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Determined walk-on turning heads at Southern Miss

(Photo: Susan Broadbridge/Hattiesburg Am)

Allen Fails loves football.

The quiet, mild-mannered Hattiesburg native eagerly lined up at whatever position his high school coaches at North Forrest asked him to play. Wide receiver, running back, safety, quarterback — even long snapper — Fails gladly did it all for the Eagles without batting an eye.

“At a (Class) 2A school, you play everywhere,” he said.

After graduating in 2014, he signed with East Central Community College where he played receiver as a freshman and made the move to linebacker in 2015. Fails played well in both seasons at junior college, but the scholarship offers from Division I programs never materialized.