Drew Allen will compete for the starting QB job at Syracuse. (Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports)
Oklahoma quarterback Drew Allen, who has one more year of college eligibility, will transfer to Syracuse.
Allen, a senior, is graduating from Oklahoma in May so he will not have to sit out a year. He will join Syracuse in the summer.
“It is the toughest decision of my life just because of the uniqueness of the situation,” Allen told the Syracuse Post-Standard. “Coming out of high school, I was basically deciding where I was going to go for the next four or five years of my life. With this, it was a decision that would span a matter of months — a one-year deal.
“So it’s been a long process, and I’m really excited that it’s come down to me going to Syracuse.”
Allen, who is 6-foot-5 and 226 pounds, was a high school All-American from San Antonio. He will compete for the starting quarterback job at Syracuse after spending his career at Oklahoma as a backup. He redshirted in 2009 and then played behind Landry Jones.
First-year Syracuse coach Scott Shafer is in need of a starter to replace Ryan Nassib. He cannot officially comment on Allen until he enrolls at Syracuse.
The competition at Oklahoma is stiffer than Syracuse. Blake Bell, Trevor Knight and Kendal Thompson are competing for the Sooners starting job. Allen is considered by some as a favorite to start at Syracuse over redshirt senior Charley Loeb, junior Terrel Hunt and senior John Kinder.
Allen said no coaches offered him a starting job.
“I can assure you that the schools that contacted me, not one single school made that promise, and I didn’t expect them to,” he said. “Honestly, if a school did that, I don’t know if I would really hold them to a high regard. That’s not how I do things. I’ve had to compete the past four years, I’ve had to compete all my life.”
Allen picked Syracuse over North Carolina State, saying his relationship with offensive coordinator George McDonald was a deciding factor.
“When it came down to those two schools, I knew that I honestly couldn’t go wrong,” Allen said. “Both coaching staffs are amazing; both have great players. But when it came down to it, I just feel like what Coach McDonald is talking about doing there at Syracuse really fits my style.”
