At times, it seems like tight end Jamaal Lewis is on his own special wavelength with quarterback Sam Keller.
After notching only 16 receptions in his first two years with Andrew Walter at the helm, Lewis already has 14 this year, including five touchdowns. The reason for the chemistry with Keller is obvious.
"He used to be my roommate last year, so we got a little connection going," Lewis said. "A little wink, a little eye contact every now and then - we just kind of feed off each other."
The pair saw each other a lot last year, whether off the field or at practice working on the second team together. Basically unknowns as backups, Keller and Lewis started forming a bond in the shadows of the starters.
"I was kind of his go-to guy in the second team offense," Lewis said. "I think it's just carrying over from that."
With freshman All-American Zach Miller in the fold, it seemed as if Lewis was destined to be second fiddle for another season. But Miller has been battling injuries all season, opening up a spot.
Against USC on Saturday, Lewis had five catches for 71 yards and a touchdown. Maybe just as importantly, he is starting to get the respect of opposing defenses.
"Some of the defenders from USC, like Frostee Rucker, and some of the other ends, they were complimenting me before the game even started," Lewis said. "I thought that was a shock. Usually guys are saying how they're going to beat you up."
With tight end size and wide receiver speed, Lewis presents quite the matchup problem. He's too fast for linebackers and too big for safeties.
At 6 feet 4 inches, with leaping ability, Lewis is also a good red zone target, as evidenced by his nine career touchdowns. He gets the jumping ability from his basketball days at Rampart High School in Colorado, and clearly still has affection for the game.
He was named after a former basketball player - Jamaal Wilkes - and has talked openly of wanting to resume his basketball career.
"I'm not going to say it's in the back of my mind, it's something I've always wanted to do," Lewis said.
Although the hope seems very alive within Lewis, Koetter thinks it's more of a pipe dream.
"I saw him play high school basketball; he couldn't sniff Pac-10 basketball," Koetter said playfully. "That guy had zero D-1 basketball offers. I had more offers than him."
Extra Point
Junior right tackle Andrew Carnahan had surgery on his dislocated right thumb Tuesday and will be out at least two games. Koetter is hopeful Carnahan will be back for the Oct. 29 tilt against Washington.
Reach the reporter at kyle.odegard@asu.edu.
