FAYETTEVILLE — Austin Allen has dedicated himself to being “the man” at quarterback for Arkansas since the 2015 season ended.
The junior Fayetteville native put himself through rigorous solo workouts in the Razorbacks’ spacious weight room. He threw whenever beckoned, whether it was three times a day with different groups of receivers or midnight sessions with Keon Hatcher. He gave up Taco Bell and other fast food.
Something he hasn’t done lately — talked to Brandon Allen, his older brother and predecessor, the Razorbacks’ starting quarterback the last three years.
The elder Allen is busy trying to earn a spot on the 53-man roster with the Jacksonville Jaguars, the team which drafted him in the sixth round this spring. The younger is readying to try and fill his brother’s shoes at Arkansas when the Razorbacks open the season Saturday against Louisiana Tech.
“I saw him 21 straight years, so I give him some space and he gives me some space,” Austin said.
The comparisons between the two will be inevitable and rampant this year. Which brother is better? Will Austin be better as a first-year starter than Brandon was? How are their games similar and different?
Austin understands the dynamic more than anyone. After all, he went through it in high school at Fayetteville when he was Brandon’s successor his junior and senior years. That turned out well, with Austin throwing for more than 7,700 yards and 75 touchdowns, leading the Bulldogs to back-to-back state championships and earning MVP of both title games.
“He was always the guy before me and then I'd come and try to come and follow him up,” Austin said.
Austin is his own person. A junior first-year starter on an offense with six senior starters, he was third in voting for the two offensive team captain positions. While the focus in fall camp was on the race for the backup quarterback job, Allen calmly completed 73 percent of his passes for 309 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions in the two main fall camp scrimmages, displaying a poise and confidence that rubs off on his teammates.
“He’s always been a vocal guy, but he’s been a more assertive, vocal guy,” junior center Frank Ragnow said. “He’s got that urgency and I think he’s really taken it on himself to be a leader.”
“Our defensive guys have the upmost respect for him and they’ll follow him anywhere,” defensive coordinator Robb Smith said. “It’s nice to finally see him finally have an opportunity.”
There’s no doubt the brothers have their similarities, but their abilities as passers and the situations they inherited are different, starting with their respective ages when they made their initial start. Brandon was 20 years and 11 days old when he was thrown into the fire for an injured Tyler Wilson as a redshirt freshman against No. 1 Alabama in 2012. He was six days shy of his 21st birthday when he made his first appearance as the full-time starter in the 2013 opener. By comparison, Austin is significantly older. He’ll be 22 years and 14 days old when he takes the field against Louisiana Tech.
“I think he’s sick and tired of me telling him this and that, coaching him on this and that” offensive coordinator Dan Enos said. “Just the other day, I was thinking to myself, ‘Boy, this guy’s probably ready to play a game.’”
Austin’s supporting cast appears significantly better than Brandon’s was. Brandon had Jonathan Williams and Alex Collins, but Keon Hatcher and a freshman Hunter Henry were his only reliable pass catchers while he was playing behind an offensive line starting two true freshmen. Austin has one of the better receiving corps in the SEC at his disposal, a senior Jeremy Sprinkle and a few talented young running backs to hand the ball off to. While the offensive line is a question mark, there are no true freshmen being thrust into action. Dan Skipper, a freshman in 2013, is now a battle-hardened senior protecting Austin’s blindside.
Jim Chaney was the playcaller when Brandon took over the reins in Bielema’s first year, Allen’s third coordinator in three years. He didn’t come into his own until Enos arrived for his senior year last fall. Austin is entering year two with Enos, fully immersed in a system which preys on mismatches and frequently uses run-pass options to catch and take advantage of defenses leaning the wrong way. Brandon was exceptional in that regard as a senior, thriving under Enos. Austin hasn’t made a start yet, but has already been in Enos’ system longer than his brother was.
“He really stresses bubbles, bangs and all that,” Allen said of Enos. “It really helps our offense out a lot. If they blitz, we’ve always got an answer for it. I really feel like it’s helped out our offense, made the defense not blitz, load the box up too much and really gives us a better option on the run game.”
“We feel good about running a lot of our stuff with him,” Enos said.
From a physical standpoint, the two are basically the same size, with Brandon listed as 6-foot-2, 210 pounds last year and Austin at 6-1, 209 heading into this season. Skillset-wise Brandon is a more natural scrambler, but coach Bret Bielema has in the past opined that Austin throws a better deep ball.
“I still think that,” receiver Dominique Reed said, agreeing with his coach. “Brandon throws a good deep ball, too, but I think Austin throws it good.”
“Brandon probably has a little more zip on it,” Hatcher said. “Austin has a little bit more touch.”
There will be no hiding from the comparisons to Brandon, good or bad. Austin knows that. He’s lived it before. This will be on a larger scale, but he plans on handling it the same way he always has.
“I don't try to think of it as too big a deal or anything,” Austin said. “I know I've got to be Austin and go out and play.”