Allen was born in
Newark, New Jersey, and was a three-sport athlete in
football,
baseball, and
wrestling for
St. Benedict's Preparatory School. In 1955, he accepted a baseball scholarship as a
pitcher for
Seton Hall. A shoulder injury forced him to transition to
second base. After one season, he returned to St. Benedict's Prep as the freshmen football coach and head baseball and wrestling coach. He resigned from the school in 1971 and accepted the head wrestling position for Seton Hall. He coached there for three seasons before going to Kean as the football team's backfield coach. At the same time he also coached
Essex Catholic High School's baseball and wrestling team. In 1975, he was promoted to head coach for the
Kean football team following the resignation of
Ron San Fillipo. Allen resigned from Kean after the 1976 season when
athletic director Hawley Waterman wanted a full-time football coach, as Allen was only in the position part-time. After a year-long hiatus from coaching football, Allen was named head football coach, alongside his other two previous positions, at Essex Catholic. ==Head coaching record==