6B
Thursday, March 13, 1997
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Allen brings winning record,nature to team
I have a good feeling Kansas has found the right person to replace former Kansas football coach Glen Mason.
After interviewing new football coach Terry Allen, I was impressed with his cordial manner. His personality, combined with his football background and his school spirit bring a fresh outlook to Kannas football
After this year's disappointing 4-7
lowed a 10-2 season and 1995 Aloha Bowl victory, a change in the program was needed. After nine years, Mason's departure came at the right time for him and Kansas football.
My impressions of Mason and Allen are completely different.
If Head & Shoulders shampoo sponsored a "You never have a second chance to make a first impres-
"ton" contest between the two coaches, Allen would win.
Mason was, well ... Mason. He was up front, blunt and to the point.
In my interview with Allen, he wasn't afraid to show his personality.
Before interviewing Allen, I didn't know what to expect. I was sitting in his office, prepared to ask the first question, when he said, "Adam, tell me about yourself."
I almost fell out of the chair.
Rarely in my brief interviewing experience has an interviewee broken the ice. After we talked, I started asking questions, and he answered every one with the same enthusiasm throughout the 45-minute interview.
His amiable personality and genuine manner immediately gained my respect.
Not only did he display his character, but also some of his plans for the football team.
Offensively, it sounds as if he plans to have the ball thrown more often. Defensively, he prefers a 3-4 formation.
"People will have to drive the football against us," he said. "We'll force them to get eight,-10,-12-play drives to put
points on the board."
Allen's football background is solid. He was a three-year (1976-78) starting quarterback for Northern Iowa before becoming an assistant football coach at his alma mater.
He has the distinction of being the youngest football coach at either I-AA or I-A when he was named coach at Northern Iowa in 1898. He was 31.
In eight seasons, he guided the Panthers to a 81-33 record and seven conference championships. Allen is 3-3 against Big 12 Conference teams, including 1-0 against Kansas State.
If there is an argument against his qualifications, it is probably that he has never coached a Division I program.
But would his .743 winning percentage in 101 games be considered successful at the high school level, pro level, Division I or even Pon Warner? Yes.
Roy Williams didn't have any Division I head coaching experience before he accepted the job at Kansas.
I am not comparing Allen to Williams, but even though Allen wasn't a household name when he was hired, his credentials were impressive. He deserves the opportunity to coach here.
Allen also has shown plenty of school spirit so far, attending the Kansas men's and women's basketball games this season. When was the last time you saw Mason attend a Kansas sporting event other than football?
Mason gave Kansas football fans some great years. But Mason appeared ready to move on last year after accepting the coaching job at Georgia before returning to Kansas for a forgettable ninth season.
Allen brings a new outlook and energy to the team. His football qualifications prove he can win football games; he just needs a chance.
Of course, only time will tell whether Allen can get Kansas on the winning track. But at least Kansas football will be exciting for the next few years.
By the way, if you still are upset Mason left, you can grab a piece of memorabilia in the Kansas Union Bookstore. I saw football T-shirts with Mason's signature on the clearance rack.
Comments? E-mail Adam at sports@kansan.com
Time out with Allen
An interview with Adam Herschman
In December, the Kansas Athletic Department hired Terry Alleh as the new football coach.
Allen, 39, arrived on campus having never coached a Division I-A program. Although he brings a 75-26 record during eight seasons at Northern Iowa and seven Gateway Conference Championships to Kansas, he still has a lot of work to do.
Q: What do you think of the basketball craze at Kansas?
Year Record Final Ranking Postseason
1989 8-3 20th 2nd in the Gateway conference
1990 8-5 11th 0-1 in I-AA playoffs
1991 12-3 4th 1-1 in playoffs
1992 14-3 3rd Gateway champions, 2-1 in playoffs
1993 8-5 13th Gateway champions, 0-1 in playoffs
1994 8-5 11th Gateway champions, 0-1 in playoffs
1995 9-6 13th Gateway co-champions, 1-1 in playoffs
1996 14-3 3rd Gateway champions, 2-1 in playoffs
A: I love it. I hadn't been here a week, and I vividly recall standing outside on a Monday night at the parking ramp looking out over the students as they waited to get into Allen Field House for the Iowa State game. To see that excitement and emotions is what college athletics is all about.
The Allen file
Q: What can you bring to this football program to make it charismatic?
Tyler Wirken / KANSAN
A: From our personal standpoint as far as the coaching staff and myself, I'm going to do everything I can to be an active member of the University community. We really strived to do this at Northern Iowa, but our football team has to take an active role in the image portrayal. We have to become better citizens, if you will, so that they respect us for the efforts that we're putting forth and the things that we're doing both on the football field and off. I think at this particular juncture, our image is very tarnished, and so we're going to be actively attempting to become a part of the norm and not try to identify ourselves as people that are football players.
Q: You just said that the image is very tarnished. Why would you sav that?
A: I'm not downgrading anybody previous to that or anything else. I'm impressed with the things that Glen Mason accomplished.
Q: Like what?
Q: Why did you leave Northern Iowa?
A: You look back at history nine years ago and this football program was in very dire straits. The things that he accomplished: the caliber of the quality of the athlete he was able to bring in here, a couple bowl appearances in the last five years. He accomplished an awful lot. But sometimes change is good, and I think there was time for change.
A. I chance to coach in the Big 12. I think it's the premier football conference in the country, and I took a particular liking to the University of Kansas because of its outstanding academic reputation and the setting as far
Kansas football coach Terry Allen, shortly after announcement of his hiring, is congratulated by basketball coach Roy Williams.
as the community — the size of the community, Midwestern values and background. Q: Have you met Glen Mason?
A: Yes, I've known Coach Mason before, and in fact I had a chance to sit down and talk with him for a little bit. This last weekend we had a coaches meeting in Dallas and got to see Mason talk a little bit there.
A: Just - and I appreciate the point he was making - a lot of times in situations like this
Q: What did he say to you?
t h a t coaches for their own pers o n a l pride want to see the
next person be unsuccessful. He just reiterated that fact and said, "Hey, I really enjoyed the people there, and I wish you the best and I hope you're successful."
Q: Have you set any goals yet?
A: Win-loss-record goals, no. We will set the goals as a team, and I think we have to have a better understanding of what we've been dealt before we can legitimately start placing goals. The only goal that I have is to bring this football team together right now under one common cause where they feel so they're a part of the program.
Q: What will you try to do to get Kansas on the winning track?
A: I think it's a classic example of two years in there where they were a 10-2 football team and 4-7 football team. There wasn't a lot of difference. I think the measuring stick between a 10-2 team and a 4-7 team is so little that it reinforces the fact that the little things can make a difference.
Q: What's your football philosophy?
A: Defense and special teams win football games, and offense makes it fun. We're very much a wide-open offensive football team.
Q; What's important to you?
A: The players and their success. I think that one of the things in football, and all athletics for that matter, is a great learning experience to make you a better person and more successful in the game of life.
Q: What would you like to accomplish in your first year?
A: I would like to accomplish a sense of a football team coming together, and being able to have the University and the community appreciate the effort and the image that we are attempting to portray.