Collegiate Times

Though nicknamed the "Big Donut," Virginia Tech's wide-framed forward, Jeff Allen, established himself as the Hokies' premier post player heading into his sophomore season.

Friday night's outset of the 2008-09 regular season will give a packed Cassell Coliseum its first taste of the new and improved number zero.

Known by his followers for having a reach similar to Mr. Fantastic's and hands like a vacuum cleaner, Allen's unique set of skills figure to develop more thoroughly after shedding 18 pounds in the off-season.

Over the summer, Allen worked vigorously to become stronger and fitter.

"It's not really that I lost weight -- it turned into muscle," Allen said.

Coming off a standout rookie season that earned him a spot on the ACC's All-Freshman team, the bar will be even higher for Allen to carry Tech's frontcourt. On offense, Allen showcased his ability to put the ball in the basket, averaging 11.8 points per game (third most on the team). Allen also displayed an ability to grab offensive rebounds, scoring many points off put-backs.

While Allen will definitely be looked upon to score, he will also need to create scoring opportunities for his sharp-shooting supporting cast.

"He can do so many different things. Obviously we want to utilize his ability to pass," said head coach Seth Greenberg.

"He's a good passer from the block and also from the high/low position where he can get good passes into us (post players), too, and he'll create shots for a lot of the guards," said junior forward Lewis Witcher.

Already regarded as deceptively nimble for his size, Allen's added quickness will benefit the team on both ends of the floor. Not only will Allen match up better against defenses, he will also play a bigger role in Tech's plan to implement a more up-tempo transition attack.

As part of his impressive freshman campaign, Allen had a stellar season defensively. He filled up nearly every column of the stat sheet, averaging team highs in both steals (2.1) and blocked shots (1.3) per game. Allen's 69 total steals is the second most of any player in the ACC and the most of any freshman in Tech history.

Although Allen's defensive efforts earned him honorable mention on the ACC All-Defensive team, the coaching staff believes Allen needs to become a more consistent defender.

"The area where we want him to improve is his consistency defensively. We need to know what we're going to get out of him each and every day," Greenberg said.

Contrary to last season, the Hokies will have more experience playing together as a unit. Allen will be called upon to lead the frontcourt, particularly in the absence of fellow sophomore forward J.T. Thompson, who's out for four to six weeks after sustaining a hernia.

"Jeff is a guy that should be a double-double guy, and that's our hope and our goal for him," Greenberg said.

"We're more offensive than we were last year. We're something like the team that we had at the end of last year," Allen said, referring to the 7-3 record the team posted to cap off the season, a stretch in which Allen recorded double figures in rebounds and points five and six times, respectively.

Allen's freshman season revealed that he has the potential to be a big-time playmaker. The evolution of his upside relies on Allen's will to improve. Based on this past off-season, Greenberg believes Allen has made the transition to be an impact player.

"Different kids' light bulbs go on at different times," Greenberg said. "He was always a guy that could rely on his talent. I think he realized (in the off-season) at this level he could be successful, but ... why be good when you could be great? I think he decided to try to be great."

It remains to be seen whether Allen will have the consistency to be a college star, but many believe he has a bright future ahead of him.

"His approach has really been outstanding this year, and we have very high expectations for him and think he can do a lot of things to help us be a special team," Greenberg said.