Notre Dame's Allen gets motivation from his mother

By Brian Hamilton | Chicago Tribune reporter SOUTH BEND, Ind. - In mid-conversation with her sister, Valderia Allen relented to the brush fire in her mind. A thought had simmered all day this particular Friday. Unable to shake it, she suspended one phone chat for another. No call waiting on this. About 1,300 miles away from Opa-locka, Fla., the cell phone chirped and Armando Allen answered. The Notre Dame tailback expected the call, as he speaks to his mother daily. He expected the usual encouragement: Have a good game, get into the end zone, typical parent chitchat. Instead, Armando Allen was dropped for a loss of words. "I said, 'I haven't been saying anything, and I want to say it tonight: I want to see some football,' " Valderia Allen recalled. " 'Tomorrow, I want to see some football. The Armando I used to know.' " Allen... [read full story]