Commentary

Allen had good example to learn from

Arkansas quarterback Brandon Allen, center, greets his brother and backup Austin Allen (8) after an Arkansas touchdown against Nicholls during the fourth quarter Saturday, Sept. 6, 2014, at Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville.

Austin Allen has gotten used to waiting his turn.

The youngest of three Allen brothers, Austin was always at the end of the line growing up. That trend continued in high school when Austin held a clipboard for a season and watched his brother carve up opposing offenses at Fayetteville High School.

After guiding the Purple 'Dogs to two state titles of his own and playing in an All-American game, he was back to watching Brandon again - this time across the street from the FHS campus at Arkansas.

For three more years, the younger Allen watched as his brother went through highs and lows with the Hogs.

Now, it's Austin's turn. He was named the starter Thursday, beating out Rafe Peavey, Ty Storey and Ricky Town.

The four players are on nearly equal footing as far as playing time is concerned.

Allen is the vet of the group, throwing just three passes last season. Peavey, a redshirt sophomore, didn’t see action last season. Storey, a talented prospect from Charleston, redshirted and Town sat out the season after transferring from USC right before the season began.

So, the Hogs have four quarterbacks that racked up accolades and stats in high school, but are unproven at the college level.

However, Austin has a leg up, partly because he has been watching his older brother dominate in high school and become some experts’ pick to be the "sleeper” of the 2016 NFL Draft.

Brandon set an unbelievable example.

He was a highly sought after recruit, and then after becoming the Hogs’ starter as a sophomore, he weathered extreme and sometimes unfair criticism to guide Arkansas to two bowl wins. Along the way, he became one of the more efficient signal callers in college football.

Most of all, what Brandon showed Austin was guts and mental toughness.

It would have been easy for him to lash out at critics, but he didn’t. That class is part of the reason why Brandon won the Little Rock Touchdown Club’s Paul Eells Award, which is given each year to an Arkansas player who shows character.

Being his brother and roommate, Austin had an intimate view of how tough some of those times were. It is safe to say that he will remember that example if he is ever in the same position.

All four of Arkansas' quarterbacks sat in meetings with Brandon and watched him practice and play, but only one has lived with him for 20-plus years. Only one has the pressure and scrutiny that goes along with being “Brandon’s little brother.”

That is what drove Austin to lead Fayetteville to a title his first year at the helm and again his senior season. It is what, in part, drove him to beat out Peavey for the No. 2 job last year and the starting job this year.

He has to finish off the game of “whatever you can do, I can do better” the Allens have played dating back to grade school.

While always playing in a large shadow, Austin has found ways to distinguish himself. He is a little more athletic and more mobile with a better arm. He has his own style while, at least in high school, making good reads.

He will try to remain efficient in college and stay away from the costly mistakes that hurt Brandon at times, especially his sophomore and junior seasons. Austin has all of the qualities that make for a good starter, plus he knows the offense after studying for three straight years.

If Austin keeps the job, he will have big shoes to fill, but that is nothing new to him. He will take what he learned from his big brother and hope to do something Brandon couldn’t – win an SEC title.