What Tom Allen Said on Big Noon Kickoff
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Even though Indiana wasn't in Indianapolis for the Big Ten Championship, the Hoosiers' head coach made an appearance in Lucas Oil Stadium Saturday morning.
Tom Allen joined FOX's Big Noon Kickoff show to talk about the season his team has had thus far.
Here's what Allen had to say:
On how the Penn State win impacted the trajectory of the program:
"First of all, thank you for the congratulations (Big Ten Coach of the Year). It's a team award. It's our staff, it's our players that believed we could do it, and so that game to me was just a chance for us to take that next step. You know, we talk about it, we've been in those games, we've been close, and I was sick and tired of being close. We all were, but you gotta go prove it on the field, and to be able to finish that game the way we did, to come from behind and go for two, to send it into overtime, to get the score and go for two to get the win. Penix's effort on that play was phenomenal. It just galvanizes everything that you've been talking about because now you've done it on the field against one of the best in the country."
Advice on how Northwestern can pull of the upset against Ohio State:
"Don't get down 28. That was tough. To me, it's about explosive plays. You've got to create them on offense, you got to stop them on defense. It's not a real complicated thing sometimes. It's up front, you gotta be physical and run the football. We didn't stop the run enough to be able to win that game, but I think at the core of it all is belief. It took us awhile. We took some haymakers early in all three phases, but our guys got back up, we brushed it off and we kept fighting. Before you know it, we found ourselves back in that game with a chance to go for the tie or maybe the win. But to me it's about do you really, really believe?"
On how Indiana couldn't play in the Big Ten Championship game:
"Well, don't blink. Sometimes life's not fair. Sometimes things happen that you have no control over. We had a chance. We went head-to-head with them, face-to-face, man-to-man and we didn't finish the job. So, that's how we talked about it. To me, it's not about looking for excuses, it's about looking for opportunities. So proud of our team, though, it doesn't take away anything that they accomplished and all that we've been building and what we're becoming. So, I'm proud of our guys."
On his celebrations with players:
"It's pure impromptu. I've never body-surfed a day in my life. I'm just glad they caught me because I don't why I did it, I just took off and jumped."
Related Stories on Indiana Football:
- TOM ALLEN NAMED BIG TEN COACH OF THE YEAR: For the first time since Bill Mallory, an Indiana football coach won this award. CLICK HERE
- SEVEN HOOSIER DEFENDERS EARN ALL-BIG TEN HONORS: A program record seven defensive players received All-Big Ten honors on Wednesday. CLICK HERE
- TY FRYFOGLE NAMED BIG TEN RECEIVER OF THE YEAR: For the first time in program history, an Indiana wideout has been named Big Ten Receiver of the Year. CLICK HERE