The gentle giant; the story of Jeremiah Allison

Jeremiah+Allison+huddles+before+a+kick-off+against+Rutgers+at+CenturyLink+Field+in+Seattle%2C+Thursday%2C+Aug.+28%2C+2014.

Jeremiah Allison huddles before a kick-off against Rutgers at CenturyLink Field in Seattle, Thursday, Aug. 28, 2014.

At 6-2, 224 pounds of pure athleticism, you might get a little intimidated at first. But then you hear a soft, gentle, articulated voice that expresses confidence, maturity, and calm.

The name of the highly-touted linebacker out of Dorsey High School in Los Angeles is no doubt one most Cougar fans are probably familiar with. They know that he was a big time commit in Mike Leach’s first recruiting class. They know he hits hard, and they know he can provide a big impact on defense.

What they don’t know is that he is a symbol of why fans cheer on Cougar football.

With headlines in sports this week revolving around Ray Rice, and Atlanta Hawks owner Bruce Levenson, it is easy to lose sight of players like Jeremiah Allison.

You see, Allison could have gone to UCLA. He could have turned down the bitter cold Pullman winters for warmer, sunnier ones in Arizona. But instead, he wanted to turn a program around. Instead, he came to Washington State, where players are never forgotten in the community. Their legacies live on, long after they graduate.

“The family feel is here, the fans are loyal,” Allison said. “As you can see we took steps last year and now we just look forward to taking more this year.”

And what are the next steps?

“Winning, of course,” Allison said.

Now, a junior, with three years in the program, Allison is in a position to help the team take that next step. He’s bought into the team’s mantra of winning one game a week, and at 0-2, forgetting the week before, only controlling what they, as players, can control, and giving a maximum amount of effort on every snap.

Head Coach Mike Leach and the rest of the coaching staff are taking notice of Allison, and as a result, gave him more reps at inside linebacker last week at Nevada.

“He’s a smart guy, real explosive,” Leach said. “He’s been right on the brink for a while.”

Allison said that with more reps come more comfort, and that the team’s 3-4 defensive scheme plays to his strengths.

“There is a lot of freedom within the 3-4,” He said. “You can show different looks, get to the quarterback, and still get into pass coverage pretty easily.”

Back home in Los Angeles, everyone wants to know how Allison is doing. His mentor and high school coach Lonnie Pumphrey said that last season at least 40 people were on hand to see WSU’s marquee win at USC.

“We’re all rooting for Jeremiah and the Cougs,” Pumphrey said. “He’s a terrific kid, highly motivated, losing makes him crazy.”

In fact, it was Allison, just eight years old at the time, who got Pumphrey back into coaching. After going through family issues, Pumphrey said one evening he was sitting in the stands watching a youth football practice, just reflecting on his life.

It was then that Allison approached Pumphrey in the stands. He asked why Pumphrey wasn’t coaching anymore.

Pumphrey told Allison about his life. He told him that his sons had gone off, and he didn’t have them to coach anymore.

Allison simply replied, “Come on coach, you didn’t lose all your sons, you got 30 more on the field.”

Pumphrey said he was a coach two weeks later.

“I got so wrapped up in my issues that I forgot about everyone else,” Pumphrey said. “Jeremiah’s love for people, his selflessness reminded me what was important.”

Because it’s when the helmet comes off that Allison is really set apart from the average football player. Just one week before the start of his freshman season, he lost his mother to a coma. She was a woman whom he said ruled his house with an iron fist, and made sure he stayed out of the Los Angeles inner city violence.

“My mom was my rock, my soul, my backbone,” Allison said. “She allowed me to go out and make my mistakes, but she also made sure I didn’t get too far from the goal at hand, which is getting a degree and being successful in everything I do.”

It would have been easy for Allison to give up football. He could have dropped out of school. He could have entered the world that engulfs so many and spits out so few.

Instead, he came to the conclusion that he couldn’t make excuses. He knew making them would only hurt himself, and hinder everything he has worked so hard to accomplish.

“One thing my mom did was prepare me for moments like that,” Allison said. “She was a good teacher and I’m able to go out and accomplish everything I want to accomplish knowing that she’s in my presence.”

And Allison has big goals; the kind that start in the classroom.

“You are a student first, athlete second,” Allison said. “You have to take pride in being a student, and that’s what I do.”

Over the summer, Allison was nominated for the Allstate American Football Coaches Association Good Works Team. For the last 23 years, the honor has awarded players whose involvement in the community stand out among other student athletes. Since moving to Pullman, Allison has worked with Habitat for Humanity, he has teamed up to read with children in local elementary schools, and he has assisted at the local retirement home, among other things.

Pumphrey said he was most impressed with Allison, clad in a shirt and tie, a 4.3 G.P.A to his name, and the California state record for sacks, speaking to as many youth organizations in Los Angeles as he can about staying in school and staying out of trouble.

If you calculate all the hours spent on the practice field, film room, classroom, and time spent studying, success at football and academics seems improbable. But like he has his whole life, Allison turns the improbable into the possible.

“Just doing everything on time, following my syllabus, creating relationships with individuals in the classroom, and teachers so they can help you along the way,” Allison said.

After college, Allison said his eyes are on law school.

“Right now I’m looking at criminal law,” Allison said. “At first my goals were to equip myself with knowing my rights, but then I realized I can debate really well and I’m going from there.”

It’s easy to get caught up in the final score. It’s easy to criticize what we don’t understand. What often times isn’t so easy is to understand perspective. Jeremiah Allison gives us some perspective, and you better believe that when the program is finally turned around, it will be because of players like Allison.

For more Sports Weekend multimedia content, visit www.desportsweekend.com.