ATHENS — CJ Allen’s presence was unmistakable on Tuesday.
As impressive as the 6-foot-1, 235-pound sophom*ore was standing at the podium, his messaging and team focus was even more imposing.
It was easy to understand why earlier in the day Georgia football coach Kirby Smart offered such rare praise for a young middle linebacker.
“CJ Allen’s a natural leader who does a really good job,” Smart said, “and you don’t really see him like a sophom*ore out there. He plays like he’s a little bit older …”
That’s why Allen was one of three Georgia players to earn FWAA Freshman All-American honors last season, as he took over the defense after incumbent Jamon Dumas-Johnson suffered a broken forearm in the Bulldogs’ 30-21 win over Missouri last season.
It was Allen that forced Tigers’ QB Brady Cook into a hurried pass that Ntazir Stackhouse intercepted in a momentum-turning play that kept what would become an SEC-record 29-game Bulldogs’ win streak intact.
One week later, Allen starred with nine tackles and a sack in Georgia’s 52-17 win over then-No. 9 ranked Ole Miss.
Allen was so impressive that Dumas-Johnson — previously a team captain and the heartbeat of the defense — chose to transfer to Kentucky rather than battle Allen to regain starting duties.
Allen, a hometown hero from Barnesville a peaceful town of about 6300 once known as the “Buggy Capital of the South, carries a unique blend of confidence and modesty.
“Definitely, I feel like we’re coming along great,” Allen said, asked about the defense’s progress this fall. Each and every day, we continue work hard and get better.”
The hardest thing about playing middle linebacker at Georgia — the so-called “Mike” — is also the thing that Allen takes the most pride in.
“The hardest thing is that you are the quarterback of the defense, so everyone is looking at you to make the calls each play,” said Allen, who’s following in the footsteps of NFL linebackers Monty Rice and Nakobe Dean as the voice and heartbeat of the defense.
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“It’s an honor. You can look at it as an honor or as pressure, but for me it’s an honor.”
So, too, is representing the town of Barnesville, where Allen hosted a youth camp following spring drills.
“It was a dream to represent my state and stay home,” said Allen, a top 100 prospect coming out of high school who chose Georgia over the likes of Tennessee, Auburn, LSU, Oregon and Florida.
Staying close to his mother was a top priority, Allen explained, along with representing his hometown and the youth who look up to him.
“That’s one of my biggest ‘whys,’ " Allen said, referring to how Smart has his players share the sources of their motivation with teammates.
“Everything I do, I think about the kids in Barnesville … the kids back there, just watching them and wanting them to chase their dreams and show they can do it.”
Allen can do it, alright, whether it’s taking on 300-pound-plus offensive linemen and plugging gaps, or chasing down fleet tailbacks and receivers in the open field.
And now that he has a season of experience behind him, Allen figures to flow even faster to the football.
“Things have slowed down, just learning more, I’m trying to get better and grow what I did well last year and build off that,” Allen said. “The biggest thing for me was just having confidence in things like making the correct calls, putting guys in the right spots and being a problem solver for the defense.”
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Just as quarterbacks think quickly to adjust their offensive sets and audible at the line of scrimmage, Allen has to be ready to counter and adjust to UGA defense with the prescribed checks Georgia has prepared for each situation.
“It’s getting better with the calls,” Allen said, “and learning not just my position, but other guys’ positions around me and their positions, too.”
Running the Georgia defense, Allen explained, makes for a constant work in progress.
“I feel like you never really have full grasp of the defense, there’s always something you can learn more and more about,” Allen said.
“I don’t think you can get the whole thing, because there’s so much … what the safeties are doing, and what the D-Line is doing.”
And all the while, Georgia fans — especially those in Barnesville — are watching Allen grow into a mature leader who appears on the verge of creating a lasting legacy.
