University of North Carolina Athletics
A Conversation With Terry Lewis
February 16, 2000 | Football
Feb. 16, 2000
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The tight end's coach is a powerful individual with a captivating presence. He's a friendly and articulate person who loves his profession as much as anyone I know.
Coach Lewis can't imagine life without football. He's 50-years old, looks like he's 30-years old, and plans to be around the game for a long, long time.
y: Joe Bray
TarHeelBlue.com
TarHeelBlue: OK, I've got to ask, what's up with the ever-present towel around your neck?
Coach Lewis: "I've had it all my life. You know I'm a very animated guy, and I sweat a lot. I've got to keep this head dry. I'm animated in every thing I do.
"People say I'm copying John Thompson, but I've done this long before he did. If I don't have it I feel naked.
"Now I can't go into a recruit's house with a towel wrapped around my neck, so I keep a little one in my Franklin Planner. It's just a part of my attire."
TarHeelBlue: You played offensive tackle in college, and you've coached every position on the offensive line. How did you learn to coach the positions you did not play?
Coach Lewis: "Just playing tackle prepares you to coach the offensive line. Offensive lines are interwoven from tackle to tackle, the left hand has to know what the right hand's doing. If you play any interior line position and you're a student of the game, you pretty much know the other positions.
"I loved playing in the offensive line because there was always something going on in there. Most people follow the ball, but the intriguing part of the game for those who follow it closely are all the subtle little battles going on along the line of scrimmage.
"The offensive line is so interwoven we like to use the expression 'your offensive line is only as strong as your weakest link.' As a player you have to know what the other guys are doing."
TarHeelBlue: The tight end lines up right beside a tackle. How much difference is there in their blocking assignments?
Coach Lewis: "There's not much difference. Now, the tight end's always going to be covered in every situation, because the tight end represents the strong side of the offense, and if you don't cover him, any mediocre offensive play caller knows you ought to run the ball to that point, so the tight end is always going to have a guy over him.
"Now the blocking schemes determine whether or not the tackle's covered. Usually, if you're running the football and the tight end's covered, which he will be, and the tackle's uncovered, the tight end's going to block the guy all the way by himself.
"But, if the tackle and the tight end are both covered, then it sets up a variety of things to do. Sometimes the tight end will block down on the guy in front of the tackle, and the tackle will come out and block the guy in front of the tight end. Sometimes the tight end and the tackle will double the guy in front of the tackle. Sometimes the tackle will reach outside and block the guy on the tight end, and the tight end will slip the guy on himself and seal a linebacker inside.
"As for pass protection, the tight end, if he's involved in pass protection on that play, will usually block the defensive end. When the tackle's covered in pass protection, he usually has to block the guy in front of himself.
"The techniques are pretty much the same. They both are the corner of the offensive formation, so when you start to set up in pass protection, they both use pretty much the same technique. They're also usually blocking a guy who's similar in height and weight and athleticism to themselves. That's why when we're playing a team like Florida St., I'll tell my guys that even if the guy you're blocking has a great reputation, it still should be similar to you blocking yourself. Those guys who they've had down there who've gone on to be great pros are no bigger and no more athletic than the guys we have here at Carolina.
"People always talk about how dominant Florida St.'s defensive ends are. I'm trying to get my guys to look at other great defensive ends and see themselves. Therefore, at the very most, we should lose some of the battles but never all the battles."
TarHeelBlue: You look like you really enjoy practices.
Coach Lewis: "I just plain enjoy football. People talk about retiring. That word's not even in my vocabulary. Football is absolutely a labor of love. I love hanging out with the guys. I'm not a pencil pusher. I love just about everything about the game."
TarHeelBlue: What are the ideal physical attributes for a tight end?
Coach Lewis: "As far as I'm concerned, you'd like a guy in the 6'3" range at a minimum, not that he can't be a tad smaller. It's also great if he's played basketball, because the skills required by a tight end are similar to those required of a basketball player.
"The great tight ends are the ones who can run, catch, and when it comes time to block, they can put somebody on his butt.
