Most people would balk at the idea of having to work 15 hours per day. But not Tyree Allison.
The head football coach at Christ the King R.H.S., Middle Village, voluntarily puts in those long days. And why, you may ask? It’s because Allison truly is a “saint” – and more so than just his dedication to the school and its football program.
He played three years in the NFL as a defensive tackle for the New Orleans Saints from 1999 to 2001. He’s used these experiences – and the fact that he played under Pro Football Hall of Fame head coach Mike Ditka – to motivate his own players.
A recent convert to Catholicism, Allison, 35, hails from Far Rockaway and actually never played football until his junior year at Beach Channel H.S., Rockaway Park. He played two years on the varsity team before suiting up for the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
However, his football career took off after he transferred to Hofstra University, Hempstead, L.I. He put together a productive career playing with future NFL stars Wayne Chrebet and Lance Schulters. He also learned valuable lessons from Hofstra’s offensive line coach, Kyle Flood – the subject of the March 2 Good Sports column – and defensive line coach Dan Quinn, who is currently the defensive coordinator of the Seattle Seahawks.
After three years with the Saints, Allison played three years of arena football but soon realized that one cannot play the rough contact sport forever. He decided to go back to school to become a math teacher.
He’s taught geometry, algebra and trigonometry the past eight years at Christ the King. During that time, his spent two years as the defensive line coach at Stony Brook University, L.I., and four years as the defensive line coach at the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University, Brookville, L.I. He also coached briefly at Christ the King, Long Beach H.S., L.I., and West Hempstead H.S., L.I.
With all these coaching stops, Allison was poised to take over as the head coach of the Christ the King program starting last fall. The Royals had just come off a 1-8 season, but Allison’s experience was sure to change the atmosphere in Middle Village.
“I’ve learned from each head coach that I worked under,” Allison said. “Now I’m trying to put together what I’ve learned and create my own program. I want to have the same affect on my kids like my coaches had on me.”
15-Hour Days
Each day, Allison arrives at the school building at 5 a.m. He gets in a good workout and then starts reviewing his lesson plans and mapping out his practice schedules for the day.
At 7:30 a.m., he offers tutoring sessions for his students, especially for his football players that will be busy later in the day with practice. He monitors each student he tutors through weekly progress reports.
“Being a teacher, I always preach academics first,” he said. “You’re a student first before you’re an athlete.”
During the football season, Allison – after teaching five math classes throughout the day – boards the train with his team to head to their practice field. But even after practice ends at 6 p.m., Allison’s day continues by reviewing film at the school until 8 p.m.
“I don’t want anyone to outwork me,” he said. “That’s what motivates me. I try to put the work in, and if I’m constantly stressing to my players that you have to put the work in, I have to do the same as the head coach and lead by example.”
The Royals improved to 3-7 in Allison’s first year and even reached the ‘A’ Division championship game. He recently had four of his players sign to play football in college starting next fall, and another three or four may get that chance as well.
“He wants the best interests for all of his players,” said senior offensive lineman Terrence Brown, who signed to play at Southern Connecticut State University, New Haven, Conn. “I’m very grateful for that.”
Though the football season lasts only three months each fall, Allison treats the football season as a yearlong entity. He’s constantly asking himself and his coaches how he can make his players better men on and off the field.
“It’s rewarding to watch my players transform from being a boy into a young man,” Allison said. “That’s what it’s all about…watching them grow. Investing the time is worth it.”
Keeping in tune with that philosophy, he doesn’t mind putting in the 15-hour days since he knows he’s using his past NFL experiences to shape the next generation of gridiron heroes.