If you were sitting in the stands at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium in 2016, you probably spent half the time holding your breath. Not because the offense was boring. Honestly, it was the opposite. You were holding your breath because it felt like Austin Allen was getting hit by a freight train on every single drop-back.
Seriously.
He didn't just play quarterback; he survived it. Following in the footsteps of your older brother is never easy, especially when that brother is Brandon Allen, who had just finished one of the most efficient seasons in school history. But Austin didn't just "fill in." He took the reins of Austin Allen Arkansas football and turned it into a masterclass in pocket toughness and vertical passing that arguably hasn't been matched in Fayetteville since.
The Unbelievable Durability of No. 8
Let's get one thing straight: the stats only tell half the story. Sure, we can look at the 3,430 passing yards he put up in 2016. That led the entire SEC. Think about that for a second. In a league with future NFL starters and high-profile recruits, the kid from Fayetteville High was out-throwing everyone.
But the real stat? The hits.
During a two-game stretch against Texas A&M and Alabama, Austin Allen was hit 46 times. Not 46 pressures. Hits. He spent most of that October looking like he’d been in a car wreck, yet he’d just pop back up, adjust his helmet, and fire a 20-yard seed to Keon Hatcher.
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It was gritty. It was "old school" Arkansas football.
Why 2016 Was Special
The 2016 season started like a dream. After a close call against Louisiana Tech, Austin led the Hogs into Fort Worth and snapped TCU’s 14-game home winning streak. He didn't just manage that game; he won it. He threw three touchdowns and then literally ran in the game-winner himself in double overtime.
That was the "Austin Allen moment."
Suddenly, nobody was talking about him as "Brandon’s little brother." He was the guy. He finished that year with 25 touchdowns, which is still top-five in the school’s single-season record books. He was surgical in the red zone, tossing 23 touchdowns inside the 20-yard line over his final two seasons.
The Toll of the SEC Grind
Football is a cruel game. By 2017, the constant punishment started to catch up. Arkansas fans remember the South Carolina game—not for the score, but for the moment Austin walked off the field with a shoulder injury.
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He missed four games.
The offense stalled. The Bret Bielema era was spiraling. When Austin finally came back for the season finale against Missouri, he reminded everyone what they’d been missing. He threw for 313 yards and two scores in a shootout. It was a bittersweet goodbye. He left Arkansas as one of only seven quarterbacks in program history to cross the 5,000-yard and 35-touchdown marks.
- Career Passing Yards: 5,045 (8th all-time at Arkansas)
- Career Passing TDs: 36 (7th all-time)
- Completion Percentage: 59.1% (3rd all-time)
Life After the Hill
What most people get wrong about Austin Allen’s pro career is that they think he just disappeared. He didn't. He was a classic "victim of the system" in the NFL. He signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent in 2018.
Then came the spring leagues.
He was drafted by the Salt Lake Stallions in the AAF’s "Protect or Pick" draft. He showed flashes of that same Fayetteville toughness, but the league folded mid-season. It was a weird time for football players trying to find a home.
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The Legacy of the Allen Family
You can’t talk about Austin without mentioning the family tree. His dad, Bobby Allen, was a long-time assistant coach for the Razorbacks. His brother Brandon is still grinding in the NFL, serving as a reliable backup for teams like the Bengals and 49ers.
The Allens are Arkansas football.
They weren't the dual-threat, 4.4-speed guys that recruiters drool over now. They were pro-style, high-IQ quarterbacks who knew how to read a defense and weren't afraid to take a hit to make a play. Austin, specifically, had a different kind of "it" factor. He was a bit more of a gunslinger than Brandon. He’d take the big risks, and more often than not, they paid off.
What We Can Learn From the Austin Allen Era
Looking back, the Austin Allen years were the end of a specific type of Razorback identity. It was the tail end of the "uncommon" era under Bielema. While the wins didn't always pile up at the end, the culture of toughness was undeniable.
If you're a young quarterback today, watch his 2016 tape. Don't watch the touchdowns. Watch his feet in the pocket when the pressure is closing in. He never looked at the pass rush. He kept his eyes downfield. That is something you can't coach—it's just who he was.
Actionable Insights for Razorback Fans:
- Study the Tape: If you want to see peak "toughness," go back and watch the 2016 Alabama game. Even in a loss, Allen's performance earned the respect of Nick Saban.
- Appreciate the Consistency: The Allens provided nearly six straight years of stable quarterback play. In the transfer portal era, we likely won't see two brothers lead a program like that ever again.
- Check the Record Books: Austin still sits in the top 10 of almost every major passing category at Arkansas. He isn't just a "memory"; he's a statistical pillar of the program.
The story of Austin Allen isn't one of "what if." It's a story of a kid who stayed home, waited his turn, and gave everything he had to a jersey that meant the world to his family. He left the field bloodied, bruised, and usually with a few hundred passing yards to his name. That’s about as "Arkansas" as it gets.