James Lewis

LEWIS’S CAREER BESTS:

Total Tackles – 12 (at Florida State, 2001)
Solo – 10 (at Florida State, 2001)
Assists – 5 (vs. Ohio State, 1999)
Pass Break Ups – 2 (2 Times; last vs. Washington, 2001)

2001 (SENIOR): Physical tackler and athletic player at strong safety…fourth-year senior who closed his Miami career in the Rose Bowl against Nebraska…moved to the strong safety position from free safety prior to spring practice and flourished there as the season progressed…swapped positions with consensus All-American Edward Reed…underrated player who was a stabilizing force in the secondary throughout the season…2001 was his first season as a starter, but he played in every game since donning a Miami uniform for the 1998 season, a span of 49 games…was third on the team with three interceptions in 2001…ranked fifth on the team in tackles with 59, leading all of UM’s defensive backs in that category…had 43 unassisted tackles, the second-highest total on the team…had five tackles and recovered a fumble in the season opener at Penn State…had four tackles in the win at Pittsburgh…had six stops, including a tackle for a loss, in the win over Troy State…had a career-high 12 tackles (10 unassisted) in Miami’s 49-27 victory at Florida State in Tallahassee, ending FSU’s 54-game home unbeaten streak…had seven tackles and returned an intercepted pass 74 yards for a score in Miami’s 45-3 win over West Virginia…had three tackles against Temple…made six tackles in the win at Boston College…had four tackles in the shutout win over Syracuse…made six unassisted tackles and intercepted a pass (38-yard return) in the 65-7 win over Washington…had six tackles in the victory at Virginia Tech …moved from strong safety to free safety before 2001 Spring practice…has seen action in 34 games since arriving at UM and has one start…has played extensively in nickel and dime situations throughout his career…looked like a solid replacement for departed All-BIG EAST free safety Al Blades…highlighted Miami’s 37-14 Rose Bowl victory over Nebraska by returning an interception 47 yards for a touchdown to give Miami a 21-0 lead in the second quarter…credited with five tackles (four solos) against Nebraska…originally signed with Miami in February of 1997, but deferred admission until spring of 1998.

LEWIS’S 2001 GAME-BY-GAME STATISTICS

                       |---------TACKLES---------| |-SACKS-| |-FUMBLE-|            Pass BlkdOpponent               Solo  Ast  Total    TFL-Yds    No-Yds  FF FR-Yds Int-Yds QBH Def Kickat Penn State..........   5    0      5      0-0       0-0     0  1-0     0-0     0   0    0Rutgers................   0    0      0      0-0       0-0     0  0-0     1-0     0   2    0at Pittsburgh..........   3    1      4      0-0       0-0     0  0-0     0-0     0   0    0Troy State.............   3    3      6      1-1       0-0     0  0-0     0-0     0   0    0at Florida State.......  10    2     12      0-0       0-0     0  0-0     0-0     0   0    0West Virginia..........   5    2      7      0-0       0-0     0  0-0     1-74    0   1    0Temple.................   1    2      3      0-0       0-0     0  0-0     0-0     0   0    0at Boston College......   5    1      6      0-0       0-0     0  0-0     0-0     0   0    0Syracuse...............   3    1      4      0-0       0-0     0  0-0     0-0     0   1    0Washington.............   6    0      6      0-0       0-0     0  0-0     1-38    0   2    0at Virginia Tech.......   3    3      6      0-0       0-0     0  0-0     0-0     0   1    0TOTAL .................  44   15     59      1-1       0-0     0  1-0     3-112   0   7    0v. Nebraska (Rose Bowl)   4    1      5      0-0       0-0     0  0-0     1-47    0   0    0

2000 (JUNIOR): Was the primary backup to All-America strong safety Ed Reed…registered 26 tackles (15 solos), including three for losses totalling 35 yards…had a quarterback sack for 19 yards against Washington…deflected four passes and had four quarterback hurries…had a season- and career-high eight tackles (five solos) against McNeese State…made at least one tackle in 10 of 11 games.

1999 (SOPHOMORE): Saw action in every game…made 38 tackles (22 solos) and 1.5 sacks…made his first career start at East Carolina…registered at least one tackle in every game…tallied four pass breakups, four tackles for a loss and one forced fumble…made a career-high six tackles in the season-opener against Ohio State in the Kickoff Classic…tallied four tackles against Florida A&M…recorded five tackles to go along with his first career sack against Penn State…posted four tackles against both Rutgers and Syracuse…registered a career-high tying six tackles, including a sack against Temple in the regular season finale.

1998 (FRESHMAN): Appeared in every game as a true freshman providing back-up at strong safety…was also a valuable member of special teams units…registered 11 tackles…recovered a Peter Warrick fumbled punt return to set up UM’s first touchdown drive against Florida State…broke-up a pass at Temple in a season-best three-tackle performance.

HIGH SCHOOL: Piscataway…Newark Star-Ledger second team All-State selection…Star-Ledger, Piscataway Preview and The Courier News (NJ) first-team All-Area pick…named team MVP after senior year…team captain who played free safety, quarterback and returned kickoffs his senior season…tallied 95 tackles, four interceptions, three fumbles recoveries and one caused fumble…totaled four rushing touchdowns and eight passing TDs at quarterback…registered four pass break ups and two interceptions in win over Perth Amboy HS…played wide receiver and quarterback his junior campaign…Star-Ledger All-Area honorable mention as a junior…also lettered in track and basketball…was member of conference champion 4×200-meter relay team as a senior…coached by Joseph Kuronyi.

PERSONAL: Born 12/19/78…liberal arts major…full name is James Christopher Lewis, Jr…chose Miami over Maryland, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, Wisconsin, Syracuse and Hofstra…son of Rosita Parramore.

LEWIS’S CAREER DEFENSIVE STATISTICS