This article was published with The Red & Black on July 15, 2015 and can be found here.

HOOVER, Ala. — Brandon Allen was meant to be an Arkansas Razorback.

His father Bobby spent fifteen seasons as an assistant coach with the Razorbacks and is now the team’s director of high school and NFL relations. Brandon Allen grew up in Fayetteville, Arkansas and played his high school football at Fayetteville High School along with his brother Austin. Brandon stayed home to fulfill his dream of playing for Arkansas, a tactic Austin also followed.

 

The Allen name carries a lot of weight at Arkansas. Now it’s Brandon’s last chance to make it matter on a national level.

“I’ve been through the highs and lows since I’ve been here,” Allen said. “I’ve had a long career here. I can tell we’re on the rise right now.”

Brandon Allen is coming off a junior campaign that saw him throw 20 touchdowns with only five interceptions. Allen was part of an offense that helped the Razorbacks win seven games last year with victories over LSU, Ole Miss and Texas. The problem for Allen is his role was downplayed due to the Razorbacks’ run game.

The rushing tandem of senior Jonathan Williams and junior Alex Collins helped Arkansas head coach Bret Bielema incorporate a ground-and-pound attack that was a constant when Bielema was at Wisconsin. The reliance on the ground game turned Allen into a game manager, a term that is defines a quarterback whose main job is to not turn the ball over.

Luckily for Allen, the limitations from one year ago may now be gone.

Arkansas brought in former Central Michigan head coach Dan Enos this offseason to run the offense. Allen is sold on Enos’ style and knows his new offensive coordinator can help him improve.

“He can tell me things from experience,” Allen said. “He knows the things I’m seeing and the things I’m going through. I can take to heart all the advice he gives me because he’s been there and done that.”

Enos was a quarterback at Michigan State from 1987-90.

The addition of Enos as the play-caller has senior wide receiver Keon Hatcher believing big things will happen with Allen. Hatcher, who recorded 43 receptions for 558 yards in 2014, thinks the new offensive strategy will feature Allen’s passing attack much more

than before. It’s something Hatcher believes Allen deserves in his senior season.

“He steps in the huddle with a confidence and a swagger,” Hatcher said. “We’re feeding off him, really. I can’t wait to see what he does this season.”

Allen is in a position to become nationally relevant. He took part in this year’s Manning Passing Academy and worked alongside players like Mississippi State’s Dak Prescott, Tennessee’s Joshua Dobbs and Missouri’s Maty Mauk. His numbers each season have improved, and his senior year coincides with a year where the Southeastern Conference lacks star quarterbacks. The Razorbacks are drawing attention from many media outlets, which have placed Arkansas in the Top 25 and predict the team will be legitimate SEC West contenders.

The only thing Allen needs now is to win. Seven games last year was a step in the right direction, but it won’t be enough to be a break-out player in one of the toughest conferences in football. Allen points towards Bielema’s stance that the only awards that matter come in the offseason, not the preseason. He realizes the importance victories in the SEC carry and insists on keeping his approach on each game.

However, that doesn’t stop Allen from aiming high for his senior campaign.

“We expect to not lose a game,” Allen said. “That’s just the expectations we put on ourselves. We have everything we need to have a great season this year.”