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Allen Bailey, Miami, DT: On a wall inside the UM football offices are the team bests for each exercise by position. When you get to defensive linemen, almost all you see is one Bailey head shot after another. Some UM fans have taken to calling him "Freakzilla," thanks in part to his awesome athleticism but also to his Bunyanesque background that has created some legendary tales. Such as how he once killed an alligator with a shovel.
Bailey, who last season battled through a torn pectoral muscle while making the transition from linebacker to defensive line, had nine tackles for loss and five sacks. Now that he's healthy and more comfortable playing at defensive tackle, expectations around Coral Gables, Fla., are soaring. Some inside the program think the junior will restart Miami's streak of first-round draft picks. Lord knows he should test well at the NFL combine next year.
This spring, Bailey vertical jumped 39 inches despite weighing 288 pounds. He ran a 4.65 40 time. He power-cleaned 375. Longtime UM strength coach Andreu Swasey, who has trained the likes of Willis McGahee, Kellen Winslow II, Sean Taylor and others, gives Bailey perhaps the ultimate praise: "He is the freakiest of all the freaks since I've been here," Swasey says. "When he got here, he weighed 270, and I told the coaches, 'He's going to be 300, but it'll be a 300 like you've never seen before.'"