Alabama's Jonathan Allen Aims to Be No Longer Overlooked

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — There were times that they looked like they could be triplets.

Not in facial features or anything like that, but when playing beside one another at the University of Alabama, the opposition knew that it wouldn’t be long before one of them made a big play.

Jonathan Allen, Jarran Reed and A’Shawn Robinson were literally the front line of the Crimson Tide’s stout defense that led the nation in stopping the run and sacks. The latter two players especially drew attention and praise as they capped off college careers that will likely make them first-round NFL draft selections.

“It makes my job so much easier,” Allen said during Alabama’s stretch run. “I never get double-teamed. I never have a side slide my way because they have to worry about A’Shawn and J-Reed. It really frees me up a lot.”

But it also caused Allen to fly under the radar in a lot of ways even though he notched 14.5 tackles for loss and 12 sacks this past season. Robinson was especially in the forefront, earning consensus All-American status and being named a finalist for the Outland Trophy, which is awarded to the best interior lineman in college football.

“I mean, I guess. It really doesn’t matter to me,” Allen said. “I don’t care.”

Next season, of course, a lot will fall on his shoulders, and he and tight end O.J. Howard thought long and hard about whether to enter the draft, as well, only to stay put. They could end up being team captains after being the most underrated players on the Crimson Tide in 2015. 

Howard, of course, broke out in a big way during the postseason, including his 208 receiving yards and two touchdowns against Clemson in the CFP National Championship Game. Even head coach Nick Saban said afterward that the offense hadn’t been getting him the ball enough.

Alabama had unparalleled depth on its defensive line, which helped it rotate in fresh players on a regular basis, so Allen didn't have to share the spotlight with just the other two starters.

Some have hailed his return as a real boon to the 2016 team, as Darren Lake and D.J. Pettway are also headed to the NFL with Reed and Robinson.

So that nullifies Alabama’s depth advantage on the line, right?

Not really. Allen gives the Crimson Tide a veteran presence along with Dalvin Tomlinson, who led all down linemen in pass breakups (six) and finished the season with 34 tackles.

Throw in Da’Ron Payne, who was named a Freshman All-American by numerous outlets, and Da’Shawn Hand, and there’s already a solid core.

Year	Total
2007	24
2008	26
2009	32
2010	27
2011	30
2012	35
2013	22
2014	32
2015	53

“He’s slowly stepping up,” safety Eddie Jackson said about Payne. “He’s still a freshman, so he’s playing his role behind A’Shawn and J-Reed, but he’s a guy who goes in and competes. If he messes up, they get on him. If they mess up, he is like just ‘Let’s go!’”

Alabama also has O.J. Smith and Joshua Frazier, and Christian Bell joined the team in January after grayshirting. Mekhi Brown and Anfernee Jennings were in the signing class of 2015, as well, and have both switched to linebacker, but Saban likes to use his linebackers as pass-rushers.

Factor in Tim Williams, Ryan Anderson, Rashaan Evans and Christian Miller, and suddenly that depth chart is looking strong even before national signing day.

Allen, who already has 40 games of experience, can serve as a conduit to keep that momentum going. Teammates point to the line for setting the tone during practices and making it clear to everyone that anyone who wasn’t willing to go all out to help win the national championship should stay home.

It was sort of an “our way or the highway” approach.

“We push each other a lot,” Reed said. “We hold each other to a high standard, and it all starts at practice. If no one’s practicing good, we’ll all step our game up. We let them know that they need to pick their game up.”

Allen contributed to that and liked how the line tried to push the rest of the defense to perform at a high level. Tomlinson said the instigator varied “from day to day,” but during games, it almost always began with one of the three up front.

“It’s just pure motivation,” Reed said. “Who really wants to get to that ball first? It’s competitive.”

Name	School	Year	Sacks
Julian Peterson	Michigan State	1999	15
Jonathan Allen	Alabama	2015	12
Robaire Smith	Michigan State	1997	12
Tim Williams	Alabama	2015	10.5
Wallace Gilberry	Alabama	2007	10
Julian Peterson	Michigan State	1998	10
Dan Williams	Toledo	1990	10
Courtney Upshaw	Alabama	2011	9.5
Xzavier Dickson	Alabama	2014	9
Marcus Spears	LSU	2004	9
Courtney Ledyard	Michigan State	1995	9

It often was, and the results are now obvious. For example, Allen’s 12 sacks were the most of any Alabama player in a single season since Saban arrived in 2007 and the second-most of any Saban-coached player (Michigan State’s Julian Peterson with 15 in 1999)

With 7.5 more sacks, Allen will have the most sacks of any college player Saban coached, which includes an impressive list of players who went high in the draft.

“I have Allen in the first round,” ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. said last week before Allen made his decision to stay at Alabama. “When you’re that big and you have the pass-rush ability he has …

“Allen was an underrated player all through his career. It was always A’Shawn Robinson, and it was Jarran Reed, and then there’s Allen showing up big in key moments just about every game.”

Name	School	Seasons	Sacks
Julian Peterson	Michigan State	1998-99	25
Robaire Smith	Michigan State	1997-99	22
Marcus Spears	LSU	2002-04	19
Jonathan Allen	Alabama	2013-15	18
Courtney Upshaw	Alabama	2008-11	17.5
Xzavier Dickson	Alabama	2011-14	13
Dimitrius Underwood	Michigan State	1995-97	13
Courtney Ledyard	Michigan State	1995-98	12
Tim Williams	Alabama	2013-15	12
Marcell Dareus	Alabama	2008-10	11

Kiper’s early projection, which was defensive heavy, with 20 of the 31 picks in his initial mock draft on that side of the ball, had Allen landing in Buffalo at No. 19. Yet Allen told ESPN.com’s Chris Low that he received a second-round grade from the NFL draft advisory committee.

Part of Allen’s decision to return was an ongoing shoulder problem that sidelined him during Alabama's 34-0 win over Louisiana-Monroe.

"He's hurt this before, had the same problem before, and he's been able to come back pretty quickly,” Saban said at the time.

Allen’s plan is to have surgery to repair it and take out an insurance policy for the upcoming season, when he tries to win another championship and maybe land some individual accolades for himself.

All-SEC honors are nice, which Allen earned this season, but All-American has a nice ring to it, and the veteran knows what it takes.

“All the games are determined by what happens up front,” Alabama defensive line coach Bo Davis said. “All the other stuff looks good, but you have to play well up front. 

“This is a great group of guys. I love these guys; they work hard. They want to be successful at what they do. It’s been a blast working with them. They really believe in each other. They play for each other. That’s the biggest difference.”

Quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

Christopher Walsh is a lead SEC college football writer. Follow Christopher on Twitter @WritingWalsh.