Corvallis offers ‘Giant Killer’ a second chance
Former All-American football player and wrestler Jess Lewis has overcome drug abuse to return to OSU as director of athletic maintenance
By Nick Vardanega
The Daily Barometer
Anticipation and excitement were building in Parker Stadium as time ticked off the clock in the OSU football team’s 1967 matchup with nationally top-ranked USC.
OSU was clinging to a 3-0 lead, thanks to a Mike Haggard field goal. And the Beavers were doing everything they could to prevent a USC comeback on a sloppy, rain-soaked field — more mud than grass by that point in the game.
In the closing minutes, USC put the ball in the hands of star running back O.J. Simpson, soon to be awarded the coveted Heisman Trophy. Simpson broke to the outside and began churning up the muddy field toward the end zone.
As he slowed to let a trio of blockers get into place, All-American defensive tackle Jess Lewis, trailing the play, caught the fleet Trojan tailback from behind. Lewis brought him down, saving the touchdown and keeping OSU’s upset hopes alive.
“The only reason I got him was because he slowed down, because I sure couldn’t run as fast as he could, “Lewis said, acknowledging Simpson’s sprinter speed.
He said, “Ron Yary blew me off the line so far, I might has well have tackled him.”
OSU held on for the win, giving USC its only loss en route to a Rose Bowl victory and national championship. Corvallis was euphoric, as the celebration inside the stadium spilled out into the streets.
But the man who helped give OSU fans one of their all-time greatest moments would admit later, caught in the grip of drugs, that he was ashamed to walk those streets anymore.
Lewis grew up in Aumsville, a farming community of 500 that lies about 40 miles north of Corvallis. His parents were farmers. They instilled in him an appreciation for hard work, as they had his three older brothers and his younger sister.
Lewis’ work ethic transferred over into athletics. He was a three-sport athlete in high school, playing fullback and linebacker on the football team, winning three state championships as a wrestler, and going to state in the discus and shot put in track and field competition.
In 1965, Lewis arrived at OSU as a freshman. And during his time in Corvallis, he went on to develop into an All-America football player and wrestler.
Wrestling at 215 pounds, he was more agile than most of his larger, heavier opponents in the heavyweight class, and he won two NCAA championships. He also competed in the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, finishing sixth after drawing with the eventual gold-medal winner in an early round.
“That was my biggest sports thrill, “Lewis said. “Walking in the Olympic ceremony, being around all those Olympic athletes.”
But the thrills of athletic competition would soon be overshadowed by the artificial thrills provided by drugs.
Upon returning to OSU in 1970, Lewis got caught up in the culture of rebellion and drug use that got under way in the mid-’60s. He began experimenting, and experimentation turned into addiction.
“I did everything except heroin, looking for something else, looking for excitement, “he said.
After graduation, Lewis was drafted in the 10th round by the Houston Oilers. But his drug problems got worse, not better.
Lewis started using speed to get up for games. Some trainers and team officials knew about it, but turned a blind eye.
“It wasn’t everyone, but the mentality of some was that you could do whatever you wanted as long as you performed on the field, “he said.
Lewis’ professional career was brief. He was traded to the New Orleans Saints. Then he bounced to Winnipeg in the Canadian Football League.
Finally, injuries and his escalating drug problem ended his career.
He returned to his family farm in Aumsville, where methamphetamine became his drug of choice.
“It’s really intense, “Lewis said. “It just gets all your nerve endings until you come down. You feel sick then, so you have to take more to get back up.”
Lewis’ family could tell that something was wrong. He tried to quit, but couldn’t.
Eventually, things got so bad that his parents asked him to leave, telling him that they couldn’t stand to watch him kill himself.
He headed out into the woods near Detroit Lake with his girlfriend, fellow drug user Vickie Hayes.
Lewis and Hayes lived off of Lewis’ buyout stock option from the farm for years, frittering away a good portion of the money on drugs.
Then an old friend from his days at OSU stepped in to help him get his life back on track.
Lewis’ old wrestling coach, former Olympic champion Dale Thomas, went to Lewis’ home to perform an intervention. With the support of Lewis’ family, Thomas laid out a recovery plan through a rehab program he had identified.
Thomas didn’t ask Lewis if he could come. He told Lewis he was coming.
“He was a dominant person, “Lewis said. “And I was 42 years old. I think I was ready. I wasn’t getting anywhere spending all my money on drugs.”
Lewis went to Corvallis with Thomas and spent 30 days in rehab.
“It was really hard, “he said. “It gets you to talk about using drugs.
“There’s a lot of emotion. You have to admit that the drugs are more powerful than you are.”
In 1990, Lewis was hired at OSU as the director of athletic maintenance, doing grounds work and setup for athletic events. He said it reminded him of his work back home on the farm.
He now co-teaches a class called “Drugs in Sport. “And he works as a counselor, using his personal experiences to help others form their own philosophy about drugs and equip them with the skills to avoid abuse.
He’s now married to Hayes, who has gotten clean herself. They have left the worst behind them.
Lewis has a restored sense of pride these days when he walks down the streets of Corvallis. The town he gave one of its greatest moments returned the favor by giving him a second chance.
Nick Vardanega, staff writer
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