Lewis didn’t miss a game after bone bruise
MADISON – Keontez Lewis prayed. If you feared the worst when the Wisconsin sophomore receiver went down during the third quarter of the team's loss to Illinois on Oct. 1, you weren't alone. He was worried, too.
The 6-foot-2, 190-pound Illinois native stretched out to reach a high pass from Graham Mertz and as Lewis landed, his right leg was drilled by defensive back Sydney Brown. Lewis hit the turf and immediately grabbed his knee the way players do when something is seriously wrong.
Lewis couldn't feel any part of his leg for that matter.
The visual wasn't promising – he was carted off the field – but in a season when the Badgers have been hit by injuries and hard losses, they wouldn't take the 'L' this time, not with this injury. Not only wasn't Lewis' injury serious, but he didn't miss a game and was an unsung hero on the play of the day in UW's 42-7 win over Northwestern last week.
Fortunately the severity of injuries isn't based on appearances.
“I never speculate on an injury. You don't know until you get the report from our medical staff,” UW offensive coordinator Bobby Engram said. “I was encouraged on Sunday and Monday when we got the reports back.
“He is a tough guy. East St. Louis, right? He has been through some things. “But he is a good young man. He is tough. He is a worker. He continues to get better.”
Lewis is also lucky. The numbness he experienced in the leg right after the hit was the product of a bone contusion. No ligament damage and thanks to treatment he received throughout the following week, no need to miss any games.
Lewis has been one of the feel-good stories for the Badgers. A transfer from UCLA, he has worked his way into the UW's two-deep in his first season after not getting the opportunity to be part of the passing game at UCLA.
He caught one pass for six yards in the Northwestern win but give him credit for an assist on Chimere Dike's 52yard touchdown reception early in the second quarter that gave the Badgers a 14-0 lead.
After Dike caught Mertz's pass across the middle in stride he turned up field near the Northwestern sideline, Lewis got just enough of a block on the DB covering him to prevent him from making an attempt at running down Dike. Without the block it's not a sure thing that Dike scores.
“At the end of the day, you're playing football so after you see one of your guys catch the ball, you're trying to think of a way to get them into the end zone,” he said. “I saw a guy and tried to pick up a block. … being that one person to help your teammate get into the end zone is a real good thing.”
Lewis enters the Michigan State game with five catches for 108 yards and one touchdown. His 21.6 yards per catch is the best on the team.
They are statistics he is glad to have a chance to add to Saturday.
“It was just a little contusion, a little bone bruise,” he said of his brush with a major injury. “Nothing crazy like that. It was a blessing for real.”