"People are getting so intrigued by the passing game that they want a tight end who can split out and become a wide receiver. But in my opinion, we have guys who are just that, wide receivers, so let's let those guys split out.
"So many tight ends now are so cognizant of the fact that they want to split out that they are not working on the essence of their position, which is to be able to catch the ball in a crowd off a play-action pass, and just as importantly, they need to be able to block, they need to be able to block!
"When you split these guys out they just don't spend enough time on blocking. I spend most of my early time with guys here teaching them blocking, because if you can't already catch the ball, then I don't even want you. Once you learn to block, then you can become a complete tight end."
TarHeelBlue: Do you anticipate us using the tight ends more in the passing game this year?
Coach Lewis: "To me you need to use your playmakers, and I know we have playmakers at tight end. Where I like to use the tight end in the passing game is off play-action. If you run the ball decently and get those linebackers sucked inside trying to stop the run, then you can slip behind those guys and in front of the defensive backs and have a tremendous amount of catches. We don't need a lot of yards off those catches. What we need are first downs.
"Having watched those guys (Coaches O'Cain & Caldwell) over at N.C. State, I think our guys are going to have a chance to get a lot of catches. So, yes, I anticipate those guys playing a much bigger role in the passing game."
TarHeelBlue: Which of your tight ends has the best hands?
Coach Lewis: "I don't think there's any question that Alge Crumpler has great hands. I think that after a lot of hard work Dante' Finger's hands are pretty darn good. The young guy, Zach Hilton, has tremendous hands, just tremendous hands.
"Zach's thing is that he was more of a receiver type in high school. I'm looking for him to come light years in his blocking this year."
TarHeelBlue: I was going to ask you about what kind of progress Zach made last year.
Coach Lewis: "Zach's spent a whole year learning what he didn't really have to do in high school, and he's gotten slung around some, but I expect him to make quantum leaps in his improvement as a blocker.
"His effort's been great, and if he gives good effort, which he has done, I think he can end up breaking records, not just here, but in the whole darn league. He has that much potential.
"I told his dad this, your son's got great potential. He's the kind of guy I'm looking for."
TarHeelBlue: Who's your best blocker?
Coach Lewis: "Alge. Alge is a very ferocious blocker. I'm not slighting Dauntae'. Dauntae' is a very good blocker. Alge is the complete package. He just has to contain himself and let the game come to him.
"Last year when he wasn't being thrown to, I told him to just catch the ones that came his way. He couldn't control whether or not he was being thrown to. In the meantime, just knock someone's butt off.
"Last year we started counting knock-downs. I sold him on that, I call them pancakes. I want our tight ends to have the reputation of being great blockers.
"Blocking is the reason Alge made all-conference. Nobody was knocking people down the way Alge was. Alge really helped himself out last year."
TarHeelBlue: Is there anything in particular you want to stress heading into spring practice?
Coach Lewis: "Basically the things we've already talked about. The only thing they can control out on that flank is the ability to dominate the guy across from them. That's all that they can control. We can't control if they're being thrown to or not.
"In order to have a strong-side attack, you've got to have a tight end who can block. When you can't run the ball to your strong side to make defenses overshift to your strong side to open up other things, they can play a balanced defense and pretty much try to stop everything.
"My guys have to learn to block. Now once you learn how, if you do it right, you do it light. If you do it wrong, you do it long.
"I tell my guys they'll have plenty of opportunities to catch the ball at the next level, and they'll be at the next level because they can block."
TarHeelBlue: You coached at Carolina from 1988-91, then left to coach at Colorado. Did you miss Chapel Hill while you were out there?
Coach Lewis: "Oh, yes. I've coached at many, many places, but this clearly has been one of the more supportive programs that I've ever been a part of, from A to Z. The things the administration and the alums do here is probably as good as anywhere.
"Obviously we had a rough stretch last year, but I've never been at a place with more supportive people. The wrath we felt last year was justified, we deserved it.
"The fans here are great. When they do something here they do it first class. This building is a testomonial to that. Hey, I feel like I should wear something new every day I come in this place. I feel like I'm a doggone bigshot.
