Tom Allen talks 'fast forwarded' state of NCAA Football

Published May 23, 2022

Keegan Nickoson • TheHoosier

Staff Writer

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The current landscape of college athletics has taken some serious getting used to over the last year. So much so, that even Nick Saban has found himself losing an integrity battle with none other than, yes you guessed it, Jimbo Fisher.

Tom Allen made some headlines for his comments on the transfer portal near the end of last season, saying it puts coaches in a tough spot. Players have the ability to enter the portal during the season, leaving coaches high and dry with no way to fill the void their absence creates

Tom Allen spoke with TheHoosier.com on Wednesday to update people on how he and his staff have adjusted to the new world of college football.

“I’m just being real with you about what I feel our role is as a coach," Allen said. "We’re supposed to teach grit in their life. We’re trying to teach the ability to persevere in difficult times in life. When they’ve got a family that’s depending on them, they can’t just quit their job.”

This new reality hit Indiana football when running back Tim Baldwin hit the portal during the season last year. It wasn't something Allen had seen, and he looked at Baldwin's departure mixed with the inability to replenish the open spot as unfair.

“I was not real fired up about guys being able to enter the portal during the season," Allen said. "It just didn’t make any sense to me.

“I don’t like having a system in place that kind of encourages that. But, I’m not sitting here criticizing the transfer portal for a guy that wants to make that decision at the end of the season, to sit down with a coach face-to-face and talk it through; if that’s what’s best for them.”

Name, image, and likeness is another subject Tom Allen has done some serious studying on as of late. With massive NIL collectives at places like Texas A&M, Texas and Miami, it's no secret Indiana will have to catch up monetarily, and Allen knows that.

“Moving forward you have to find boosters that are willing to support and invest in football, and that goes for any program in America," Allen added. "To be able to compete against other teams that are doing that very thing right now."

Hoosiers For Good, Indiana's NIL consortium, is definitely in its infancy and may not be able to provide the same financial gains to student-athletes as the aforementioned collectives. But, it is progress. Jack Tuttle, AJ Barner, Matthew Bedford, D.J. Matthews, Taiwan Mullen and Shaun Shivers have all been able to partner with H.F.G.

“Without question, that’s our challenge moving forward. We have some things that are beginning to be put in place to help us, which is great. We just have to keep building off of that. To be able to allow as many guys as possible to benefit from these new rules.”

Transfer linebacker Myles Jackson has also been very vocal about his NIL deals. Getting involved with sports drinks, recruiting services, minimalist wallets, and even some NFTs. There is a very wide range of partnerships these athletes can pursue.

However, all of this new money may come with some baggage.

“I also want to make sure we do a good job of protecting our team… We have 125 guys on our team. To be able to manage that locker room, and help as many people as possible... Not everyone’s going to get the same amount of money," Allen mentioned. "Is that going to disrupt the locker room? Does it disrupt an NFL locker room? All I know is this; if a guy does get more, he better prove it on the field.

“We’re now putting ourselves in a position for those kinds of dynamics. We have to be able to learn how to handle those.”

Allen would mention multiple times how the NCAA has "fast-forwarded" the landscape of college football. Comparing the current state to how these players would be treated if they were to be signed to an NFL contract, mentioning that only 15% of NFL players have endorsement deals outside of their contract with a team. A smaller number than you might have guessed.

“We try to educate them as much as possible. For the first time ever some of these guys are dealing with taxes. We’re just fast-forwarding life for these guys, that’s all we’ve really done."