Jerome Allen First Practice Quotes Transcript

Here's a transcript from yesterday's pre-practice media session with interim head coach Jerome Allen in Weightmann Gym. Look for a story tomorrow with Allen's input, along with those of the team captains Zack Rosen and Darren Smith, on the state of the team in the near-term. All gave very good interviews, and the general consensus that I gathered is that the move was definitely a morale-booster and the players are excited to play for Allen moving ahead. I'd love to give you more of my opinion on the matter, but the History of Ancient Greece is my focus for the time being.

Q: Did you ever think you’d be in this position a few months ago when you weren’t even coaching, you were still a player? Jerome Allen: Nah, no way. The swiftness and the acceleration of this entire process has been, not necessarily overwhelming, but a lot to handle. I’m excited, nervous, anxious, enthused, all these things, all at once. Moreso, I’m just appreciative of this opportunity because I buy into that this doesn’t happen often. This university has done so much for my family and I and I just want to give them maximum effort and just try to work my tail off to deliver some positive results, not necessarily in terms of wins and losses, but just trying to resemble the brand of Penn basketball and this community and of the university.

Q: When the rumors started going around over the weekend, one of the things that got out was that the players were really in your corner that you take this position if something like this were going to happen. What does that kind of endorsement mean to you? Allen: Well, at the end of the day, we’re all in the business of shaping young men’s lives and as much as we want them to be the best basketball players that they possibly could be, moreso we really want them to develop to be a productive citizen. And I just tried from day one to let the guys know that I do care about them, it’s not all about making jump shots or making assists or getting rebounds but its about the relationships that you form with not only your peers, but the people you have to work with.

Q: With some time off here before the schedule resumes, is the routine for this holiday season going to change? Allen: I’m going to try and keep it as close to schedule as I possibly can. One of the things I can relate to is that I’ve been at this university during exam time, during finals and I do know that they have a lot on their plate. And I just want to try to use each section as an opportunity to be as productive as we possibly can given the situation, knowing that they do have exams and other things to worry about

Q: Is being the head coach at Penn a dream of yours? Was it a dream of yours when you were playing? Allen: You know what? I think coaching at the University of Pennsylvania is probably the dream of a million guys out there and I would be doing all of them a disservice if I didn’t say that I am overly ecstatic about this opportunity. And I’m not just saying this because it might seem like it’s the right thing to say. I brought a picture in to Mike Mahoney the other day. It’s a picture of me when I was 14 years old with a little Quakers uniform on, we were playing in a football game at Franklin Field. Penn was the furthest thing from my mind. I just wanted to beat this team from Florida that everyone said was going to be tough and fast and that they hit hard. My mother kept that picture. I also had another picture of me cutting down the net my senior year at the Palestra in that same folder. And I just took a step back and said this is amazing for this university to be part of my life, some 20-years plus and all the things I’ve experienced here. To have an opportunity to be able to just lead young men is a dream come true for me.

Q: What’s it going to take to bring this program back, not only on the court but in the stands; to bring the crowd back, to bring the atmosphere back to the way it was the beginning of this decade and when you were here? Allen: It’s going to take a lot. I don’t have a magic wand, I don’t have all the answers. But what I do have is the capacity to work to try to find a solution. If we can just put the wins and losses aside, and just come out everyday and be enthused and energetic and give the effort that it takes to be a part of a winning program, then the wins will come later. I’m just in the business of, I don’t want to say changing the culture because I don’t think the culture has changed per se, but I’m just in the business of trying to get guys to enjoy playing, embrace the opportunities and just know that a lot of people care about this place and a lot of people will support it.

Q: Do you think a change at the top was either important or even necessary to help generate that excitement and enthusiasm? Allen: Well that wasn’t my decision to make because, as I stand before you today, the same things I’m saying now I was saying from the position that I was in. And that is, every day, Jerome, go to practice and try to help make someone better. And that’s all I really can do is control what I was able to control and that’s somedays being a good listener, somedays being a little hard, somedays being suggestive, and other days just trying to be observant. Over the course of my professional career and my college career try to decipher through the things that I saw attributed to having success.

