Terrence Lewis TD Highlights First Fall Scrimmage, Might Signal Bigger Role Coming This Season

STILLWATER — Since the spring game, if not before, Eric Morris has repeatedly said he wants to use the fall scrimmages to separate the guys on his roster.

Although a few significant battles in the two-deep remain up for grabs, it sounds like receiver Terrence Lewis might have locked himself into a valuable receiving role on Saturday.

“Had a phenomenal touchdown in the scrimmage on a, I think it was a two-minute drive,” Morris said. “Caught a post and made three or four guys miss and scored a 60-yard touchdown, which was just really good to see him put it all together.”

Among North Texas players, Lewis finished last season seventh overall and fifth among receivers with 184 receiving yards on 11 receptions. He made the most of it, finding the end zone three times, which put him third on the team.

On Tuesday, Lewis worked with the first-string offense when Mestemaker ran a hurry-up drive against the Cowboys defense. He appeared to be taking receiver Chris Barnes’ spot in this particular series while fellow receiver Miles Coleman played what would have likely been Wyatt Young’s.

“I think Terrence Lewis has had probably his best little stretch of eight or nine practices together that he’s had since I’ve known him,” Morris said. “He’s always shown flashes, it’s been the consistency factor of it.”

The 5-11, 170-pound sophomore ranked 132nd and 189th at his position in the portal according to 247Sports and On3, respectively. That’s a bit of a jump up considering both sites had him in the 230s coming out of high school.

“I never expected to play,” Lewis said, referring to last season. “You know, coming in in the summer, not in the spring, a late guy, I never expected to jump out there and play. But you know, if you showed up, if you showed that you work your butt off and show the skills you can showcase, he will play you.”

According to Pro Football Focus data, Lewis only saw 15 targets last season, eighth-most at UNT. More than 94% of his snaps came out of the slot, and he finished third on the team with an average depth of target of 12.5.

Lewis said his top three priorities this offseason were improving at run after the catch, his hands and his route running.

“Came into this camp, came into this year with a big school and knew that it was a new opportunity,” Lewis said. “I knew I had to showcase my skills and work hard. So over this time, I’ve just been trying to get better at my craft.”

Run after the catch, also known as YAC (yards after the catch), dominated Lewis’ thoughts when he spoke to reporters on Tuesday, including his breakdown of his touchdown during the scrimmage.

“If y’all go back and watch the play, I just really had to read the defense,” Lewis said. “You know, the leverage was low-key onto my side, so I really just couldn’t lose leverage. I just had to basically run the route to get open. It was basically kind of easy. After that, catching and the RAC.

“That’s what we work on with (receivers) coach Nick Edwards. He teaches that every single day, so that’s just what we do and what we train for. That’s just, I guess it would say it’s like a second nature to me. So it’s really easy.”

Lewis finished last season with 83 yards after the catch, averaging roughly 8.3 per reception, according to PFF. Ignoring running backs, that was enough to finish second behind only Young’s average of 11.4.

Thanks to safety Mose Phillips, it’s now public that Saturday’s touchdown by Lewis came with first-string receiver Justin Bowick on the field, which suggests the sophomore was playing alongside guys expected to make a real impact this fall and not when OSU went to the bench.

Phillips’ description of the play also focused on some of the same things Lewis highlighted in his own breakdown.

“It was a phenomenal play,” Phillips said. “He did a great job after the catch, making people miss, keep running his feet, keep running his feet, playing for it. Bowick did a great job blocking ahead for him as well, playing forward, but I think that is a testament to the offense and the culture here.

“Like the receivers don’t watch other receivers catch the ball and do their thing. They come get DBs. They trying to collect you, so it forces us to play to the whistle as well.”