Penn State’s running back situation was already set to have a new look this fall following the departure of Miles Sanders to the NFL. Now, the Nittany Lions are officially losing a senior running back to a transfer.
Mark Allen announced on his Twitter account the next step in his collegiate journey will take him to western Pennsylvania to play one final season with Duquesne, an FCS program.
To be continued...⏳ #GoDukes pic.twitter.com/lxujCZGb3l
— SCOOBY ALLEN (@theALLENshow) May 1, 2019
Allen had his 2018 season come to an abrupt end last fall when he suffered a season-ending injury during practice before a Week 4 road trip to Illinois. Because he was a fifth-year senior at the time of the injury, Allen would have needed to get a sixth year of eligibility approved by the NCAA. This announcement, or tease of a formal announcement, would seem to indicate Allen knows already he will be eligible for the upcoming football season.
While Allen was considered an asset to the Penn State running game when called upon, he was in a supporting role the past few seasons behind Sanders in 2018 and Saquon Barkley in 2016 and 2017. Allen wasn’t able to get himself into a role where he would rack up much yardage in the ground because of the NFL-caliber talent sitting atop the depth chart in Happy Valley the last three seasons, but his leadership was lauded.
