[LeeCoUKFan]

Lewis talks about decision to sign with Kentucky

Justin Rowland
Special to CatsIllustrated.com

Kentucky didn't fill all of their allotted scholarships on National Signing Day and that gave the Wildcats some flexibility with potential late signees.

That strategy paid off this week in the form of a commitment and letter of intent from Melvin Lewis, a 6-foot-4, 290-pound defensive tackle from Fullerton Community College in California, who came out of Compton High School.

"I actually signed a couple of days ago and I just put it out today," Lewis said on Thursday. "Really it was Kentucky just because of the coaches. I really enjoyed talking with the coaches. I sat down with my coaches and we decided Kentucky was the best place for me to go. I'll be playing against the best competition every week."

Just not right away.

Lewis is under the impression that he will likely redshirt his first season in Lexington.

"There's a possibility that I could play this year but I'm more so a redshirt [candidate] and then coming back as a starter for the next two years," he said.

Defensive line coach Jimmy Brumbaugh handled Lewis' recruitment exclusively. The junior college prospect will speak with head coach Mark Stoops in the coming days.

Brumbaugh was also responsible for bringing Za'Darius Smith, another junior college lineman, on board.

"I was seriously considering Washington and Miami," he said. "I knew that I was going to commit since probably Monday."

The actual offer from UK arrived in the mail two days ago, on February 26. He signed it and sent it in quickly.

Last fall at Fullerton, Lewis accounted for 41 tackles (26 solo) and 3.5 sacks, as he told Cats Illustrated earlier in the week.

He noted that he played football as a freshman, junior and senior in high school. During his sophomore year at Compton his grades suffered and he started to lean more towards an athletic career in basketball, before returning to the gridiron as a junior. He has played five years of organized football altogether.

http://kentucky.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1477853