FRESNO - "Don't wait for extraordinary opportunities. Seize common occasions and make them great. Weak men wait for opportunities; strong men make them." That quote by Dr. Orison Swett Marden, an American inspirational author, illustrates exactly what Fresno State sophomore linebacker Jeffrey Allison has done thus far this fall for the Bulldogs.

Growing up more than 2,000 miles from Fresno in Miami and Atlanta, Allison's start in football started at the early age of four as he was eager to keep up athletically with his two older brothers. With his brothers setting the athletic standards in the family by both becoming collegiate student-athletes, Allison knew what he wanted to pursue when he got older and set his goals to join his brothers.

Knowing that his only way of reaching college financially was by pursuing an athletic scholarship, Allison became highly motivated as a prep combining to make 265 tackles in his final two seasons at Langston Hughes High School in suburban Atlanta.

Playing linebacker alongside four-star recruit and top 100 prospect D'Andre Walker, an eventual Georgia signee in 2015, Allison tallied 144 tackles as a junior leading his team to a 9-3 record and a berth in the Class 6A playoffs.

After making 121 more tackles as a senior, Allison had to decide where his future home would be. Having never even been to California, Allison made his official recruiting trip to Fresno State on the final recruiting weekend of 2016 and a few days later inked his national letter of intent with the Bulldogs.

"I knew I did not want to be at home or be somewhere close to home," said Allison on his decision to become a Bulldog. "I did not want to be somewhere that I knew people and did not want to get into any type of trouble so I thought it was best to come out here and get that experience of being on my own."

A mature young man on and off the field, Allison made an instant impact for the 'Dogs as a true freshman in 2016 appearing in all 12 games and leading all true freshman with 21 tackles, including a season-high seven stops at Nevada. In the classroom, Allison earned Academic All-Mountain West honors as well as Mountain West Scholar-Athlete honors.

With the 'Dogs making coaching staff changes after a disappointing season, Allison decided to stick with his commitment to be a Bulldog despite having to sit out spring ball while recovering from an injury.

Finally getting on the field in fall camp, he immediately noticed the new coaching staff's emphasis on technique.

"I can say the coaching staff is very involved on and off the field, but the main difference has really been the techniques."

Knowing he had a short time to make an impression on the Bulldog coaching staff, Allison seized the opportunity to compete for a starting position.

"I did look at it as a new opportunity to start fresh and it's about competition," said Allison on the new coaching staff. "At the end of the day, it comes down to making a play or watching a play and that's the mentality you have to have. When the new coaching staff came in, I knew I may have an opportunity to start."

Translating what he learned from practice to scrimmages, Allison showed up in a big way in the Bulldogs' first scrimmage of fall camp.

"He showed signs of his potential in that first fall scrimmage that he was going to be the guy at middle linebacker," Bulldog linebackers coach Bert Watts said looking back on when he knew Allison would be a player for the 'Dogs.

"We had not seen him all spring, because he was recovering from off-season surgery, but after that first scrimmage of fall camp we knew something was there. Jeff is an incredibly smart young man, intelligent, hard-working, detailed guy. He is going to know what is going on with his position all the time and makes sure that he is in the right places," added Watts.

Showing up in scrimmages and translating that performance to the bright lights of the playing field can be tough for young players, especially when tasked with as much responsibility as a middle linebacker is to quarterback a defense, but Allison has been up for it through the Bulldogs' first two games of the season.

Currently leading the team with 19 tackles on the season, Allison came up big on the national stage making 14 tackles and his first career sack against top-ranked Alabama last Saturday.

"It's a great experience because not everyone gets an opportunity to do that and go against the No. 1 team in the country. To showcase your talent as a team on the national stage and also getting to show for yourself, it is a great experience and it is rare that you get an opportunity like that," Allison said.

Watts loves seeing the brand of football Allison has been playing with so far this season, "It has been great to see his level of physicality from that position right from the start of the season. He showed in the first game against Incarnate Word, he was going to be a square up, face-up, knock-you-back type of guy and it was great to see him continue to set a new standard for himself against Alabama and really step up in a game where the demands were high and he did not back down an inch. It was hard for me to take him off the field in that game because he was playing so well and I was fired up to see that."

Knowing the 'Dogs have a long season in front of them, including another top-ranked opponent this week at No. 6 Washington on Saturday night, Allison is staying focused and seizing every opportunity in front of him.

"I want to continue to get better every week and progress every week. These are great opportunities to play some of the best teams in the country so we want to come out there and be aggressive, physical and play fast, but also have fun and enjoy the game and give our all every week."

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