IU football coach Tom Allen tells Pat McAfee he keeps putting himself at risk with celebrations

IU football is as hot as it has ever been -- a 3-0 record and national Top-10 ranking will do that. The Hoosiers are drawing the attention of Pat McAfee, who had coach Tom Allen on his show Tuesday (starting at the 1-hour, 7-minute mark). 

The coach addressed his personality, celebrating with players, navigating the COVID-19 pandemic and more. 

Allen went viral Saturday after jumping into the arms of defensive back Devon Matthews near the end IU's win over Michigan. Allen was left with a small cut on his cheek.

That wasn't his first foray into tackling a player. He related stories from his days as the Ben Davis High School coach and as an assistant at Mississippi. He wondered whether he should wear a mouthpiece to prevent injury.

"As a matter of fact, one of my former players from Ben Davis texted me after the game and said, 'Man, it's good to see coach that you haven't lost it,'" Allen said. "I tackled him years ago and I got a black eye when I tackled him after he made a big time play in the playoffs." 

Allen said the only thing that could have been better from last weekend was if fans would have been allowed into Memorial Stadium so they could have stormed the field. 

Allen, who played for his father at New Castle, was keenly aware of IU's history against the Wolverines: "I was in high school the last time we beat Michigan." 

Tom Allen on Pat McAfee's show 

McAfee: Did you lose your voice celebrating down there? What's going on?

Allen: We just got off the practice field and my voice is usually hoarse every day.

McAfee: What did we work on today coming off big win at Michigan. What is mindset? Do you have to teach them how to win? How to be a great team. is that a part of the entire thing?

Allen: I think it is a part of the process. It's about an expectation and we have an expectation here that just drives what we believe. We've talked about that since I got here. I believe we can do things that are special here. Things that haven't happened in our players' lifetime. You do that when you create change. That happens every single day. Try to change the way we practice, the way run this program, the way we practice,  the way we watch film. We train these guys every single day. They bought in to that. Back to work today. 

McAfee: Being a Ben Davis guy or an Indiana guy, did that make IU your dream job? IU has never really been known as a football school. Right now, the conversation begins and ends around football at IU. Really remarkable with how quick you have been able to do that. Was IU a dream destination for you?

Allen: I would say this. Growing up here. I knew full well the history. I was in high school the last time we beat Michigan. The bottom line is the opportunity to be a head coach in the Big Ten is a dream opportunity for me. The fact I can do that in my home state makes it really, really special. Born and raised here. My dad was head coach at New Castle. I played there. I just love this program. Love this state. Love this university. The fact I can represent my home state is really special.  

McAfee: When you move to Indiana, you don't realize how loyal Indiana fanbase is. The conversation is always basketball. Watching them all come out of the woodwork to support the football team. I think you would be selling that place out if not for COVID right now. Not a normal thing for IU football. Kind of bummed for you. Feel like with how young you're team is and what you're building, this is going to be for years to come.

Allen: I believe so, too. And I told our staff that the only negative about Saturday is that place would have been sold out and when we won, they would have stormed the field and tore down both goalposts. That's the only thing we missed by not having the fans there. 

McAfee: I saw you celebrated with a player and got a cut on your cheek from that. I listened to you press conference where you talked about previous injuries you've got from celebrating. And I think one of them you said that you obliterated both of your front teeth because of your celebration. Can you elaborate on that a little bit? And also, people should know you are a celebrating coach, which is very refreshing to see by the way.

Allen: Well, there's no question. I've always been this way. As a matter of fact, one of my former players from Ben Davis texted me after the game and said, 'Man, it's good to see coach that you haven't lost it.' I tackled him years ago and I got a black eye when I tackled him after he made a big time play in the playoffs. But when I was at Ole Miss, I jumped on a player and unfortunately his helmet hit me right smack in the mouth and knocked my front two teeth out. One of them was fake and it disintegrated. The other one was real and it just completely broke in half. and it exposed my nerve. And it hurt like crazy. So, I had to coach the whole rest of the practice with no front teeth. 

McAfee: Practice?

Allen: You know. Trying to talk without your front teeth is really a unique challenge. And then I had to have a root canal. It took about eight months to get the whole thing fixed. I had a fake tooth in there that I could pop in and out for months. I still celebrate. I don't wear a mouthpiece. I probably should. But I did learn to turn my head. That's why I turned my head that last one caught my cheek bone. We have a lot of fun here at Indiana football.

McAfee: Sounds like it. I did not know. Bloomington is a great time, by the way. If you're a football player looking for a great town with a team that seems to have a great time and seems like the coach is an awesome one, definitely think about the IU Hoo-hoo-hoo-Hoosiers. Things are coming around. But the fact that I didn't know you lost your front teeth form a celebration at a practice. What happened in a practice that got you ... you're just jacked all the time. You just celebrate good plays.

Allen: The guy was a linebacker. Linebackers make plays and I was the linebackers coach. He did things the way they are supposed to be done. I just jumped on him. And he's a big 6-foot-5 guy and it was a bad decision. It hurt really bad. I just brushed it off and went to the dentist.

McAfee: You're really refreshing to talk to. Most of the coaches coming in with this business style of this how we recruit and this we what we do. Listening to you talk about celebrating with your players is so refreshing in a world that has gone so corporate these days. Whenever you build your coaching staff, is that something you look for? Like do we have to have the same matching energy? Or do you kind of balance it out?

