The Aundrae Allison story has some potential

MANKATO - Aundrae Allison's road to the NFL might make a nice movie script -- especially if he can land a spot on the Vikings roster.

The rookie receiver is passionate about writing -- specifically writing scripts for television and film -- and hopes to make a name for himself in Hollywood. After making a name for himself on the football field, of course.

"I really want to focus on movie scripts because I grew up watching movies," Allison said. "I still watch a lot of movies, but writing has changed the way I think about movies. I'm always trying to think outside the box. Writing scripts is my way to contribute my ideas."

Allison, 21, began screenwriting in a class at East Carolina as a communications major. He said he hoped to write a movie script that would be good enough to, one day, get made into a film.

"I'm thinking about starting a script about how I came up, how I went through junior college, but change the character a little bit and add some twists and turns in there, spice up the story a little bit," Allison said.

But now, he is focused solely on his football career.

After spending two years at Georgia Military College, Allison burst onto the national stage during his junior year at East Carolina. He had 83 receptions for 1,024 receiving yards and was first-team All-Conference USA.

A high ankle sprain early in his senior season forced Allison to miss three games. But he scored a touchdown in the Senior Bowl and ran a 4.39-second 40-yard dash at the NFL combine, and the Vikings noticed. They took him in the fifth round, one of three wideouts they nabbed on draft day to strengthen a thin receiving corps.

Allison returned to practice Wednesday after missing time because of a hamstring pull, but he made a good first impression on coach Brad Childress.

"He flashed as much as anybody during that first week," Childress said. "He's got playmaking ability, speed, quickness ... the big thing is, he would make the plays."

Despite his injury, Allison remains focused on football and hopeful about his future with the Vikings.

"I haven't been working on movie scripts during camp because I feel like there's a time and place for that and, right now, I want all of my focus to be on making this team," he said.

Allison hopes a long NFL career could be the perfect backdrop for writing the next great sports movie, and he said no one would want to see his tale on the big screen unless he makes his mark on the league.

"My goals are to be known for being a professional on and off the field. And on the field, being that playmaker guy, the go-to guy," Allison said. "I want to be known as one of the greats like Michael Irvin or Jerry Rice, and that's going to take a lot of hard work and a lot of consistency and a lot of offseason training, but I'm willing to put in the work."

Melissa Rosenberg • mrosenberg@startribune.com