From viral West Virginia videos to mentoring local youth, Allen puts WV on the national stage.

By: BBG Sports w/ Justin Phillips Sr. | Black By God: The West Virginian

“West V time, baby.”

Coach OTB Jay Allen says it like a greeting and a declaration. Pride, memory, and belonging — a reminder that West Virginia still matters and that its youth are not forgotten.

Allen’s football journey has taken him across college locker rooms, professional leagues, and national arenas. In January 2026, he stepped into a new chapter as head coach of the Arizona Juggernauts, a new professional arena football team joining the International Arena League (IAL) for their inaugural 2026 season.

Beyond coaching, Allen is the founder of Outside the Box (OTB) Specialty Training, a program that combines football skills, mindset development, and life lessons for young athletes. He is also the co-creator of the Destroying 1v1s series, which has made West Virginia athletes and youth go viral, giving local athletes national visibility and a chance to showcase their talent.

As his platform expands through the Arizona Juggernauts, Allen’s West Virginia roots continue to shape his work, ensuring that when he succeeds, the state’s young athletes benefit as well.

As told to BBG in a recent interview, Allen emphasizes that his journey isn’t just about personal achievement — it’s about lifting West Virginia talent onto the national stage.

Fred Crozier, seen here with Coach Allen, was a standout WV High School football player. Crozier now plays semi-pro and has since built his own training program, helping develop the next generation of West Virginia’s talent. Fred has garnered national attention after his impressive showing at the 1 vs. 1 video went viral. Follow his journey here.

For Fred Crozier, winning the 2022 WV 1v1 Challenge wasn’t just a personal victory — it was the spark that elevated his game and expanded his reach.

“Winning the 1v1 affected me positively because after that, I was invited to pretty much travel the East Coast and compete against top-tier, talented athletes,” Crozier said. “It helped me get noticed on a bigger scale and start training younger athletes.”

The momentum came quickly.

After claiming the 2022 West Virginia title, Crozier began competing across the region, earning Top 3 finishes in Detroit and twice in North Carolina, along with a Top 5 finish in Virginia. In 2023, he added a Top 10 finish in Orlando, proving he could compete — and consistently place — against elite talent beyond state lines.

That momentum translated into championships. Crozier captured the 2023 Semi-Pro National Championship and followed it up with another title in 2024, securing back-to-back national championships and solidifying his status as one of the top players in the nation.

Now, Crozier is paying it forward — using his platform to train and mentor younger athletes across the state. He has trained some of West Virginia’s best players, including Peyton Grigsby of Herbert Hoover, Jaden Black of George Washington, Takye Porter of Nitro, and Dre Reese of Huntington, among others. Iron sharpens iron, and these high-level runs have fueled his competitive edge.

What started as a single 1v1 challenge in West Virginia has turned into a championship résumé and a growing legacy — one built on competition, consistency, and community impact.

Allen’s ties to West Virginia are evident not just in words, but in action. From youth training clinics to one-on-one competitions that went viral online, he has consistently shown up for kids in ways that make a lasting impact.

Those viral moments didn’t just highlight the athletes — they highlighted West Virginia itself. Allen’s work with local youth has consistently put the state’s talent on the national stage, earning coverage on ESPN and demonstrating the reach and impact of these one-on-one competitions.

24 Million Views: Putting West Virginia Talent on the Map

One standout event in Charleston went viral after being filmed by Destroying and released on July 12, 2022. The video, titled “I went to Charleston, West Virginia, to host 1 on 1’s and this one might be the best one yet!”, has now reached around 24 million views.

Laron Dues, at only 14, was the defensive winner of the viral 1v1 event. Dues said, “Winning the event was a confidence booster and working with Coach was life-changing. Coach Allen’s exposure helped me to gain national notoriety”.  In 2025, Dues won a 2A State championship at Cardinal Mooney (FL). Dues was named MVP and 1st Team All-State and is now committed to James Madison University.  Follow his journey here.

