Eagles wide receiver Devon Allen has cleared his first hurdle of the weekend at the World Athletics Championships, winning his preliminary heat of the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 13.47 seconds.
The track star's first-place finish automatically qualified him for Sunday's semifinals, which will take place at 8:05 p.m. ET. The finals for the event are slated a couple hours later, at 10:30 p.m. ET.
Allen's advancement to the next round of competition comes as no surprise. After signing with Philly as a 27-year-old rookie following a blazing performance at Oregon's pro day, Allen has enjoyed a superb outdoor track season.
He placed first in three 110-meter hurdles events, including a race at the New York Grand Prix that saw Allen post the third-fastest time in track and field history (12.84).
Allen then finished third at the USA Track and Field Outdoor Championships 110-meter hurdles to secure his spot at this weekend's World Championships.
As for his impending football career, Allen is set to report to training camp on July 26.
"I try not to think too far ahead," Allen said, via James Crepea of The Oregonian. "I think my goal, this weekend goes great, I win the gold medal, break the world record -- great. I got a week off. During that week, I've got to study the playbook because I got camp coming up and then once we get into football, get back five to six days before camp starts, I get back into cleats. I've been doing a little bit of football stuff now, but I'll get back into cleats and start running routes and feeling comfortable."
So that's the order of operations for Allen. First order of business? Go for gold. After that the confident wideout will dramatically shift gears as he attempts to make an NFL roster.
