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8/10/06-Football
Dionte Allen commits to Florida State
BY MIKE ROSENBAUM OF THE OBSERVER AND ECCENTRIC
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Orchard Lake St. Mary's senior cornerback/wide receiver Dionte Allen has verbally committed to play college football at Florida State University. Allen made his decision Tuesday and phoned Florida State coach Bobby Bowden that evening with the news.
Allen, one of the nation's most highly-recruited players, will play corner in college. He took unofficial visits to Florida State, the University of Michigan, Notre Dame and Ohio State before making his choice. In a way, however, his decision was made more than 12 years earlier. His visit to Tallahassee only confirmed what he already felt.
"I always wanted to go to Florida State," Allen said. "It's always been my dream school. When I went down there I liked the program they were conducting. I can get a degree down there. It just was everything I thought it would be."
Allen became an FSU fan when he was "five or six," he said, adding that he liked the Seminoles' style of play, and some of their star athletes. "I always liked Deion Sanders and Peter Warrick."
Allen discussed his decision with his parents as well as St. Mary's coaches, who advised him to "do what's best for you and what you feel in your heart," Allen related. This echoed the advice that Allen has given some of his teammates who are also going through the recruiting process.
"I tell them to go with your heart. When you go to a school, you're going to know that that's you, that it fits you. I can't really tell any of my players where to go. I'll have a suggestion, but you may not be feeling the same thing that I'm feeling. But I just tell them to go with your heart and just be patient, work hard, and anything can happen."
Allen is entering his fourth year on the St. Mary's varsity. He started two games as a freshman. As a sophomore, he not only became a full-time starter, but a team captain as well. He'll serve his third season as a captain this year. He, and no doubt his St. Mary's coaches, are pleased that the recruiting process won't distract from the 2006 season.
Allen said his early commitment to FSU will allow him to "concentrate on my senior year. Being a leader. Getting my team prepared and having my team work hard."
St. Mary's opens its season Aug. 26 against visiting Detroit Martin Luther King.
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