Syracuse Football: Why LeQuint Allen Jr. should be the steal of the 2025 NFL Draft

I am not Mel Kiper Jr. I am not an expert at anything, especially NFL football. I am an admitted Syracuse football homer fan, so some will read that into this too, but as DJ Kool once said for those of us who remember the mid-90s, "I hope you don't mind...let me clear my throat."

So while I am not an expert, I do listen to a lot of podcasts, sports talk and enjoy good conversations on many topics. And I hear talk that right now in the NFL that running backs aren't as valued as they once were. People seem to love talking about just waiting until later in the draft to "take a chance at running back."

But I also hear words like game changer, guys who love football and winning and determination matter. So let me introduce you to LeQuint Allen Jr. Oh you know, the guy who not once, but twice led Syracuse football to overtime victories.

And as Syracuse football head coach Fran Brown has stated and the tape don't lie, it's not that he scored winning touchdowns...it is the fight and determination that got him into the end zone that is his greatest attribute. When the defense and the television announcers thought LeQuint was stopped, he kicked it into an extra gear that you want in a player...a winning determination.

I'm excited to see former Syracuse football running back LeQuint Allen Jr. play in the NFL.

This is a guy who could have easily walked away from Syracuse when the university tried to unfairly suspend him and he attempted to block it. LeQuint is also a guy who sadly lost his father two years ago when he was shot and killed in his home. Either situation could have even deterred him from pursuing football at all. But instead, he seems to be even more determined to become something special.

And again, I am no NFL expert and don't study the draft stuff but if winning matters to a team so much and players who play hard and passionately are rewarded, how do you ignore a guy who has literally said, "give me the ball and I will win this for you" on many occasions?

When Syracuse got a bid to play in the Holiday Bowl, he didn't flinch about playing in it nor did he hold back as he finished with 120 yards rushing and three touchdowns. And while he didn't make his decision to go pro official until after it, he very easily could have made it before then or even played it "safe."

However, LeQuint is a guy who Coach Brown has said repeatedly leads and leads with determination in practice, in the locker room and on the field. Even his off-field issue at Syracuse was earnestly him trying to protect a teammate from his same hometown, who he believed was unfairly jumped.

What the NFL is getting now is a mature, and I will say it again, determined guy who when you think you can stop him, you best bring my old unit the 1st Cavalry Division because you might need more than one tank. A guy who also can catch the ball, who can block if needed, and a guy who can find the hole in the line or knock a defender back a yard or two if there isn't one or bounce outside to stretch the field.

So I am just saying, if you want to win and need a running back, don't let a guy the caliber of LeQuint Allen Jr. slip past you in the draft. It's better to grab a guy like him when you have the chance than let him beat you and wish you had when your pick was on the board.

Watch those plays and watch his willingness to fight to get whatever he can get. Isn't that the guy you want to hand the ball off to when it's third down and you need to get the first down or in the red zone and want a guy who will fight to get in the end zone?