalist for the second year in a row. "We don't care about having our name out there; we just want to get our job done, so the whole team can reach the goals we have set."
One person who hasn't missed the impact of Allen is head coach Mark Dantonio.
"Jack possesses a tremendous amount of experience and his leadership level is often unmatched," said Dantonio. "He leads as well as any player that I've ever had. Jack is an outstanding athlete -- with great hands and great feet -- who plays with power, confidence and toughness. He's an impact player who has the ability to make others around him better."
Allen's character and ability to lead shines regardless of the circumstances, and, with an injury that temporarily halted his senior season, his leadership role took a new twist from the sidelines.
"I just watched and whatever I saw, I tried to coach those guys up on the sidelines," said Allen, who was forced to leave the Rutgers game late in the fourth quarter in Week 6. "It's a little out of my hands, but, whenever I did see something, I did whatever I could do. We better win. That's all I care about."
Allen was kept on the sidelines in his final contest against in-state rival Michigan, but, as the seconds wound down in the fourth quarter, his mind was as active as ever.
"I'm sitting there -- and the whole team is down on the other side -- I'm sitting there like, `It could happen, it could happen,'" said Allen, who was recalling the come-from-behind win over No. 4 Wisconsin in 2011.
As the final seconds ticked off the clock and Jalen Watts-Jackson made his way into the end zone, Allen threw a water bottle to the ground in animated fashion.
"I started hugging random people that I didn't even know that were running on the field," said Allen. "It's always good to beat those guys, but it's definitely good to go out that way."
In his five years at Michigan State, he has seen first-hand what Dantonio has built in East Lansing. He's a key factor to the recent success this program has enjoyed, yet Allen refuses to think of himself in this light.
"Even now, I don't even think of this place as Michigan State," said Allen. "I was watching football during the bye week and I remember thinking, `Wow, these are some big-time schools' and I forget that we're right up there with the best of them."
This underdog mentality has pushed Allen to become one of the most dedicated and influential linemen to come through Michigan State. The 6-foot-2 inch center, who has started four years in the Green and White and was recognized as a first-team All-American this season by Associated Press, CBS Sports and SI.com, has played a vital role in the Spartans' run to a Big Ten Championship and berth in the College Football Playoff.
Allen has also excelled off the field - he's one of only 22 players at MSU to earn Academic All-Big Ten honors four times and was a semifinalist for the Campbell Trophy, commonly referred to as the "Academic Heisman." Allen graduated with a bachelor's degree in hospitality business earlier this month.
"Being able to be a part of this football team and this program is a great opportunity," said Allen. "It's been a special opportunity to me."
Spartan fans can say the same about having the opportunity to watch Allen play at center these past four seasons while leading the winningest senior class in Michigan State history.
