Allen received the award Sunday night from former Hall of Fame safety Ronnie Lott at the Pacific Club. It goes to a player with strong academic work, community involvement and team leadership.
Allen edged fellow finalists Ben Burr-Kirven of Washington, Christian Wilkins of Clemson and Ben Humphreys of Duke.
The 6-foot-5, 260-pound Allen, from Montclair, New Jersey, has 14 sacks and 84 tackles this season. He also won the Chuck Bednarik Award and Bronko Nagurski Trophy as the top defensive player and was the Southeastern Conference defensive player of the year.
Allen and the Wildcats will close the season against Penn State in the Citrus Bowl.