Q: You’ve been up close with it since August or so, is there something you would like to change now that you have the final say? Allen: I will say first and foremost that I’m greatly appreciative of the opportunity that Glen Miller gave me. If not for him, I’m not standing before you today. But his name’s Glen Miller and my name’s Jerome Allen. There’s some things that he did, I didn’t see. There’s a lot of things I learned from him and a lot of things that I’m set in my ways in, I just believe just playing basketball as long as I have. I tell everybody, I had the opportunity to play for Dan Dougherty, Larry Brown, and Fran Dunphy, Fran O’Hanlon, Gil Jackson, and Steve Donahue. If you can’t learn anything from that group, you’re not going to learn anything at all. All of them are unique in their own right, and I just tried to take the bulk of the good from all of them and carry that in my own bag. What I will say is one of the things that was consistent with all of those guys is that they demanded, demanded, that you approach the game the right way everyday, every second, every pass, every quarter that exists. Some things are just familiar in everybody, and I’m just going to try to carry that forth.

Q: Is there a way to define “the right way?” We’ve all heard it, we sort of know what it generally means. Specifically, what is it? Allen: The right way, who knows what is the right way? There are a lot of things that are similar. I’ve been a part of winning programs, I’ve been a part of losing programs and in my book, the ones that win more than they lose all approach the game a certain way. I could be wrong, but I’m willing to bet that if these guys take that approach, they’ll win more than they lose.

Q: On a lighter note, how busy was your phone yesterday? Allen: My phone hasn’t stopped. My text messages are maxed, my voice messages are maxed. I got home last night, I sat down with my wife for about fifteen minutes, just trying to take a deep breath. I made sure that before I went to sleep I called all of the parents of our current players to let them know how appreciative I am to have the opportunity to work with their sons. In the end, you’ve got to be able to take care of the guys you have. I can’t make a shot, I can’t get assists, I can’t get a rebound.

Q: [Couldn’t hear the exact phrasing at this point, as Mike Howlett entered the gym and started shooting around, but it was about his Allen’s relationship with Zack Rosen. Any gaps in the transcript from here on out were due to my recording being inaudible because of the echoed dribbling]. Allen: He’s a guy that is willing to do whatever he has to do to get better. I think our initial attraction was because he’s a gym rat. You literally have to tell him to get out of the gym, “Zack go home.” He wants to get better. In this day and age, I must be honest, all the kids don’t get it. Sometimes you have to work not as hard for the ones that do get. Zack is an unbelievable person, he’s a good kid, he’s a very good basketball player and he’s a very good teammate. I’m just ecstatic that I can continue to work with him.

Q: You said that you can’t make any shots anymore, you can’t dribble for anybody. Were there any times this year when you felt like you wanted to go out there and do that a few times? Allen: Coach Martin and I would stand on the sidelines some days and say we could get out there and not necessarily do a better job, but compete with them. In the back of my mind, I am a little crazy. At 37 I still think I got something left in the tank. But as long as that bottle of Aleve is in my hand, maybe I can get it done.

Q: When did you finish playing? Allen: I finished in February of 09

Q: Did you envision this at all when you came back here? Allen: I did not. I envisioned coming back to help the kids. If anybody were to tell you that they knew this was going to happen, they’re lying to you. The swiftness and acceleration of the entire process caught a lot of people off guard. Getting to this point, I’m a firm believer that God is not going to put too much on me, more than I can handle.

Q: What do you think that first game is going to be like? Allen: I think it’s just basketball…[lost a chunk here, but he did admit to being a little nervous]

Q: [Didn’t get the exact phrasing, but it was about his first home game, against Temple and his college coach, Fran Dunphy] Allen: …He was so worried about me. I wanted to say ‘Coach, you just beat Villanova,’ and he was like, ‘I’m worried about you, I know you have a lot of things going on in your mind but I’m confident that you and the team can get it done’ When I heard him say that, ‘I’m confident in you and I believe that you can make a difference,’ I really started to feel a little different about the entire process. Q: Did he give you any suggestions? Allen: Yeah, he told me don’t throw trash cans at kids like he threw at me.

Q: Have you talked to Coach Gallagher or Coach Martin? Allen: Yeah, we’ve spoken in detail. I think all three of us are appreciative of the things that Coach Miller has done. It’s unfortunate that we’re in this current situation, I don’t wish to be standing in front of you as a coach because another person lost the opportunity. But it’s the nature of the business and I think the three of us really understand that if not for him, we’re not at this university. We just want to hope that we can right the ship.

Q: When did you get the sense that this could happen? Did it happen really fast? Allen: I couldn’t have blinked, everything happened so fast. They were asking me if I wanted to accept it, I was wiping my eyes, I thought I was still asleep. I was like, ‘what did you just say?’ It’s a wonderful opportunity. I was sitting in the Palestra on the bench and saying to myself, ‘Wow, this is amazing.’ And I’m going to do all I can to help the kids enjoy playing and play hard and really represent not only themselves and their families, but this university and this community.