Austin Allen worked with biomechanics company to improve arm

Arkansas quarterback Austin Allen looks to pass during a game against LSU on Saturday, Nov. 12, 2016, in Fayetteville.

Editor's note: The original version of this story stated the Allens worked with Tom House's 3DQB company.

Having a brother in the NFL has paid dividends for Austin Allen this offseason.

Arkansas’ senior quarterback tagged along when older brother Brandon, a former Razorback quarterback himself, worked out with the Mastrole Quarterback Academy, a training company headed by Ken Mastrole, a renowned quarterback coach in South Florida. The MQA handled draft prep for Teddy Bridgewater, EJ Manuel and Tajh Boyd, among others.

The session introduced the younger Allen to some new training ideas he hadn’t previously been exposed to, drills and exercises designed to speed his throwing motion up.

“Just a bunch of band work, stuff I never did before,” Allen said. “I know this is my last go-around, so you don’t really want to leave a stone unturned.”

That’s not all they worked on.

“Footwork drills and just trying to get that competitive edge is what I’ve been trying to do this offseason just because I know I have one (more) opportunity at this,” Allen said.

In addition to band exercises and football drills, they worked with weighted balls and did other biomechanics work while spending time analyzing video and studying film.

Allen will enter his senior season as a potential All-SEC selection after throwing for a conference-best 3,430 yards and 25 touchdowns in his first year as a starter last season. He altered his diet leading up to last year, cutting out fast food for salads.

In that light, him going above and beyond to improve didn’t come as a shock to teammates. It doesn’t go unnoticed.

“I’ll call him the Gruden Grinder,” senior center Frank Ragnow said. “He buys into everything. You should see his diet. He’ll come in, he’ll get a workout in the morning when we have workouts. In the afternoon, he’s been great at conducting 7 on 7 or whatever those skill guys call it.

“It’s been great to see the strides he’s taken after the season. But yeah, he’s been very, very impressive.”

Allen led four throwing sessions a week in the offseason, an opportunity for he and junior-college transfer receivers Brandon Martin and Jonathan Nance to develop chemistry ahead of spring practice. Even aside from the 2 newcomers, Arkansas returned just 1 of its 5 leading receivers from last year (Jared Cornelius), making the offseason an important stepping stone as Allen grows more acclimated with players like Deon Stewart, Jordan Jones and LaMichael Pettway.

“Preparation for an individual is unlimited,” coach Bret Bielema said. “Austin has taken a lead on that. I popped in on Saturday afternoon and been amazed how many guys are down in there working out.”