Dewey still recovering from knee injury that will delay start of his college soccer career

Levi Dewey will play Division I collegiate soccer at the University of North Carolina Asheville.

FAIRLAND -- Levi Dewey felt the pop in his knee. The look on his teammate's face confirmed the worst.

“I made a tackle against North Posey and my (left) knee just collapsed underneath me,” recalled Dewey of that Nov. 10 regional championship football game in Fairland. “Courtney Dunville was looking down at me and screamed and looked away. I figured my leg was completely snapped in half and my bone was sticking out of my leg.”

Once everyone cleared around Dewey, his knee slid back in place and the pain kicked in. It turned out to be the final tackle of his storied football career at Triton Central.

“I tore everything in my knee,” he said. “I dislocated my whole knee. It pushed through my MCL (medial collateral ligament), which completely tore that. I tore my ACL (anterior cruciate ligament). I partially tore my PCL (posterior cruciate ligament) and I tore my meniscus.”

Dewey knew his football career was in its final stage but his dream of playing college soccer now seemed in jeopardy. He committed to the University of North Carolina Asheville two weeks earlier and the ink was barely dry after signing his National Letter of Intent the day before the regional championship.

“I was super, super scared,” he said. “I was super scared because in college, it’s more of a business than a team. I was super scared my coaches might say I can’t do this anymore and revoke my scholarship.

“That wasn’t even a thought in their mind. They were more worried about me and that even reinforced how good of people they are.”

How serious was the injury? After two surgeries and more than eight months of rehabilitation, Dewey is still not cleared to compete. A flare up of tendinitis in his knee caused him to fail what would have been his final test to get cleared.

“It has been really, really difficult. I am glad I have such a good support system with my friends and my family and my relationship with God, which has gotten a lot closer,” he said. “I really feel like I’m in such a good mental space because of Him. He just showed me that he has a plan for me. He is making it more difficult, but there is a reason he is doing it.”

Because Dewey is not yet fully cleared, he will not enroll at UNC Asheville until January to maintain four years of eligibility and still have a redshirt year if needed. The whole recovery process and delayed college enrollment has slowed life down for the youngest soccer standout in the Dewey family.

“I finally got a chance to live as a kid, which I never really got to do,” he said. “I had always been at soccer or football or basketball, so I never really got to hang out with my friends consistently. I’ve never really been able to go to church consistently because I always had games or I was always traveling.”

Despite the setback with the tendinitis, Dewey is happy with his recovery process.

“It has gone really well,” he said. “I’ve had a lot of ups, my only down was my second surgery when they had to retighten my MCL. And a couple weeks ago I had tendinitis and I can’t do anything (about that).”

Levi Dewey with his parents Elizabeth and Eric Dewey.

Dewey’s unique path to becoming a Division I college soccer player came without playing a single high school game. Triton Central only started a boys soccer program last fall.

“I feel like it’s great for Triton Central,” he said. “My brother (Cole) tried to start a program when he was in high school and he got turned down. I think they didn’t have enough players to do so. That shows how much the sport is growing so fast. They have a great coach in Mr. (Eric) Richey. I think they will do good things.”

Dewey has been a high-level club soccer player for many years and became part of the Indy Eleven academy program which required him not to play high school soccer. He seemed like a natural recruit for Xavier University in Cincinnati where both of his older sisters, Samantha and Rachel, played.

“I was always thinking I was going to go to Xavier,” he said. “Maybe March or April, (UNCA) started to focus in on me. They sent me a bunch of texts, emails and calls and got me on campus. I fell in love with them then.”

Levi Dewey (second from left) with his siblings (from left): Samantha, Rachel and Cole Dewey.

What Dewey found in Asheville, located in the mountainous part of western North Carolina, was a similar environment to the Kentucky vacation spot his family often visits.

“I stayed with the players, we took a hike, there were waterfalls, nature and a bunch of trails,” he explained. “Every year my family and I go to Kentucky just to get off the grid. We ride four-wheelers and go boating. It reminded me of that a lot.”

While visiting Asheville, Dewey also was able to watch a soccer game.

“When I went there on my visit, they won the game against the Naval Academy,” he recalled. “I was really excited. It was like I won a game and that really intrigued me. When I went on my other visits, it was, ‘Oh they won, it was okay, cool.’

When Asheville won, I was excited about it. I felt like part of the team already.”

Another aspect that swayed Dewey was the coaching staff.

“The coaches were some of the nicest, most genuine people I knew,” he said. “Both went to Asheville, so they are alums. Both played pro so they know the pathway to get to the professional level. They made me feel like I was special. They made me feel like I was the main priority for them – that I was the main target.”

Unfortunately, the football injury will keep Dewey out of an UNCA uniform until the fall of 2025 – and he is fine with that.

“I will say it a thousand times over, I would do it all again,” said Dewey of playing football. “Those were my brothers, every single senior I would die to get back on the field with them one more time. I know it sounds kind of corny, but it’s true.”
 

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