Lineman Jack Allen's TD highlights MSU's senior day fun
EAST LANSING – Connor Cook flapped his arms up and down, waving Michigan State’s south end zone crowd into a frenzy. Almost alerting them that something big was about to happen.
Jack Allen was ready for the ball. Except he wasn’t snapping it — he was standing right next to his longtime quarterback.
“I was just trying to get the crowd into it,” Cook said later. “It’s not every day you see a 265-pound tailback back there.”
“265?” Allen chuckled. “That might be a little low. I know I’m slim and cut, but …”
“OK,” Cook smiles, “280.”
Party on: Spartans are Big Ten East champs
It was both an enduring and endearing moment in MSU’s 55-16 victory over Penn State on Saturday, the two seniors in their final game at Spartan Stadium triggering one final score and memory in careers filled with them.
Allen (who actually is listed at 296 pounds) took the shotgun handoff from Cook around right end and dashed for a 9-yard touchdown run on his first collegiate carry. They gave each other a big, tender hug on the sideline after Allen’s end zone celebration with his fellow big men.
It was one of the highlights during a game in which all but two of the Spartans’ 24 seniors played. Both linebacker Ed Davis and safety RJ Williamson were injured and did not see the field. Saturday's win gave the senior class a record-tying 42 victories at MSU.
“It was so fun. The atmosphere, the fans, senior day, saw my parents, everything,” said senior cornerback Arjen Colquhoun, who had an interception and four tackles in his final home game. “Everyone came to show love, and I am so excited to go to the Big Ten championship.”
It wasn’t all joy. Fullback Trevon Pendleton left his final home game with an apparent left leg injury late in the first half and did not return to the game. He came back to the MSU sideline on crutches, sweat pants and a hooded sweatshirt after halftime, the eyeblack still smeared across his face and blending into his beard.
“It's unfortunate (for Pendleton),” Dantonio said. “I don't know what the extent is to that, but I don’t think it will alter next week. But we’ll see.”
For the most part, though, Saturday was a celebration of MSU’s stars such as Cook and receiver Aaron Burbridge and defensive end Shilique Calhoun. It was a celebration of the obscure Spartan names such as Tommy Vento and Phillip-Michael Thomas and Michael Topolinski, relatively anonymous walk-ons whose names rarely have been called over the years.
And it was a celebration of an unsung guy such as center Allen, a captain who took center stage by stepping out from his normal position.
Allen said he knew about the play “for about 5 minutes,” but Cook quickly reminded his starting center that he got a carry during the Green and White game in April. That went for a 3-yard touchdown, the only one in the scrimmage. In 2011, MSU also gave four-year starting offensive lineman Joel Foreman a carry as a tribute in his final regular-season home game. That went for 3 yards and a hearty cheer from the rest of the big guys. Connor Kruse also got a 1-yard carry last season on senior day.
This one was different.
Allen darted around end past two fellow senior linemen who were blocking hard for him, Brandon Clemons manning right guard and Donavon Clark at right tackle. Leading the way? Sophomore Brian Allen, who replaced Jack at center for the play and delivered the key block that sprung his brother after pulling to his right side.
Jack displayed some quickness to the edge as he rumbled his way to the end zone and even managed to a stiff-arm a Penn State player. That move knocked starting middle linebacker Jason Cabinda to the ground and prevented him from adding to his game-high 13 tackles.
“Credit to the offensive coaches and the offensive linemen, they got it done,” said Jack Allen, in humble, lineman-like fashion. “I got lucky.”
Dantonio, however, smiled and said he wanted to “use all our weapons — we recognize (Allen’s) athletic ability and we're going to make sure we use up every bit of that”
And the rest of his senior class equally enjoyed watching Allen cross the goal line every bit as much as he did picking up 6 points.
“Keep giving him the ball, keep giving him the ball,” laughed Colquhoun, who was watching from the sideline. “I didn't even realize he was in the backfield until I saw him running. I saw a big guy like this just running and all I thought was, ‘Oh, no.’ I thought for sure he was going to get tackled, and then he stiff-armed the guy and I was like ‘Oh my God, this guy just scored a touchdown.’
“The play of the game, Jack Allen.”