Kevin Eugene Allen (born June 21, 1963) is a former

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and skil ...

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

tackle who played in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL) for one season for the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

. Allen is an alumnus of Northwest High School in Cincinnati and of

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universit ...

NFL banning

Allen's career started against the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

, a game where the Giants recorded eight sacks. By midseason, Allen was relegated to Special Teams. During the offseason, Allen moved to the center position. Eagles coach

Buddy Ryan James David "Buddy" Ryan (February 17, 1931 – June 28, 2016) was an American football coach in the National Football League (NFL) and American Football League (AFL). During his 35-season coaching career, Ryan served as the head coach of the ...

thought so little of Allen that he once described him as someone who could only be useful "if you want someone to stand around and kill the grass... he looks like a

USFL The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...

reject." In 2011,

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ranked Allen the fourth-worst NFL player of all time, noting "The ninth overall pick out of Indiana had a special way of blocking opposing pass rushers. He would lean his body forward, then fall down." and "Never had the Eagles had a combination of bad person-bad player that could match this guy." When Kevin Allen missed practice due to being treated at a local hospital for dehydration, when

was interviewed about him missing practice 'You mean the General?' he said when asked about Allen's whereabouts. 'You know we all call him the General, don't you? For General Hospital. After a poor rookie season, Allen tested positive for

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...

after reporting to Eagles training camp in 1986. The Eagles released him in October 1986. Days after being cut, Allen and his roommate, Scott Cartwright, were charged with

rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ag ...

. Allen was sentenced to 15 years in prison, serving 33 months in prison, while Cartwright was sentenced to seven years. He was banned from the league for life soon afterward. In the spring of 1991, Allen's ban was lifted. After failed tryouts with the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...

and the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

, the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...

signed Allen in 1991, assigning him to the

Orlando Thunder The Orlando Thunder was a member of the World League of American Football from 1991 to 1992 (known as NFL Europe from 1995 onwards). The team played their games in the 70,000 seat Florida Citrus Bowl, and was coached by Don Matthews in 1991 and G ...

in the WLAF. He became the Thunder's starting right tackle for the 1992 season, recording at least 16 pancake blocks. Allen would later move on to the

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...

, playing for three teams.

References

1963 births Living people Players of American football from Cincinnati American football offensive tackles American football centers American people convicted of rape Indiana Hoosiers football players Philadelphia Eagles players Kansas City Chiefs players Orlando Thunder players Cincinnati Rockers players Charlotte Rage players Miami Hooters players American sportspeople convicted of crimes {{offensive-lineman-1960s-stub