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Growing season
Sooner freshman Travis Lewis went from the bottom of the depth chart to leading the defense

STEPHEN HOLMAN/Tulsa World

 
By GUERIN EMIG World Sports Writer
Published: 1/2/2009  2:23 AM
Last Modified: 1/2/2009  3:01 AM

 NORMAN — The most amazing thing about Travis Lewis' season at Oklahoma isn't that he broke Brian Bosworth's record for tackles by a freshman.

It also isn't that as the two middle linebackers playing next to him went down, he stepped up to help keep his defense together. Or that when he ran onto Owen Field for his first game on Aug. 30, all he could think about was the 169,430 eyes bearing down on him.

"I was looking at the crowd, really," he recalled. " 'Wow. This is what it feels like.' "

Who could possibly have imagined that 13 games, 137 tackles and four interceptions later, Lewis would be a freshman All-American, Big 12 Defensive Newcomer of the Year on the No. 1-ranked team in the country, and playing for a national championship Thursday against Florida?

That he would cause OU defensive coordinator Brent Venables to gush, "He's the best freshman that we've had here in our system at linebacker. The beauty of it all is he hasn't even scratched the surface of what he's going to be."

That he would show such potential that Gerald McCoy, his All-American teammate at defensive tackle, would shake his head and say: "He's good now, but wait till these next few years come."

The story of Lewis' season is unique. But to find the truly amazing part, you must rewind past the Aug. 30 opener.



From the bottom up



"Travis was the starter in the spring, but some things happened in the summertime that set him back a little bit," said Keenan Clayton, OU's strongside linebacker. "He could have given up and quit. But we got around him and just told him, 'You're going to be a player. You just need to buy into the system. Once you buy into it and you know that what they're telling you is going to be right, you're going to be a hell of a player.'

"He stuck it out, stayed around, showed people he could play, showed Coach that he was ready to go. He could have sat in the back and said, 'I'm not going to play, so I'm not going to take any notes. I'm not going to go to practice and learn this stuff.' But he never got that attitude.

"That's somebody you need to play beside, a guy that knows that he messed up, but is always going to have a positive attitude to let everybody know not to get down on themselves."

The specifics behind Lewis' setback are not for public record. "I had a rough summer" is how he has put it.

What was clear when the Sooners reported for two-a-days was that Lewis had plummeted to the bottom of the depth chart, and that he had set a course for the top.

"You can compare that to going into this (Florida) game as a three-point underdog. I wouldn't have had it any other way," Lewis said. "It's good to fight for things that you want."

Lewis' drive gave him an initial push at camp. Then Austin Box, also battling for the weakside linebacker position, hurt his knee. Junior college transfer Mike Balogun proved inconsistent.

By Aug. 30, Lewis was the starter alongside Clayton and middle linebacker Ryan Reynolds. It was like lighting a fuse.

"He's overcome his lack of experience and technique and fundamentals in the games because he plays incredibly hard," Venables said. "He covers up his mistakes."



On his shoulders



By the start of Big 12 play, Lewis was posting double-digit tackle totals — he racked up 19 against Texas Oct. 11 — and asserting himself off the field.

"We'll go into the locker room at halftime, and a lot of times Coach will draw something up on the board and say, 'Now what happened here?' " Clayton said. "And you might have a lot of people sit back and not realize what happened. Travis will be the first one to stand up there and say, 'This is what happened. I messed up. I know what happened, and it won't happen again.' "

That blossoming accountability helped the Sooners cope with Reynolds' season-ending knee injury against Texas, and then Box's knee sprain at Oklahoma State Nov. 29 after Box had replaced Reynolds.

By OU's 62-21 Big 12 championship rout of Missouri, Lewis was playing middle linebacker and calling the same signals that were like a foreign language when the season began.

"He put a lot on his shoulders," Venables said. "We've never had to ask a freshman to do the things mentally that he's had to do."

"He's been like a sponge," said senior safety Nic Harris.



Maturing journey



It seems silly to even ask, but how much has Lewis matured over the course of this season?

"A ton," Venables answered. "Just respecting the process in how you prepare to play well, as much as anything."

Clayton said: "He's a natural-born leader. It took a little while for it to come out, but it's coming out. For him to still be here with us and still playing the role that he is at such a young age, it's a great story."

Lewis says the journey has changed him.

"You can go on the roster (depth chart) on the computer, it still has me second. I'm always going out there playing with a chip on my shoulder," he said. "Because I know there's factors that may have caused me to never have been seen this season, I'll go out there and play as hard as anybody."



Guerin Emig 581-8355
guerin.emig@tulsaworld.com

Travis Lewis by the numbers

137 tackles, breaking an OU freshman record (Brian Bosworth 133 in 1984).

19 tackles vs. Texas, an OU single game freshman record and tied for the eight most in a game by any player.

4 interceptions, a record for a freshman linebacker and one shy of the position record.

By GUERIN EMIG World Sports Writer

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COMMENTS 
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21 comments have been made for this team so far. Tell us what you think below!
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If you see a comment that violates our terms and conditions, please help us by clicking the "Report this Comment" link next to a comment. That will alert the web staff to review the comment. Thank you.  -- Web Editor Jason Collington
 

 
Report Comment
pat, Kiefer (1/2/2009 8:44:34 AM)
BOOMER SOONER!!!!!!!
Report Comment
52favoriteteacher, WASHBURN, MO (1/2/2009 8:53:35 AM)
137 tackles--quite the feat
Bosworth's record is history
Keep ole Tebow in your grasp
He'll be ready to ramble

GO BOOMER SOONERS
Report Comment
Big Harp, Florida (1/2/2009 9:56:19 AM)
Boomer Sooner!!!!
Report Comment
SoCal Fan, (1/2/2009 11:08:17 AM)
This is a cool story, but the Sooners don't play until January 8th. Where's the story about Pete Carroll and the USC Trojans winning 3 straight Rose Bowl games? I think Tulsa World hates the PAC 10.
Report Comment
pat, Kiefer (1/2/2009 11:15:55 AM)
socal fuddydudd

it's at the bottom of the sports page in the ap headlines.
Report Comment
Sharkey Hammerhead, owasso (1/2/2009 11:38:03 AM)
Socal fan get over it you are reading an oklahoma paper..Good Night sweet prince your bowl is Over and I guess you guys could beat Florida and Okla , but you are not playing on the 8th Ha ha ha .. I truly believe that the whole ,world not the paper but the people don`t give OU a chance, what , because they watched TeBow say I`ll never ever let my team play like that again .. ..Can you say Ole MIss...I like TeBow but I`m sick of hearing about him how about Ou recievers or our Db how about more Ou coverage ... Thanks for listening Ok fan ,, Look out we are the underdog...
Report Comment
Arbythree, Tulsa (1/2/2009 12:29:07 PM)
BOOOOOOOOOOOOMER SOOOOOOOOOOOOOONER!!
Report Comment
SoCal Fan, Broken Arrow (1/2/2009 12:49:03 PM)
Wow, really, those are your ignorant answers? Ok. Thanks for the warm welcome Tulsa.
Report Comment
SoCal Fan, Broken Arrow (1/2/2009 12:54:37 PM)
Let's hope OU wins on Thursday. You're going to eat those words.
Report Comment
CaliforniaOkie, Burbank (1/2/2009 2:01:26 PM)
It is real simple SoCal Fan and Bruce. Sign on to the LA Times today and read their glowing tributes to SC including how they should be named AP National Champion, despite their uninspired second half. It made me sick. It will make you very happy. Leave the Tulsa World to OU, Tulsa and OSU fans who want local coverage of their local sports teams. What do you expect?
Report Comment
spandex, (1/2/2009 4:13:50 PM)
Good thing the sooners don't get out in the real world, they might discover the there is intelligent life beyond Oklahoma the musical...
but on the other hand, they might not recognize the intelligent life. Fight on for USC
Report Comment
SoCal Fan, Broken Arrow (1/2/2009 5:04:41 PM)
Bash all you want. I will not stoop to your level. Oklahoma has a great team and I use to love them when I first got here. Then one day some obnoxious OU fan said I wasn't allowed to root for his home team because I was from California. So I went back to rooting for MY home team. I will still root for the Sooners in the privacy of my home, but not in public. I do not want to anger the natives. Good luck OU and I hope USC gets to play you next year in the National Championship in their own backyard.
Report Comment
brb549, (1/2/2009 10:22:10 PM)
Utah has more of an argument for the AP title than USC.
Report Comment
brb549, (1/2/2009 10:34:15 PM)
Beating a team from the Big 10 is no great feat this year by any measuring stick.
Report Comment
brb549, (1/2/2009 10:35:23 PM)
Beating any team from the Big 10 is no great feat this year by anyone's measuring stick.
Report Comment
tulsaGuy, (1/2/2009 10:36:02 PM)
Dear SoCal Fan, One time somebody hurt my wittle feelings too... so I don't like who they like... that'll show them first gwaders.
Report Comment
B_Tho, Guam (1/3/2009 2:52:47 AM)
Hey SoCal, just because one person said something doesn't mean we are all that way. With that said, USC sucks! Learn to beat Oregon St. and Stanford. Those are real quality opponents.
Report Comment
u sunk my battleship, (1/3/2009 9:47:39 AM)
All u hear about from kirk herbstreit and the La press is gushing knob schlobbing for usc. The funny thing is that usc is playing at home during all these so called dominating performances. Get these fools out of there own back yard and see how great they are. I mean look what an average oregon state team did to them earlier in the year away from home. A good team dominating at home is par for the course. hmmm I wonder what would happen if ou played its bowl games at home?
Report Comment
u sunk my battleship, (1/3/2009 9:50:36 AM)
Hey usc why dont u play a game outside of youre homefield. Over 80 percent of the fans in the rose bowl were usc. Any good team can dominate at home.
Report Comment
phillie213, (1/4/2009 1:19:42 PM)
"All u hear about from kirk herbstreit and the La press is gushing knob schlobbing for usc. The funny thing is that usc is playing at home during all these so called dominating performances. Get these fools out of there own back yard and see how great they are"

I guess as a OU fan, its real convenient to forget that 55-19 score we dropped on you in Miami on a neutral field, is that evidence enough? OU is the biggest frauds in the sport, you guys got more to prove in big games than USC. You guys and Stoops are embarassments. Just be lucky you got over on the BCS once again, ill have fun watching the Gators humiliate you big 12 frauds once again and you go into another offseason crying. OU is garbage!!!
Report Comment
phillie213, (1/4/2009 1:22:32 PM)
"Hey usc why dont u play a game outside of youre homefield. Over 80 percent of the fans in the rose bowl were usc. Any good team can dominate at home."

55-19 ring a bell in South Beach? and it wasn't even that close. You so called loyal fans left at halftime with a pitiful score of 38-7. OU is joke.
 

 
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