Allen is hopeful risk will result in a reward
Originally at A&M, QB picks draft instead of returning to UH or transferring again
Kyle Allen had options. Stay at the University of Houston for another season, without the promise of ever seeing the football field again.
Pack the U-Haul, with degree in hand, and transfer to his third school in four years.
He chose the third option. Skip his final year of college eligibility and declare for the NFL draft.
Two months later, Allen says it’s a decision he weighed everything “equally and honestly without emotion” and has no regrets as he prepares to work out for scouts at UH’s Pro Day on March 29.
“I think it was a great decision, the right decision for me at that time,” Allen said during a recent phone interview. “It wasn’t like it was a drop-of-a-hat decision. There was a lot of thought. All options were put on the table and weighed out, risk-reward.” Missing some recent tape
Playing in only three games before losing the starting job at UH, Allen admits the biggest obstacle is the absence of recent game tape. Before sitting out a season at UH in 2016, Allen played in 20 games over two seasons at Texas A&M.
“Obviously, the main issue right now is the lack of recent game tape,” Allen said. “It’s going to be something that’s going to hold me out from probably getting drafted in the top rounds.”
Add his time at Texas A&M, and Allen believes there’s enough of a “good sample size” for NFL evaluators. He is banking on strong workouts and in-person interviews to help him move up the draft board.
Allen is not expected to be taken in the early round sin what is a quarterback stacked draft that includes Josh Allen (Wyoming), Josh Rosen (UCLA), Sam Darnold (USC) and Heisman Trophy winners Lamar Jackson (Louisville) and Baker Mayfield (Oklahoma).
“I really think I can get up higher in the draft, hopefully from those workouts and meetings,” Allen said.
For the past couple of months, Allen has been receiving instruction – along with projected first-round picks Josh Allen and Darnold – from former NFL quarterback Jordan Palmer in San Clemente, Calif.
“It’s another reason why I wanted to come out here to be around guys like Josh and Sam every day and show that I’m on par with everyone that is coming out this year,” said Allen, who signed with VaynerSports. “Evaluators have seen that, and I think they’ve been impressed. Really what I need to do is, obviously, have a great pro day and really kill it in my meetings, which is an area I think I thrive in.”
Once the No. 1 pro-style high school quarterback prospect in the nation, Allen was considered the heir to Johnny Manziel when he signed with the Aggies. In two seasons in College Station, Allen threw for 3,532 yards with 33 touchdowns and 14 interceptions but eventually lost the starting job and opted to transfer to UH in 2016.
After sitting out a season at UH, Allen began 2017 as the starter and led the Cougars to wins over Arizona and Rice. But he was prone to the same turnovers that cost him the starting job at A&M. ‘In a really good spot right now’
Allen was eventually benched in a Sept. 23 loss to Texas Tech, and he saw only brief action in two games the remainder of the season as the Cougars went with Kyle Postma and D’Eriq King.
“I wish things would have gone a lot better at Houston, obviously, but I think I’m in a really good spot right now,” Allen said.
“It just seemed as though the team wanted to go in a new direction. The week after I was benched after Texas Tech, the offense was oriented around the quarterback run game. They thought that’s what was best for the offense at that time.”
By the time UH announced the hiring of new offensive coordinator Kendal Briles on Jan. 13, Allen had already decided to leave and signed with an agent.
“It was too late at that point,” he said. He added, “I wish them all the best. I had a great time at Houston. I think I learned a ton at Houston.”
And Allen has no regrets about his decision.
“So many factors pointed toward coming out this year,” he said. “For me, money is never the reason why I play football. Would it have been awesome to come back another year or go to another school and get great tape and go in the first round? Yeah, it would have been sweet. I really felt like coming out this year was the best decision.”