Allen: I think you have to balance it out. I think you have to have different personalities. Not everyone is as excitable and as high strung as I am. And that's good. I think both coordinators I have are both more even keel than my personality. I think you have to have tremendous balance. But I think you have to have fit. I'm looking for guys that fit with what I believe in which is the core values of calculated toughness and love. I want guys who believe in that and the relationships you build with your players. I want guys who value their family. I want really great husbands and fathers because I want that to be the underlying theme of our program. We want to build men and that are going to go out in the future and change this world for the positive and make an impact in their communities. That's the kind of guys I attract. That's the kind of guys I want that are faith-family guys and that just coach with a ton of energy. You better bring your energy now or you won't fit here. At the same time, not everyone is going to be just like me. I don't want a bunch of robots and guys that are just yes men.

McAfee co-host in gray sweatshirt: Has it been difficult keeping your kids in line in terms of COVID? I mean, they're ranked 10th. They can't really enjoy too much outside of the facility. When you see what's happened with Wisconsin, has that been more difficult than you imagined?

Allen: It's challenging. It's just one of those things we have to deal with it. You have to make sacrifices. Even as our own families, I can't even have my own families here. We used to have our own families come over to the house and we can't do that anymore. It's tough for everybody. Close families can come and watch but even then we have to have them wear a mask when you're around you family that's coming from Florida or Virginia or Texas. That part is challenging because you don't know who you're around and who they've been around. You just can't have your normal interactions. You can't go to parties and you can't go to large group gatherings. And we're not with them. We don't have little trackers on them to tell us where they go. We have to trust them that they're going to make good decisions and not put this team in jeopardy. Our guys have done a great job. It's a dangerous challenge that isn't going to go away.  

McAfee: I think the interesting thing about it si that the more we're in it, the less we know about it because there are certain instances where COVID runs wild on some people, brother. And we have no idea why it happened. We literally have no clue why it happened or how it happened. After the season, are you going to give them a week where you say, 'OK. Got get COVID. Go ahead and have a good time.'? How are you going to handle that coach?

Allen: That's a great question but the answer is no. But what's the future hold? I don't know. Even we talk about getting ready for your bowl game, we usually let the guys go home for some time. Are we going to be able to do that? I mean, there's just so many unanswered questions about what is January going to look like? What is February going to look like? Even December. So it's crazy.

McAfee: The Graham Mertz ... the Wisconsin kid that is out for 21 days ... that had to be a wake-up call. You guys have a special opportunity here that not a lot of other teams do, right? Early in the season, a lot of teams lose games they aren't supposed to and are immediately out of the conversation. Indiana has been thrusted into the conversation now because you guys get wins. If you see a player like Graham who took the world by storm with five touchdowns on opening night and now he has to sit out for 21 days. I assume that in itself is enough motivation to keep it locked down. But that's tough. The human aspect of it. That's got to be tough for the college kids. 

Allen: It is. And you're right. We had a tangible example within our own conference from a team we're going to be playing here in the next few weeks. It is a wakeup call to realize, 'Hey, man. That could have been me.'  Our guys recognize that. We talk about that as a team and use that as an example. And the thing is, sometimes you can do everything right and how knows how you get it. Like you said, the more this goes along the less we seem to know. The bottom line is you have to do everything in your power to mitigate your risk of getting this virus and trying to stay healthy. It's just added to the challenge and uniqueness of 2020. It's been a crazy ride so far.

McAfee co-host in green shirt: Coach, you're tackling players during the game. It's awesome. For your pregame speeches, do you like bash your face off every facemask in he locker room or do you just yell at them and tell them it's time to go?

Allen: Yeah. I don't know I've done the head-bashing piece. I would say that I'm a pretty fiery guy and I'm passionate. I believe in what we're doing here. I believe in the way we build this thing. I try to think of things for our guys that relates to what we've talked about during the week and it kind of comes to a crescendo before kickoff and at halftime. Because to me, it's not about some rah-rah speech that's going to motivate us. It's about appealing to the very structural thing that we put in place. the things we do every single day The thing we believe in. A lot of that too is making history together. Proving people wrong and having that chip on our shoulder every single time we take the field. That's an awesome, powerful thing to see a group of young men believe in a vision you set forth that no one believed in several years ago.. And now to see those things come to reality, it's a special, special thing. I just appreciate these young men for believing in me and believing in this program and that's why this locker room scene has been so special.  

McAfee: It's been paying off. It's been awesome to watch. I got a tweet form a guy. He said he's done some work with you or the team. He says there is like a word of the year or something like that. Do you know who that man so I can properly give him credit? He's like a life guru.

Allen: John Gordon.

McAfee: There it is. John Gordon. What is the word of the year and what is that entire process?

Allen: It's called, "One word." And he wrote an entire book entitled, "One Word."  He does a phenomenal job of teaching individuals how to focus in on one thing. So, our one word for 2020 is relentless. So that one word becomes the overarching theme of our entire program. 2019's theme was grit and 2018's one word was finish, 2017's one word was breakthrough. Those words become part of our program. But this year, it is relentless. Everything we do is laser focused, blocking out all the noise, and relentless is what we want to focus on where we want to be as a program. Well, that breakthrough season we had in 2019, we showed tremendous grit and tremendous toughness and tremendous fight to win eight games for the first time in 26 years. We go to a bowl game for the first time and the the things that we're doing. And then, figure out how we're going to take this thing to another level. We got to be relentless ... in everything we do. We got to be relentless in focus. Relentless in attention to detail. Relentless in grit. It's all about that one word that gives us tremendous focus and all our energy into one thing so we can do great things on the field together.

Chris Sims is a digital sports producer at IndyStar. Follow him on Twitter: @ChrisFSims.