After minor detour, Lewis happy at Virginia Tech

By Nate Crossman  |   Monday, April 03, 2006  |  Comments( 1 )

Virginia Tech Hokies
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Running back Kenny Lewis might be the most grateful player on the Virginia Tech Hokies. It is because Lewis knows how lucky he is.

The 21-year-old freshman originally signed a letter of intent to play for the Hokies in 2003, after starring at George Washington High in Danville, Va. But the speedy Lewis was also one of the top baseball players in Virginia, and was drafted in the fourth round of the MLB amateur draft by the Cincinnati Reds. When it came time to choose between college football and professional baseball, Lewis chose baseball.

Lewis enjoyed minimal success at the rookie-league level, batting .233 and stealing 65 bases in 156 games over three seasons. He tore his hamstring at the beginning of the 2004 season and missed all but eight games. He then bounced back to steal 21 bases in 2005, but by then he was already leaning towards quitting baseball and trying football.

The 5-foot-9, 195-pounder never could forget about football. He grew up rooting for the Hokies, in part because his father, Kenny Lewis Sr., was a star running back at Virginia Tech and held the single-game rushing record until Kevin Jones broke it in 2003. Lewis might have quit baseball sooner, but his father convinced him to give it one more season before he made a decision.

Because he spent three years away from football, Lewis brings a certain level of maturity to the situation. He's relished every moment on the field, and said that waking up for early classes is nothing compared with endless bus rides to rickety stadiums in the minor leagues.

Lewis has every reason to be excited, because he could not have arrived at Virginia Tech at a better time. The Hokies lost both tailbacks from last year, so Lewis is in the mix with Branden Ore, Elan Lewis and George Bell to earn the starting job, or at least significant playing time. Lewis made a good impression in the Hokies' first scrimmage of the spring last Saturday, rushing for 68 yards on 14 carries, including a scrimmage-long 42-yard gain.

Even if he doesn't crack the starting line-up, Lewis still have four years to make his mark at Virginia Tech. He's taken a long road to get there, and he's going to enjoy it.
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