When he's not showing his fancy moves on kickoffs, the Indiana junior teams with Will Smith to make other people dance

Bloomington, Ind., may not seem like a hip-hop hotbed. But the campus of Indiana University has been a perfect lab for one of the music industry's top young songwriters, Lance Bennett. Why? The Hoosier state gives Bennett a chance to hone both his careers: rap artist and big-time college kick returner. The 5'6", 165-pound Brooklyn native ranks ninth in the Big Ten in kickoff return average (22.7 yards per) and hit seventh on Billboard's Hot 100 chart with "Switch," the ubiquitous Will Smith party anthem he co-wrote with Smith and K. Holland. "I think the album is over platinum worldwide," Bennett says. Oh yeah, and this is his second collaboration with the Fresh Prince; Bennett also co-wrote Smith's Men in Black II theme song, "Black Suits Comin' (Nod Ya Head)." Top that, Reggie Bush.

Dance is a hop and a clap
Flip it round, now bring it on back
Break it down, now switch.

Just a few years after Gang Starr, a group from Bennett's New York nabe, first hit with its debut album, No More Mr. Nice Guy, Bennett wrote his first song, "School Sucks." Bennett was just 8 years old. "That's what every 8-year-old thinks!" he says. Bennett did a New York circuit of youth talent shows, writing songs with his two older brothers, Lennie and LeMar. The trio had a few near-misses, which he now says was a good thing. "We'd probably be on one of those Where Are They Now? shows if we blew up back then."

Let me see you clap, spin
Baby, come on … switch!

Bennett's love for football never lagged music by much. He made all-state as a do-it-all Warrick Dunn-type tailback at Brooklyn's Poly Prep, bent on proving he was much more than just a role-playing third-down back. (He's even recorded under the name Flo Blitz.) But at 18, Bennett put aside dreams of the NFL to make a run at a full-time music career, moving to California to join his brothers. Big things were in motion: Lennie was already performing as a solo artist on Smith's label under the name Kel Spencer. The Bennett brothers also helped to write seven songs on Smith's 2002 album Born to Reign. Then they founded their own record label, 3rd Power Music Group. But football didn't let go of Lance. He kept thinking about getting back to the gridiron.

Back at it, this cat is the wit and the charm
Taking you higher, like a syringe hittin' ya arm
Let me see you clap, spin, baby, come on
Switch!

That window opened in 2003 after Bennett's high school coach, Dino Mangiero, became the director of football operations at Indiana under fellow Brooklynite Gerry DiNardo (who has since been fired). Mangiero also brought in fellow Poly preps Chris Mangiero (his son), John Pannozzo and Jahkeen Gilmore. Bennett, always a solid student with a 3.1 high school GPA and a 1080 SAT, was invited to walk on to give the downtrodden Hoosiers a much-needed spark. He took the offer and emerged as a full-fledged weapon in his sophomore season, finishing fourth in the country with an average of 30 yards per kickoff return. Last year he became just one of five D-1A players to return a kickoff and a punt over 90 yards for a TD.

But oh, wait, whoa, y'all forgetting
When I was amateur
Spitting before the scripts were written.

It's not easy to be a return man. You have to be able to sift through traffic. But maybe that runs in his family's blood. Brother Lennie first connected with Will Smith when he met a cousin of the star's executive producer, a fellow student at Morgan State. Figuring out how to turn that encounter into recording gold is kind of like dodging a couple of gunners, having the patience to let your teammates set their blocks and then, at the perfect time, running to pay dirt.

Bringing the fire
Making your Benz ring the alarm
Let me see you clap, spin, baby, come on switch.

Today Bennett finds himself in the enviable position of making it big in two very different worlds. As happy as his coaches are with his performance on the field, school officials are so enamored of Bennett's off-the-grid skills that they asked him for an original song to soundtrack the team's annual highlight reel. Bennett hoped the result, "Knock-knock," would jack up IU fans as his team chased a rare bowl appearance. It won't happen this year, but there's always next year. Bennett's just a junior, which means next fall he'll be forced to choose again: music or football?

It ain't really that hard to do
And I ain't trying to be in love with you
And all I wanted was a moment or two
To see if you could do that switch-a-roo.

In the meantime, Bennett looks to the Man in Black as a role model. "Seeing how he does it definitely put a stamp on things for me," says Bennett. Years ago, Smith, the self-described "multimedia assassin," told Bennett it really is possible to succeed on two platforms. "You do have to play within the lines," says Bennett. "But you also have to break the rules a little."

That's what I'm talking 'bout
Switch!

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