3 Things to Know About New Penn State Football Defensive Coordinator Tom Allen

Penn State Football is expected to hire Tom Allen as its defensive coordinator to replace Manny Diaz, who will be the head coach at Duke.

Allen will inherit one of the best defenses in college football.

Penn State Football, Tom Allen — Tom Allen of the Indiana Hoosiers reacts to a play against the Penn State Nittany Lions (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)

Here’s a look at three things to know about the new Penn State Football Defensive Coordinator:

Head Coach Experience

Allen went 33-49 in seven seasons as head coach with Indiana. He became the head coach on December 1, 2016, when Indiana’s athletic director, Fred Glass, named Allen the head coach after Kevin Wilson stepped down.

Prior to this, Allen had held various defensive coordinator
roles.

In 2019, Allen’s third season, he led Indiana to its first 7–2 start since 1993; the last season, Indiana won eight games. This marked a significant improvement in the team’s performance under Allen’s leadership.

That season, Indiana earned a No. 24 ranking in the Associated Press Poll, and a No. 25 ranking in the coaches poll, the team’s first top 25 ranking in football since 1994.

In 2021, Indiana started the season ranked 17th, but injuries derailed their season, and they finished 2-10.

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Overhauled Indiana’s Defense Before Penn State Football Arrival

Allen took over the Hoosier defense in 2016; He inherited a defense that was ranked 120th.

Allen engineered one of the top defensive turnarounds in the country, with the team improving in every significant statistical category against a schedule featuring four top-10 opponents, a program first.

The Hoosiers were the most improved team nationally in total defense (-169.4 ypg) and passing defense (-134.1 ypg), the sixth-most improved in third-down defense (-12.2 percent), and the ninth-most improved in points per game allowed (-12.3 ypg).

In 2017, Allen became head coach but still oversaw the Indiana defense. The Hoosiers finished 2018 with 26 takeaways (T-11th nationally; T-2nd in the Big Ten), 13 fumble recoveries (T-5th; 2nd), and 13 interceptions (T-33rd; T-6th).