Ricardo Allen Ranked 19

The Boiling Point: ESPN ranks Ricardo Allen 19th in Big Ten.

ESPN’s Big Ten blog is ranking the top 25 players in the Big Ten this year in their preseason rankings. Purdue’s Ricardo Allen came in at 19. The rankings are based off on past performance and potential impact for the upcoming season.  Here is what they had to say:

"Allen flew under the radar for much of 2010 but emerged as one of the Big Ten’s most exciting defenders. If you didn’t see him last fall, don’t miss out in 2011 as he should be even better. Allen is extremely aggressive, not concerned at all about his size, and will get physical with opposing wide receivers. He boasts obvious playmaking skills, recording pick-sixes against both Michigan and Michigan State. Allen is a sound tackler with terrific speed, and he’ll face several of the league’s top wideouts this fall. Along with Josh Johnson, Allen forms one of the league’s top cornerback tandems."

Allen has the potential to be one of the best, if not the best, corner backs in the Big Ten.  During Big Ten media days one of the Big Ten Network analysts said he could be the best corner to come out of the Big Ten since Charles Woodson.  One name for Allen that is seeming to pick up some on Twitter is “Ricardo Island”; a play off of the NFL’s Darrelle Revis’ “Revis Island.”

Also, make sure to check back here tomorrow when The Boiling Points starts their countdown of the top 10 most important players for the 2011 football season.  It won’t be necessarily the 10 best, just the 10 that could have the most important impacts.