Illinois Pitching Coach Mark Allen (Illinois Athletics)
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Earlier this year, Illinois pitching coach Mark Allen was diagnosed with cancer. He started the 2024 season with the team, traveled to North Carolina to play Akron, Wake Forest, and Fordham and was involved in the program when they returned to Champaign. However, since those first few weeks, Coach Allen has taken time off to focus on his life.
Allen was named the head pitching coach at Illinois in October of 2019 having spent the past nine seasons serving as a pitching coordinator for both the San Francisco Giants and Cleveland Guardians organizations. Allen also has experience as an area scout, crosschecker and coach with Cleveland, doing almost everything involved in player development.
His involvement with individual players and the personal relationships he built on a foundation of trust made his absence especially difficult for Illinois head coach Dan Hartleb and the players on the team. Surprisingly, the Illini are currently in first place in the Big Ten with a 13-5 conference record (28-16 overall) and are coming off a series win against Ohio State.
Coach Hartleb reached out to D1Baseball in hopes of spreading the word about Allen's health, already receiving well wishes and monetary donations from Allen and his family to help defray the cost of medical expenses associated with any battles with cancer.
The parents of the players on the current roster have created their own fundraisers, selling t-shirts to help show their support and spread awareness during these difficult times.
Hartleb explained: “He gets extensive treatment. “Early on, he and I talked a lot. He's had a lot of bad days so we text more than we talk 1715309368. He underwent extensive radiation, which he did during a five-day period with high radiation levels, and is now starting four months of chemotherapy. It's hard, it's hard for him. Like many people who go through this she doesn't feel well. They try to manage things the best they can with pain medication as well [other] things, but he has a lot to deal with.”
Coach Allen endured this battle with his wife, Angela, and their two daughters, Skylar and Avery. Both daughters compete in beach volleyball, with Skylar doing so at South Carolina and Avery a senior in high school who has committed to play at Boise State.
One of Allen's students, Cam Hill, has agreed to join the Illinois coaching staff on a temporary basis to help with the coaching staff. Hill is actually working on hopes of making a major league comeback after making his debut with the Cleveland Indians during the 2020 season that was shortened by the COVID-19 pandemic. In 18 relief appearances that year Hill went 2-0 with a 4.91 ERA and two saves.
“He had been in the area with Mark and others like him so there was a face to face,” Hartleb said of Hill's involvement. “The boys know him a bit from those times he worked with Mark, [so there was] a little comfort knowing him. Training with Mark word for word would be the same, the communication between Cam and Mark is very good … you know what Mark's vision is and how he goes about pressing the guys, helping the guys, connecting with the guys. You can't say 'seamless' when there's a change, but we've had a very good situation coming out of a very difficult situation.”
Above all, Coach Hartleb emphasized his concern for Coach Allen and his family, while also sharing his appreciation for interim coach Cam Hill.
“All our prayers are with Mark and his family, we have been given,” said Hartleb. “There is a lot of appreciation for Cameron. He took his own life while training to come back and help his mentor and help our team. It's great when you have people who don't put themselves first, they put everyone around them before themselves. “
“Our guys did a great job,” continued Hartleb, explaining the team's success despite the obstacles they encountered. “At first we played a difficult game and struggled. We struggled physically and mentally. We hit rock bottom at one point in the season and a lot of times you have individuals or entire teams that quit. This group came together, made some changes we asked for and really cares about each other.”
If you would like to show your support for Illinois assistant coach Mark Allen and his family, please consider a monetary donation using the dedicated GoFundMe page:
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