"I missed the things you do out side of practice and games here.
"The only thing I wish, and I hate to sound critical, but I wish our fans would come to the game before the games starts. We're on TV a lot, and what you see on TV are a bunch of people dressed up like empty seats, and that can get used against you in recruiting. When you show a kid a shot of the stadium at the beginning of the game and it's not full, it reinforces that opinion that we're a basketball school.
"All I'm asking our fans to do is come into our games early. We lose kids to certain other schools because it's loud and raucous, so they think those fans love their football team more than our fans love us. That's the only complaint I've got. We do have great fans, we just need their presence at the beginning of the games.
"You know we had a real bad stretch last year, but I think the head coach has taken measures to get us on the right track. I think we've got the right chemistry and the right mix on the coaching staff."
TarHeelBlue: Do you think Carl is growing on the job?
Coach Lewis: "I've known Carl since the early 1980's. I think he has. I worked for a lot of guys, and there's not a better guy to work for in college football. I'm just so glad that when it was all said and done, he was given a chance to get this ship right, because I don't think the ship could have a better captain. I guarantee you that what everyone thought of him before we had our problems, they're going to think again.
"I think he has grown like anyone. You know, trial and error, you learn. He had to make some tough decisions that probably hurt him more than anybody else. A lot of other people could make the decisions he had to make and not miss a beat, but I know he agonized over it for a long time. He would have liked to not to have to do it and hope things worked out, but he couldn't. He had to do what he had to do. He's learned, he's grown. I don't think this ship could have a better captain.
"I don't think there's any question we'll get this thing turned around in the right direction.
"I think these kids have learned from that debacle last year. We're also getting some real unity from our early-morning workouts. The combination of their unity and the commitment of all of us to excellence should make us a much better team.
"We should have been better. They (the team) could have been better. Despite what anyone thought about the coaches, they (the players) could have been better. But again, they're young and they can't be faulted for thinking like young people and getting discouraged. What they realized in the end was, hey, we're not as bad as we thought we were, let's forget those earlier games and go out and get the job done and win the game."
TarHeelBlue: Do you think the team was playing to save Carl's job at the end of the season?
Coach Lewis: "Let me say this. I think that in their hearts they were playing for that reason, but it was never something that was discussed or talked about or even implied.
"I think that what made the kids realize what a quality guy Carl is is that he never changed through the whole thing. He talked to them as though things were fine. He didn't talk about whether the players or the coaches had stumbled. There was no blame passed around. He just talked about winning the next game. He was focused on what we were trying to get done.
"They had to be amazed at how that man conducted himself, considering they were all hearing about how he was about to be fired. They just decided to play like they could play.
"You know there was no play called to make Hood and Bomar make that play, they decided to make that play. They just decided on that night that that sucker wasn't getting into that end zone. That sucker wasn't falling forward.
"Unconsciously they may have been playing for Carl, but I think that consciously they decided they would play up to their capability effort-wise.
"I tell my guys it's eleven individual battles. You've got eleven houses out there, and there's a fire in every house. You've got to put the fire out in your house first. If you're doing that well and you take care of your house, then if you've got the energy you go help someone else. Collectively, if we all think this way, if you've got better talent, you're going to win.
"You've just got to take care of your battle on every single play. We had enough talent to be better than we were. I think this group has dedicated themselves to play up to their ability. Now if we as coaches can put them in a position to win, you'll see some good things next year.
"Both the players and the coaches could have done a better job."
TarHeelBlue: When you're out recruiting for a tight end, what specifically do you look for in a kid?
Coach Lewis: "I'm looking at athleticism first, does he fit the mold? Then I look for aggressiveness. If a kid can't block you don't know if it's his fault or not, because he may not have been taught properly. Now if he gets thrown to, I expect him to catch the ball.
"I'm looking for athleticism, size and aggressiveness. I can teach them to block, but I can't teach them to be aggressive."
TarHeelBlue: Is there a 40-yard speed you would not accept in a tight end?
Coach Lewis: "If they're the type body we look for and they played basketball, they'll be 5.0 or faster. A long, lean guy, once he develops his muscles, can get down to a 4.7 or so. If he's fast that's great, but again, I'm not looking for a wide receiver. That's the wide receiver's job. I want him to be able to catch the ball in a crowd, then gain some yardage if he can.
"Going 70 yards isn't in his job description. I want him to get the first down. If he can get 40 catches at nine yards a catch, then that's great. Any extra running is a bonus, just catch the ball if it hits your hands."
TarHeelBlue: Do you think offensive and defensive players have a different mentality?
Coach Lewis: "Having been an offensive guy my whole career, I think so. I know one thing, I've never had many offensive linemen I've had to worry about academically. Offensive linemen are usually very organized, have a good grip on things and are unselfish. They don't necessarily worry about fame, they're just blue-collar type guys.
"They know their station in life, they know they have to have a plan. They almost always get their degrees and become good citizens. That's not to say thay other positions are any less than that, but as a rule, offensive linemen are probably the most conscientious guys on a football team.
"On defense, those guys react over there. They can't move until the offense moves. They have a twofold job every time the ball is snapped. They've either got to get rid of you as a blocker and tackle the quarterback, or get rid of you as a blocker and tackle the ball carrier. You have a single purpose in life on offense, use the proper footwork and get in this guy's way.
"You're smart enough, you're strong enough, just out think those guys. I've always thought you needed a better thinker. That's not to say that defensive guys are dumb.
"The only thing they can do on the defense is to try and confuse you by jumping around. You've got to have enough wits about you and the understanding of the game as a whole to decipher where they end up in that little 25 seconds you're allowed before the ball is snapped. You just have to be a little more of a student of the game. On defense it's more a matter of aggression and reacting."
TarHeelBlue: What's the best thing about being a coach?
Coach Lewis: "It's the next best thing to playing. Sports is as American as the flag, and to be a part of it, first as a participant and then as a coach, is just great. Another thing is we're getting kids when they're most eager to learn.
"I used to think I wanted to coach in the NFL, but I don't. I've seen guys who I just loved go up and get caught in the business end of it. It becomes a business instead of a labor of love. We get them when they'll do anything for you.
"I've coached 29 years. I can't picture not being involved in football until it's time for me to punch out. If I get too old to coach on the college level, then I'm going to become a pro scout. That's the only thing I want to do for an NFL team. When I get too old to relate to these guys, which will be at least 20 years from now, then I want to be a scout.
"It's the path that I've chosen. It's also great being around a university atmosphere, especially one like we have here in Chapel Hill. I'm totally happy and at peace with myself."
TarHeelBlue: You're clearly optimistic about the future.
Coach Lewis: "Yes, I am. What we've got to do is get our kid's believing they're as good as anyone they play, including that great group in Tallahassee. Then they've got to say we're better than any other guys. We don't put on our pants one leg at a time, we put them on both legs at a time.
"You get that with a good group of kids. We have good people and good citizenship here for the most part. I believe we've got as much of the right stuff as any college I've been around. We've got great fans, the people put the money where their mouths are, they make it a pleasant atmosphere to live in.
"If we work hard and get the right people in here, which I think we do, and if we get them to understand what they have inside themselves, and if we can bring it out, then we should be having success around here in bunches.
"They've got to understand that you can be a wonderful person off the field, but you've got to get the job done on the field. You've got to be hell-bent for leather those three hours every Saturday in the fall.
"We have been through as tough a time as you could go through here last year. I mean it was tough on everyone. It was tough on the people who had to make some of the decisions, who really were thinking one way and then changed their minds for, I think, the better.
"Much of this stuff was self-inflicted. Almost all of that criticism was warranted. You give someone what you think they need, and you want to see the fruits of your labor.
"You give a person an opportunity to make corrections. When something doesn't work, you don't shut down the business, that's not what you do at first. You don't start all over from scratch. You allow the head coach to make the proper corrections.
"That particular formula last year didn't match, but I think the one we have now does.
"We've been to the valley. We're ready to get to the top of the mountain."
