An artist both on and off the field

[img1]Roy Lewis is complicated. He's an artist, but not the tortured kind. He's a cornerback, but he hits like a linebacker. He talks a lot, but he's got a handle on what he's saying. [HTML_REMOVED]

[HTML_REMOVED]

"We call him Turbo," fellow corner Matt Fountaine said. "Just with how he acts, he is real energetic and real talkative." [HTML_REMOVED]

[HTML_REMOVED]

And although Lewis, a junior and second-year starter, might be brimming with nervous energy, words do not just spill from his mouth carelessly. He comes off as in control, and completely aware of himself, his situation and the task at hand whether it's on the field or in the classroom.[HTML_REMOVED]

[HTML_REMOVED]

"It's double-duty now. You have to please the teachers and still please the coaches," Lewis said of his role as a student athlete starting school yesterday.[HTML_REMOVED]

Lewis attended Narbonne High School in Los Angeles. After graduating in 2002, he took a scholarship offer to play football at San Jose State. [HTML_REMOVED]

[HTML_REMOVED]

"I was originally committed to Cal-Berkley, and I just signed with San Jose State as kind of a package deal with one of my teammates from high school," Lewis said. "When I got there I figured that it was not the right place and I wasn't supposed to be here in the first place so I transferred to the UW mainly on the grounds of Chris Hemphill and Dashon Goldson." [HTML_REMOVED]

[HTML_REMOVED]

Goldson and Hemphill, both defensive backs at the UW, have a personal connection with Lewis. Goldson was a high school teammate of Lewis' while Hemphill and Lewis share an even closer bond: They are cousins. [HTML_REMOVED]

[HTML_REMOVED]

2004 was Lewis' first year at the UW, but because of NCAA regulations he was forced to redshirt the football season. He did, however, manage to come to terms with his doubts about living in Seattle. [HTML_REMOVED]

[HTML_REMOVED]

"In my head I thought I would never see myself in Seattle, which is ironic now that I'm here and I love it," Lewis said.[HTML_REMOVED]

In 2005, Lewis got his chance to make an impact on the field. A linebacker in high school, he played in 10 games, starting eight at cornerback and returning kicks. In Washington's 38-14 trouncing at Arizona, Lewis returned an interception 42 yards for a touchdown. [HTML_REMOVED]

He credits his success on the field to mental preparation. [HTML_REMOVED]

[HTML_REMOVED]

"Every night before the game I try to focus and try to play the game in my head and see myself making plays for the team," Lewis said. "And when the opportunity arrives I try to make those plays."[HTML_REMOVED][HTML_REMOVED]

[HTML_REMOVED]

Off the field, Lewis wishes he could focus more on pursuing his passion for art. [HTML_REMOVED]

[HTML_REMOVED]

"I haven't really been drawing or animating much lately because of football and school, but I hope to get back into it real soon," Lewis said.[HTML_REMOVED]

He used to be an art major, but made a change to American ethnic studies between the 2005 and 2006 seasons. [HTML_REMOVED]

[HTML_REMOVED]

"The thing that got me out of art was an art history class that I didn't do too well in," Lewis said. "I don't have a problem learning art history, but you have to take so many art history classes and I was just focused on the actual hands-on part."[HTML_REMOVED][HTML_REMOVED]

[HTML_REMOVED]

On the field, Lewis is nothing short of hands-on. [HTML_REMOVED]

[HTML_REMOVED]

"He is real active out there, making plays and moving around a lot," Fountaine said.[HTML_REMOVED]

[HTML_REMOVED]

Although the journey from Southern California to San Jose to Montlake has been a long one for Lewis, he maintains a sense of his roots, and has not forgotten the kind of person and athlete he always wanted to be. The reminder is permanently etched onto his right arm as a tattoo in the form of a panther.[HTML_REMOVED]

[HTML_REMOVED]

"The animal panther is a great animal. Sleek, smooth, black, strong, muscular," Lewis said. "I try to take on all of the attributes of a panther."

[HTML_REMOVED]