For Penn State's Tom Allen, Defense Remains 'Where My Heart Is'

The defensive coordinator says he's invigorated by his new role with the Nittany Lions.

Penn State defensive coordinator Tom Allen signals to the Nittany Lions during spring football drills in State College. / Max Ralph/AllPennState

Penn State defensive coordinator Tom Allen reluctantly gave up his practice whistle this spring. Evidently, he blew the whistle once during practice, which caused head coach James Franklin to wince and ask, “Who did that?” The practice whistle belongs to Franklin.

“He makes me take it off and put it in my pocket,” Allen said of Franklin and the whistle. “I’m so trained to blow the whistle, if I’ve got it around my neck, I’m going to blow it.”

The whistle aside, Allen has transitioned smoothly from his seven years as Indiana's head coach to his firs spring as Penn State’s defensive coordinator. He’s back in charge of a defense, teaching on the ground, devising defensive strategy and leaving the decision-making to someone else. 

“There’s so many things you don’t have to deal with when you’re not the head coach,” Allen told reporters recently after practice in State College. “And so it’s kind of refreshing to be able to just focus on developing the players, building relationships with the players and the defense, the schematic part of it, the personnel side of it. Just the film study. I can go in there, shut my door and, if something happens, just pass it on to coach Franklin. I’m really excited to be back in this role. I really think it’s where my heart is.”

With that, here’s a glimpse at what Allen has seen, and devised, through the first half of Penn State spring football practice.

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Abdul Carter is gaining confidence at defensive end

At Indiana and with previous defenses he coached, Allen employed a position known as the “Bull.” It’s a hybrid end/outside linebacker spot that relies on a particularly athletic player to fill. Allen said Penn State’s surfeit of athletic ends (notably newly minted end Abdul Carter and Dani Dennis-Sutton) will mean less “Bull” usage in the defense. However, Carter definitely will showcase aspects of that position at defensive end.

“You can see each day he grows in confidence in playing that position, and I think that position flexibility he has kind of magnifies that,” Allen said. “That’s going to be big for us in situational-football opportunities, and what he can do both as a rush defender as well as a guy who can play in space and be a linebacker. I think he has a special skill set, and he obviously has a ton of talent and he’s practicing really hard right now.”

Meet the “Lion,” Penn State’s new defensive position

Fans will remember the “Lion” position from Penn State’s past offenses, when former quarterbacks like Tommy Stevens and Will Levis entered as run-pass options. The Lion has migrated to defense, where it finds a new home in the secondary. Allen said the Lion will mix cornerback and safety skills, taking advantage of size in the case of bigger cornerbacks being able to cover significant ground. 

“It allows you to get a type of athlete in space,” Allen said. “So we use that position and believe in that, but it’s definitely used situationally based on what we’re seeing. … It takes a unique skill set. You’ve got to be able to do multiple things, but we feel like we have several guys on our team who fit that spot.”

Allen mentioned returning starting safety Jaylen Reed in the role, but look for cornerbacks like A.J. Harris and Zion Tracy to compete. Cornerback Zakee Wheatley, who has been a spring standout, could see be a natural with his 6-2 frame.

Allen’s defensive ‘non-negotiables’

Franklin used the term “non-negotiable” in describing his interview process with each new coordinator. Each side had them; Franklin’s involved his overall philosophy, while the coordinators brought coaching bedrocks they felt compelled to import. These were Allen’s.

“The first thing I said were takeaways, tackling and effort,” Allen said. “To me, there’s really no magic scheme. The magic is in the belief of the players and the players’ ability to execute the scheme. They’re the guys who make it special.”

Adjusting to Penn State’s talent

Allen recognized the talent differential between Penn State and other programs, including what he had at Indiana. That primarily revolves around depth; Penn State has more of it. Allen noticed the difference at one defensive spot in particular.

“There’s no question that up front is a glaring difference,” he said. “The depth of those guys, and the amount of guys who have length and can run, no question it allows you to do more things without having to be just taking chances, per se. A lot of time you had to do a lot of things just to create pressure. You had to to a lot of things to be able to take some gambles to be able to still get pressure and not bring six guys. With that element, we can maximize the number of guys we have and give us the depth to be ready for a long season.”

AllPennState is the place for Penn State news, opinion and perspective on the SI.com network. Publisher Mark Wogenrich has covered Penn State for more than 20 years, tracking three coaching staffs, three Big Ten titles and a catalog of great stories. Follow him on Twitter @MarkWogenrich.