Allen’s videos are shot in a 1-on-1 mixtape style, inspired by the AND1 Mixtape Tour — a revolutionary 1990s–2000s streetball phenomenon. The tour featured a traveling team playing local talent in high-energy, acrobatic games and was originally distributed on VHS with shoes. The culture it inspired was later chronicled in the 2022 ESPN 30 for 30 documentary The Greatest Mixtape Ever.

Similarly, Allen’s videos blend community events, competitions, and highlights of emerging West Virginia athletes, giving local talent visibility and opportunities that mainstream scouting often overlooks.

“That was surreal,” Allen said. “Bringing that attention back home.”

In June 2024, another one-on-one football video filmed near Allen’s birthplace went viral. The video, titled “We took the 1on1’s back to West Virginia and might have discovered a new Masked Killa!”, has reached around 3 million views.

Outside the Box, Inside the Heart

Allen was born in West Virginia but moved frequently at a young age, eventually growing up in Arizona.

It was in Arizona where he built his 501(c)(3) nonprofit, Outside The Box (OTB) Specialty Training & Youth Mentoring, creating a program rooted in discipline, development, and real-life mentorship for young athletes.

Years later, Allen made a deliberate return to West Virginia — first to play arena football in Huntington, and then to reconnect with his roots in Greenstown and Beckley.

That return became purpose.

He began hosting youth clinics and trainings across Charleston and surrounding Appalachian communities, showing up consistently for kids who needed both structure and belief.

The now-viral 1-on-1 football format didn’t start in West Virginia — it started in Arizona. After connecting with his co-host and building the platform, Allen made a decision that would define the movement.

“I insisted we go home to West Virginia,” Allen said. “And the rest was history.”

From there, the energy, the talent, and the moment collided — putting West Virginia athletes on a national stage. Beyond high-energy competition videos, Destroying also filmed Allen at home in West Virginia, wearing the West Virginia Black-owned brand Don’t Be Sorry, Do Better shirt, giving viewers a closer look at his life, philosophy, and daily presence in the community.

🔗 Watch the full home video here

“My mindset was that I was supposed to be the kid that was dead or in jail,” he told BBG Sports.

Football became more than a game — it became structure, purpose, and proof that another outcome was possible. His playing career wasn’t linear. He took the junior college route, moved through different circuits, and learned to adapt — corner, safety, nickel, wherever he was needed.

“I’m a running back by blood,” he says, laughing to BBG. 

That adaptability became his edge, on and off the field. Outside the Box (OTB) didn’t start as a brand — it started at home, when Allen decided to train his own sons. Other kids began watching — kids without cleats, without helmets, without someone consistently showing up.

“I look around and see a bunch of little me’s out there,” he said.

What followed became a community. For more than 20 years, Allen has mentored youth through sports, using football as a catalyst for discipline, humility, respect, integrity, and accountability.

“The game was always a catalyst. Everything I learned from football, I applied to life,” he said.

Allen is direct about the realities young Black athletes face: poverty, expectations, and generational trauma. Rather than dismissing emotions, he encourages youth to feel — and then move forward.

“Work through your emotions. But don’t stay there.”

Faith, prayer, family, structure, and consistency anchor his approach. He creates spaces where kids are accounted for: a garage gym, a place to train, a place to eat, a place to be when the streets are calling.

For parents like Miranda Hale, that presence matters as much as the drills:

“It’s more than coaching. It’s knowing those kids are being seen, believed in, and given a chance to succeed. That’s what makes him different.”

Miranda’s son Mikaden Hale is a Sophomore standout athlete at Charleston Catholic High School. Hale reflects on Allen’s work with West Virginia kids:

“He’s teaching them discipline, showing them respect, and giving them a chance to be seen. A lot of these children wouldn’t get that kind of attention otherwise. He’s showing them that someone believes in them, that their potential matters, and that they can achieve more than they ever imagined.”

Now, as head coach of the Arizona Juggernauts, Allen brings not just strategy and technique, but a proven commitment to youth and community. For young people in West Virginia watching online, his path shows that where you start does not limit where you can lead — and that coming back to invest in your home state matters.