UCLA’s Allen all-in on switch to receiver
After some setbacks, the former running back is finally showing the value in his speed and versatility.
His first name is a playful twist on Prince’s “Pink Cashmere,” the unusual spelling and sound intended to make him memorable.
It was repeated like a chorus at the Rose Bowl on that sensational Saturday of a college debut three years ago.
Wow, Kazmeir Allen! Kazmeir Allen is the fastest guy on the field! That Kazmeir Allen is something!
The running back dashed into the UCLA record book that day, his 103 yards rushing against Cincinnati ranking second in school history for a freshman while salvaging an otherwise glum Bruins debut for coach Chip Kelly.
For most of the three years that followed, Kazmeir (pronounced Kazh-meer) was rarely uttered, like lyrics from a forgotten song.
He was used sparingly the rest of his freshman season. A lengthy academic suspension forced him to redshirt after appearing in only three games as a sophomore. Contact tracing and a vile case of COVID-19 essentially wiped out his 2020 season. All of which makes what has happened during UCLA’s two games this season more like a reintroduction than a comeback.
Ladies and gentlemen, Kazmeir Allen!
He’s a receiver now, though Fresno State is undoubtedly bracing for the redshirt junior also to carry the ball and return kickoffs when the Bulldogs (2-1) face the No. 13 Bruins (2-0) on Saturday night at the Rose Bowl.
Allen doesn’t care how he gets the ball, as long as he gets it.
“I just like the ball in my hands,” he said.
One sequence early in UCLA’s 38-27 victory over Louisiana State
■ Location: Rose Bowl.
■ Time: 7:45 p.m.
■ TV: Pac-12 Networks.
■ Weather forecast: 79 degrees, clear.
■ Latest line: UCLA by 11 points.
■ About UCLA: Coach Chip Kelly joked the late game will be played in prime time in the Philippines — kickoff is actually 10:45 a.m. Manila time — but it could be the last bedtime start of the season for the Bruins if they notch a third consecutive win. The combination of a running attack that has produced 227 yards per game and a defense that’s holding opponents to an average of 37.5 yards rushing — ranking No. 4 nationally — led to decisive wins over Hawaii and Louisiana State. 8 About Fresno State: The Bulldogs’ “Anybody, Anytime, Anywhere” mantra is no empty boast; they have won 38 games against current Power Five conference teams — including three consecutive victories over UCLA — and might have notched another upset this season had they not lost three fumbles against Oregon during a 31-24 loss. Quarterback Jake Haener, a transfer from Washington, has looked capable of playing for anyone this season while completing 73.6% of his passes for 1,009 yards with eight touchdowns and no interceptions. 8 Three things you need to know:
1. This could be the first stop on UCLA quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson’s Redemption Tour 2021. His first home start came against Fresno State in 2018 and it didn’t go well, Thompson-Robinson losing a fumble and having two passes intercepted during the Bruins’ 38-14 loss.
2. Bruins edge rusher Mitchell Agude has four forced fumbles in two games, putting him on track to shatter the school’s modern record (dating to 1975) of six in a season shared by linebackers Robert Thomas (2000) and Donnie Edwards (1993).
3. UCLA has not won a game as a nationally ranked team since beating Oregon State when it was No. 22 on Nov. 7, 2015. The Bruins lost to Washington State the next week and USC later in the season after having returned to the rankings. They also lost to Texas A&M while ranked to open the 2016 season and to Memphis after having been ranked two weeks into the 2017 season. showed just a few of the ways in which the 5-foot-9, 175pound dynamo can beat you.
He made the game’s first big play when he outran a defensive back and snagged a 36-yard catch along the sideline. On the next two plays, he carried the ball. In the second quarter, he took a short pass on a jet sweep.
“Versatile is definitely the word to use,” said quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson, a primary beneficiary of Allen’s many talents.
Allen’s speed as the California high school champion in the 100-meter dash (10.44 seconds) in 2018 was among the factors that made him one of Kelly’s top early recruits. He was the first player to verbally commit to UCLA upon the coach’s arrival.
Having recruited eventual NFL players De’Anthony Thomas, LaMichael James and Marcus Mariota while at Oregon, Kelly could spot budding talent. Allen might have been the most productive high school player he had ever seen.
“I mean, I think the first game we saw, he had 450 yards and eight touchdowns,” Kelly said of the Tulare Union High standout who broke the California high school record with 72 touchdowns as a senior. “You always hear people say that you can’t coach speed. You have someone who’s dynamic like Kaz, it’s a good weapon to have.”
Since that razor-sharp college debut, he has been a weapon largely sheathed. There was no choice but to sit Allen after he was among nine players sidelined by contact tracing two games into last season, missing a showdown against Oregon.
That didn’t make the decision any easier for him to accept as he watched the game on television.
“‘Contact tracing’ is some of the dumbest stuff I heard,” Allen tweeted that day. “If we have four negative test in a row we should be able to play, period.”
The precautions didn’t seem so senseless once Allen returned home and contracted the virus. Being a world-class athlete well outside the age range most likely to be ravaged by the disease couldn’t spare him from a slew of nasty symptoms.
There were headaches. Body aches. He lost 10 pounds. Also vanishing for six agonizing weeks were his sense of taste and smell. The illness was especially confounding since nobody else in his home got sick.
He was cleared to attend UCLA’s season finale against Stanford to support his teammates but was too exhausted to make it to the Rose Bowl.
“I physically couldn’t even go out there,” Allen said. “I was tired, I had to get my weight back up, it was a lot.”
Luckily for Allen, patience was in abundance. He had watched fellow UCLA running backs Josh Kelley and Demetric Felton Jr. make the NFL after setbacks, Kelley briefly falling out of the running backs rotation and Felton used sporadically before becoming the team’s primary ballcarrier.
‘You always hear people say that you can’t coach speed. You have someone who’s dynamic like Kaz, it’s a good weapon to have.’
— Chip Kelly, UCLA coach, on Kazmeir Allen
Moving to receiver might be the spark Allen needed. It would more easily set up mismatches that could allow him to unleash his world-class speed while allowing him to absorb fewer hits.
“He’s going to run like an angry beast when he gets the ball,” said Brad Allen, Kazmeir’s father.
There will be extra incentive Saturday when Kazmeir faces a couple of former high school teammates who play for Fresno State. The university that’s located 45 minutes from his hometown also made a late recruiting push for the local star, trying to wedge itself into a race won by the Bruins in a runaway.
Like the song he was named after, Kazmeir was chasing true love: