Devon Allen heads back to the gridiron just short of the Olympic podium
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RIO DE JANEIRO — When he returns to football practice at Oregon later this month, multi-sport star Devon Allen will have one heck of a story to tell his teammates.
His Olympic experience.
Allen took fifth place in the 110-meter hurdles on Tuesday night, holding his own against a powerful field that included Jamaica’s Omar McLeod and Spain’s Orlando Ortega. The 21-year-old Oregon senior’s time of 13.31 was 0.26 seconds slower than gold-medal winner McLeod, who finished in 13.05.
Ortega took the silver (13.17) and France’s Dimitri Bascou took the bronze (13.24).
Aside from the 1980 boycott, it’s the first time an American has failed to medal in the 110-meter hurdles at a Summer Olympics Games.
In an era of specialization in sports, Allen stands out as an exception, the rare athlete capable of juggling two sports without harming his performance in either. The 21-year-old has emerged as an NFL wide receiver prospect and a world-class hurdler thanks to his unusual blend of exceptional speed, unshakable confidence and relentless work ethic.
“Devon is amazing,” fellow American hurdler Ronnie Ash said. “The fact that he can compete at a high level in football, then turn around and hurdle? It’s spectacular. You don’t see it that much. You’ve got a couple guys who have done it at the high school level. Not really at the height he’s done it.”
When Allen zoomed across the finish line on Tuesday night, this was no disappointment. The two-time NCAA champion established himself as a contender in Rio at the U.S. Olympic Trials last month, where his winning time of 13.03 seconds was the second-fastest in the world this year behind only McLeod.
The morning after he took first place at the Olympic Trials last month, Allen dropped by the Oregon football office. He wanted an advance copy of the playbook so that he could help the walk-on who would be taking his spot in practice at wide receiver while he was preparing to compete in Rio.
“That shows how he thinks,” Oregon offensive coordinator Matt Lubick said. “He just won the Trials and he’s already thinking of someone else. He’s always putting his teammates first.”
Allen’s brilliance on the track this summer will leave him with a difficult choice to make when he returns home from Rio. He’ll have to decide whether now is the right time to turn pro in track.
Endorsement contracts are a primary source of income in professional track, but Allen would render himself ineligible to play college football anymore if he signed with a corporate sponsor. The only way he can turn pro in track and still play football at Oregon would be to hire a track-only agent and solely accept prize money.
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Allen insists he’s undecided, yet he doesn’t sound like someone ready to give up either sport anytime soon. There’s a good chance he’ll transition back to playing wide receiver for Oregon after the Olympics and then take a hard look at his future in both sports once the football season is over.
“If anyone has a chance [to keep doing both], I have one of the best,” Allen said Monday. “I’m trying to block it out and focus on running fast here and winning a gold medal. I’ll worry about that later.”
Switching between the sports comes naturally to Allen because he has been doing it since high school. He typically sheds about 8 to 10 pounds during track season and then puts it back on in the weight room for football.
The biggest threat to Allen’s future in either sport was the torn knee ligaments he suffered returning the opening kickoff of the Rose Bowl against Florida State about 20 months ago. He pasted on a smile after the game and beat doctors’ estimates by returning in time for the 2015 football season. But it became clear that he lacked the explosiveness he showed during a breakout campaign the previous winter.
While Allen recorded just nine receptions for 91 yards and did not attempt a return last season, he found other ways to contribute. He became Oregon’s best downfield blocker and a team leader in the locker room.
Over the course of the track season, Allen’s speed gradually returned. He won the NCAA 110 hurdles title despite clipping four or five hurdles in the final, and then he ran a much cleaner race at the Olympic Trials to outclass a loaded field and clinch a spot in Rio.
“I don’t like to speak about that race too much, but I could better competition,” Ash said with a smile. “He got out on me that day.”
One of the fun aspects of the buildup to Rio for Allen has been the support he has received from his football teammates and coaches.
They donned “Team Allen” shirts at Hayward Field during the Olympic Trials. They sent him dozens of good luck texts and tweets this week. And they altered their practice schedule Monday and Tuesday so they could watch Allen’s races together on the big screen in the team meeting room.
“I was trying to give those guys a shout-out on NBC while they were watching,” Allen said. “It means a lot for them to take the time to watch me.”
The race the Ducks football players witnessed Allen run on Monday night was not his smoothest. He advanced to the semifinals despite experiencing pre-race nerves during a rain delay, failing to clear several hurdles cleanly and then chopping his steps before the seventh hurdle to compensate for getting out of rhythm.
Allen had to run cleaner on Tuesday night, and he nearly delivered a medal – finishing just 0.07 off the podium. Now he’s coming back to Oregon with an experience he’ll never forget.
