By Tim Flagstad

tflagstad@journalnet.com

Jared Allen knew Idaho State was inducting him into its athletic hall of fame Saturday, but the administration did have one surprise for the NFL Pro Bowler.

"I didn't know Donna (Hays) was gonna retire the jersey," Allen said after the halftime ceremony during Idaho State's game against Montana, "so I started welling up a little bit. It's just a true honor. Idaho State did so many great things for me."

In addition to enshrining Allen, now of the Minnesota Vikings, into its hall of fame, Idaho State retired Allen's collegiate uniform number - No. 41 - and added his name to the Holt Arena's ring of honor.

Normally, an athlete must be out of school for 10 years to earn hall-of-fame status, but with the way Allen has become one of the best defenders in the NFL - he leads the league with 10 1/2 sacks - the university decided it didn't need to wait.

"Just look at his record," Idaho State President Arthur Vailas said. "The track record speaks for itself."

With Allen looking on, the 0-10 Bengals played by far their best game of the season. Most everyone expected No. 2 Montana to roll over Idaho State, but the Bengals put up a fight.

The Grizzlies ended up winning 12-10 on a last-second 33-yard field goal by Brody McKnight.

"We felt great for him getting inducted into the hall of fame, and we wanted to show him that Idaho State is still here," senior cornerback Michael Wright said. "It wasn't just him. We can still ball."

Before the game, though, all the pregame buzz in the tailgating area centered around Allen. With all the purple Vikings jerseys in the parking lot, it felt as if Montana was set to play Minnesota, not Idaho State.

Allen was happy he could help bring some attention to the Bengals during their difficult season.

"Idaho State was a huge stepping stone in my life," Allen said. "Any time I can help and give back, I'll do what I can. The biggest thing is to try to create a positive buzz in a program that's struggling. When you're at the bottom, there's only one way to go, and that's up."

On top of occasional appearances at Holt Arena, Allen has stepped up to help Idaho State in many ways.

He was a major contributor in school's drive to upgrade the football locker room, a project that was completed before this year's first home game, and he plans on continuing to support the football program and university.

"He's assured me and the university that he's gonna continue to do that," Vailas said. "We're so grateful how many people he's helped since he's been in the pros. He's quite a guy on the field and quite a guy off the field."

Never once did Allen, who signed a contract reportedly worth nearly $74 million over six years after being traded from the Chiefs to the Vikings before the 2008 season, look annoyed by the perpetual string of autograph seekers and media.

Actually, he appeared to be enjoying his weekend stay in the Gate City, made possible because Minnesota has its bye week this week.

"It's always fun to come back," Allen said. "I have friends who will be friends for life."

As for the program he left behind, Allen, who won the 2003 Buck Buchanan Award as the top defender in the Championship Subdivision, is confident Idaho State can turn things around and again challenge for the Big Sky title.

"They're struggling, but (Idaho State) coach (John) Zamberlin, he's a good dude," Allen said. "He'll get the program moving in the right direction. Sometimes you go through some lows, but the biggest thing is we need to start winning and get the community behind us and start getting the quality players in here to get back to a winning program."