Reports: Allen could join Larry Brown at SMU

Update: The Daily News' Dick Jerardi reported that Jerome Allen was contacted by Larry Brown and according to close friends, "he was given a unique opportunity at his alma mater and had already brought the Quakers quite a long way in a very short time. Allen, the friends thought, wanted to finish what he started at Penn and get the Quakers back to their customary spot atop the Ivy League." Jerardi said that Allen was traveling and still considering his options, but Allen's friends said that "his love of Penn might be difficult for Brown to overcome."

Update: According to a report on ESPN.com, a holdup to a final deal are contracts for Illinois State coach Tim Jankovich for a "coach-in-waiting" position, as well as contracts for Illinois assistant Jerrance Howard and former Kentucky assistant Rod Strickland. There are reports that Jerome Allen is being considered for the assistant position at Southern Methodist under new head coach Larry Brown.

Brown, who hasn't coached in college for more than 20 years, was hired by SMU on Tuesday and the original report stated that Illionis State coach Tim Jankovich may join Brown as the coach-in-waiting.

However Jeff Goodman, who wrote the original brief, is now reporting that Jerome Allen is being considered as a potential coach-in-waiting. Allen, who played 51 games under Brown for the Indiana Pacers, is 39-43 in two and a half seasons as a head coach for the Quakers.