Get To Know Your Orange Man - #8 Drew Allen

The Sooner-turned-Orangeman has been the talk of the town all summer, and it seems like he will likely take the first snap for Syracuse this season.

By Dan Lyons@Dan_Lyons76 Aug 29, 2013, 12:35pm EDT

Name: Drew Allen

Position: Quarterback

Year: Senior

Height: 6'5"

Weight: 226

Hometown: San Antonio, TX

High School: Alamo Heights

2012 Stats: Played in two games for Oklahoma last year.

2013 Projections: Based on Ashton Broyld's comments yesterday, it sure seems like Drew is going to be our starter this season. If this is true, it means he has clearly won the job over Terrel Hunt, who has three years of eligibility left, which is a good sign, I think. Any ties would have gone to the guy who is going to stick around. By all reports, Allen has a big time arm and can make throws that other quarterbacks on the roster may struggle with. He's also supposed to be an underrated athlete, and while he's a pocket passer, he has the speed to escape the pocket if he has to. This year is Allen's NFL audition, so if he wins the job, one has to imagine he will be very driven to put up some big numbers this season.

How'd He Get Here?: Oklahoma was all set for human bowling ball Blake "Belldozer" Bell to win the quarterback job after he contributed to the offense as a change of pace, running QB last year. With this in mind, Allen began looking for others schools where he could transfer and play right away, and it came down to Syracuse and NC State, with Syracuse winning out. Bell has since lost the Oklahoma job to redshirt freshman Trevor Knight, and some Sooner fans seem to have seller's remorse.

What'd Scout/Rivals Say?: Both gave him three stars, while ESPN gave him a '75' grade before they started doing the star thing. He was Rivals' #15 QB recruit in the country, while Scout had him at 38 and ESPN at 58.

Money Quote: Allen, on QB competitions:

"Whether it's announced or not, whether everybody knows about it, I come every single day as if I'm the guy," Allen said. "Really for me it's not as important as somebody may make it out to be because of how I approach it every day."

Links of Wonder: A simple e-mail from Allen to quarterbacks coach Tim Lester kicked off the process that ended with Drew at Syracuse.

Tweets of Wonder:

Ocho días #Kickoff #Foozball http://t.co/56eVjFGmpn
— Drew Allen (@DrewAllen1) August 23, 2013

What Does Shafer Think: Shafer, with the Shafer-iest quote possible after watching film on Allen for the first time:

"I was like, 'Doggone, this kid looks like he can play,'" Shafer told The Post-Standard in his office Wednesday. "I called Coach Stoops on the spot."

Interesting Nugget O'Interest: According to SUA's bio of Drew, he is an Eagle Scout. If the Syracuse team bus is ever stranded in the woods, Drew will lead the team to safety, and then hopefully to the Varsity for a crazy-delayed banner flipping.

Let Us Get a Good Look Atchya: