Behind the Facemask: Jeremy Lewis

November 17, 2011

CORAL GABLES, Fla.–They are stories of perseverance. Stories about growing up, becoming men and being a part of a family. One-by-one, we hear from them. These are the Miami Hurricanes…

Jeremy Lewis | Offensive Line | Junior | West Palm Beach, Fla.

I’m a Hurricane because God put me here.

One thing that everyone should know about Miami football is that we work hard and if you don’t work hard, the coaches will push you to that point. Being here is like family.

I never thought I would be at the University of Miami playing football as a student-athlete. If I wasn’t playing football here, I would still be in college somewhere. Growing up was rough and I knew I had to go to college to be successful.

At the U, I’ve learned so much from the whole program—my teammates, Coach Golden, this coaching staff, Coach Swasey and everything about football. Everybody always told me that I had the talent, but I never worked hard and wasn’t conditioned. Since Coach Golden arrived, I’ve been pushed to a point that I never thought I could push myself to. Coach Swasey has taught me a lot about conditioning and running and how it’s a mindset. There are so many great people here; I’m blessed to be a part of this family.

The most influential person in my life is my mom. She has been through a lot and seeing how she has overcome all of those situations is inspiring.

My favorite midnight snack is whatever is in the fridge as long as I eat something.

When I was six years old, I saw a lot of things growing up in a bad environment. When I was six years old, my father was never around. I saw how hard my mom worked to make sure we had a roof over our head and a hot meal.  When I was six years old, I wasn’t the best son, but my mom always loved me.  When I was six years old, I would always pray for things to get better.

I secretly wish that everything would always be alright.

Everybody can criticize, but not everyone can take criticism.

The offensive line is physical, smart with good hands and feet. Personally, the offensive line is a transition. I played defensive tackle my entire football career. When camp started in August, I was moved to offensive guard. It’s been good and I’ve been learning a lot. When they first told me that I was moving to offensive line, I was mad. I had to change my mindset. God has a plan for me. I feel that for the best opportunity for myself and to help the team that I had to play offensive line. It’s funny because, As a DT, the person who had to stop me from getting to the QB was the offensive guard and now I’m trying to stop that person. That works to my advantage right now. I already know what they are thinking. I think it’s a blessing.

The greatest words of wisdom come from the Bible.

Competition makes you focused and push harder.

Playing football has given me a positive mindset, to stay consistent, to be focused, to work hard and to push through things when you think you’re tired or that there’s no way out.

I will never forget the things that I went through growing up as a teenager. My mom had eight children, including two sets of twins. I’m a twin of a girl. My father was never there. I didn’t always have the nicest things growing up, but my mom always kept a meal on the table and a roof over our heads. My mom always told me that my daddy was going to come around. I remember when I was 10-years old, my momma was praying for me and she told me that I was going to be blessed. All throughout high school I was waiting for my daddy to come around. He had money so I thought that he would come around and things would be alright. He never came around.  That caused me to have a lot of hatred in my heart toward him. I’ve always respected my mom, but I would walk around her house with so much hatred and anger in my heart.

I was raised by a strong black woman in a rough environment in Palm Beach County.

If I were a superhero, my super power would be to always put a smile on peoples face whether it’s me helping them out physically, financially or emotionally.  I don’t like seeing people sad.  If I was a superhero, I would make sure that everyone was at peace with life and that there wouldn’t be any evil.

Coach Kehoe is funny and a great coach. He can be tough on you when he has too. It’s tough love on and off the field. He’s a good person.

My favorite thing about being part of the U family is, the love and support from my teammates and the entire staff. The unity. Being here is like a family.