Tom Allen is finally getting his due from those in the national media after a 4-0 start to 2020.

After a couple of mediocre seasons to start his tenure as head coach, Allen and the Hoosiers made headway with an 8-4 record in 2019. Beyond that, the team nearly captured a ninth win before a tough loss in the bowl game against Tennessee.

When it comes to Allen, Urban Meyer said he is not surprised that he is seeing success, even at a program like Indiana. For Meyer, Allen’s success stems from two key rules that would be written in the coaching manual, provided such a manual existed:

“I’ve seen many, many coaches fail over the years because they’re very talented guys, but they don’t follow these two rules,” said Meyer. “So on page 1, if there was a coaches manual, this is what it would say…you have to be real. I’m not talking real with the media, real with the players, be who you are…and No. 2, always put the players first.”

Matt Leinart followed Meyer’s comments by pointing out it was Allen’s belief in what Michael Penix Jr. could do at quarterback that brought him to Indiana:

“The first thing (Penix) said was the reason why he chose Indiana is because Tom Allen believed in him, he believed in his abilities,” explained Leinart. “He also believes in the rest of the team, too, which is part of why they’re having so much success.”

You can check out the entire segment, including comments from Reggie Bush and Brady Quinn, from FOX’s Big Noon Kickoff: