As Indiana Pays Tribute to Terry Hoeppner, Tom Allen Embodies His Spirit

Written By Evan McShane (@veryreasonable)

An emotional and enthusiastic coach with an uncanny ability to engage with players and motivate them. Leading with conviction and instilling belief in others. Former Indiana head coach Terry Hoeppner and current head coach Tom Allen had much in common. Hoeppner was in the midst of completely turning around the Indiana football program when he tragically passed on June 19, 2007 due to complications from brain cancer. Today, Tom Allen continues the mission to turn IU football around with Hoeppner forever in his memory.  

Indiana will honor coach Terry Hoeppner by wearing special uniforms during Saturday’s game against the Georgia Southern Eagles. The uniforms will feature a crimson helmet with a white interlocked “IU” logo on both sides, as well as crimson jerseys with scripted “Indiana” written on the front and surnames on the back. As a tribute to Hoeppner, the numbering on the jerseys and the pants contain a finish resembling Hep’s Rock. In 2005, Coach Hep had a large hunk of limestone installed in the north end zone as a symbol. Players touch the rock en route to the field on game day. The legendary Don Fischer offers a wonderful explanation: “The rock became a symbol for Indiana University. It became a symbol for Indiana football because of the limestone background, and so on and so forth, but as much as that, it became a symbol of what Terry Hoeppner brought to the table. Players touch that rock on their way out to the field, when they charge onto the field before a football game; but those players are all touching that rock to symbolize the fact that it's what Indiana University is all about and it's what Terry Hoeppner was all about.”

Genuinely honest men raised on rich family values. Coaches who care about their players as much as anything. Indiana boys through and through. Allen and Hoeppner had a relationship as their coaching careers in Indiana overlapped, though at different levels. While Hoeppner was at the helm in Bloomington, Allen was coaching at Ben Davis high school in Indianapolis. The two Hoosiers go back further than that. Tom Allen’s father, Tom Sr., played college ball with Hoeppner at Franklin College. Allen elaborates, “Well, just as a friend of our family, and he and my dad go back with Coach Faught at Franklin, they both played for him, and that was really the connection that I had with him and when I first got to know him when he was actually coaching at Franklin when I was younger.” By the time Allen was a teenager in New Castle, Indiana, Hoeppner was back at Franklin college as their defensive coordinator. Allen continued his praise for Terry, “So just a ton of respect for him and as he went to Miami and then I went to coach at Ben Davis. We always went to Miami to their seven-on-sevens every summer, and met with their coaching staffs. He was their defensive coordinator when I first met him professionally, and met with him and so we ran a very similar scheme.”

Allen fully understands what Terry Hoeppner means to Indiana football. Back in the fall he made sure the current team received some education about the program’s history and Hep himself. Allen said, “[I] loved what he was doing here. Thought he was really doing some great things and just really tragically cut short. I just want to make sure they understand who he is, and often times younger individuals don't really know as much about him, so we had someone come in and speak and talk about him and just talk about who he was and what he was doing here.” Much like Hoeppner, Allen will never hold back his emotions. His enthusiasm for the game, his players, and his fellow coaches is second to none. It’s resonating throughout the program and the first sign of proof was a defensive turnaround last year that no one in Bloomington thought possible. The feeling around Indiana football is starting to resemble that of Hep’s tenure. A rejuvenated team with a refreshing approach. Allen declared, “I just want our players to never forget, and to have a great understanding of his history and what he means to our program.”

The history of Indiana University football isn’t very extensive, but Hoeppner was one of the brightest moments of our past. Terry would be extremely proud and amazed to see the improvements made within the last decade to Memorial stadium, the other athletic complexes, and the practice facilities. Tom Allen visited Bloomington countless times while coaching at Ben Davis High School. According to him, “"I spent most of my time here when I was a high school coach and Coach Hep was here, and Coach (Bill) Lynch. So I came here a bunch.” Allen was asked in May about the changes to Bloomington since he was younger: “Everything was all over there (beneath the east stands of Memorial Stadium). The offices, media room, team room, everything. And I didn't come up here to visit or interview on campus when I was hired here. Everything was on the phone and then (Wilson) came to Tampa to see me down there. So I literally had never seen this facility till I walked on campus after I got hired, and I was blown away. I couldn't believe the weight room. I mean, I'd seen pictures, but I was blown away. It's impressive. I knew they'd done all this, but hadn't seen it with my own eyes. And I was impressed.”

Hoeppner had a variety of methods to motivate his players. From traditions to slogans to recruiting campaigns, Coach Hep knew what it took to speak to the Indiana football fan base. Of course, he also introduced that beautiful limestone boulder. He introduced “The Walk,” where the players and coaching staff enter Memorial Stadium through lines of fans. Tom Allen has followed Hep’s model with an array of slogans and motivators of his own. Allen created “LEO,” which stands for “Love Each Other.” He employed the “one word” philosophy in which each player and coach chooses one word to define what it will take to better themselves. It’s the birthplace of Allen’s “Breakthrough” mantra. Allen and his staff also devised “INvasion” to represent an invasion of Indiana – a campaign geared toward in-state recruiting. Without a gluttony of bowl trophies and historical success, leading Indiana toward a breakthrough is a tall task. Like Hoeppner before him, Allen seems more than up for the challenge.

Tom Allen said last spring, "I've had several people say, between Coach Mallory and Coach Hoeppner, there is a little bit of me in both.” He continued, "There are similarities in personality with those two guys." His actions on and off the field have indicated this to be true. Terry Hoeppner’s brief stint in Bloomington as leader of Indiana football reverberates throughout the program, even a decade after his passing. Tom Allen is making sure his legacy is never forgotten. Whether it’s educating the players or leading by example, Tom Allen embodies the spirit of Terry Hoeppner as a football coach, as a leader, and as a man.