Contract allows Lewis to retire as a Stampeder
Hall of Fame career included 11 seasons in Calgary colours, in which he retired
Nik Lewis always knew what moves to make on the football field.
On Friday, he executed a perfect one off the field.
With a little help from his good friends, the Calgary Stampeders.
The CFL club signed the league’s all-time receptions leader to a one-day contract, so Lewis could retire with the team with which he helped build into a dominating force on the gridiron.
“It means a lot,” Lewis said. “(The Stampeders) gave me an opportunity, and the only thing I believe you can ask for in life is an opportunity. I told them to give me a oneway ticket (here), because I’m not going home, and I came out and did what I did.”
What he did was legendary. As the CFL all-time catch leader with 1,051 receptions, Lewis played 11 seasons with the Stampeders (2004-14) before concluding his career playing three campaigns with the Montreal Alouettes.
He rolled up 13,778 receiving yards and 71 touchdowns during his 14 seasons in the Canadian league.
Lewis holds the Stampeders record with 165 consecutive games played with at least one catch and surpassed the 1,000-yard mark in receiving in each of his first nine seasons. He was a CFL all-star three times as a member of the Stampeders and a West Division all-star on five occasions.
And, of course, the native of Mineral Wells, Texas, was a Grey Cup winner in 2008 and again in ’14 with the Red & White.
“I feel like this has been all about me for the last 14 years,” Lewis said. “Now I get to celebrate it and share it with so many people. I’ve been really selfish with family and friends. They had to sacrifice for me, so I’m grateful to be able to share this with them.”
What he’s shared with friends, family, fans and teammates alike is a zest for the game to which few others can measure up.
Off the field, he was bombastic but beloved. On the field, he was full of swagger and full-throated.
And when he wasn’t governing with that voice, he was leading by example.
He’d high-hurdle would-be tacklers and level defenders, making him arguably the best ever at turning something into nothing as one of football’s most dynamic yardsafter-catch receivers.
It seems funny now, but Lewis broke in as a shy, quiet rookie with the Stamps.
“I believe you have to be quiet in your rookie year,” Lewis said. “Let your teammates know who you are by how you work. Don’t go out and start talking all the time — work your way into it — and that’s what I did. I just went in and worked hard and got the respect in the lockerroom — not just as a great player but somebody they could depend on.”
Said veteran defender Brandon Smith: “When I first got here and saw Nik’s practice habits, he was moving in slow motion, and I’m thinking, ‘This is a 1,000-yard superstar receiver?’ No lie, it wasn’t very impressive.
“And then the first game once the lights come on, he’s jumping over guys, he’s running over guys, he’s running through guys, he’s making one-handed catches.
“He’s a human highlight reel. OK, so that’s why they pay him the big bucks. He uses those moves and speed at the right time. I think that’s what kept his career going for such a long time.”
Right on up to Friday, when he called it quits — officially — with the team and city that helped make him a legend.
“And now it’s great to think back and just love the moments I had here — the Grey Cups, the losses, the wins and enjoying the fans and everything,” said Lewis, who now hopes to parlay his triumphant playing career into coaching success.
“The memories last forever. That’s the best part of it.”
For many, Nik Lewis was the face of the Calgary Stampeders.
The superstar receiver was the motor behind the horsepower.
He was the brash behind the rise to domination of the CFL club.
Rejoining the Red & White on Friday by signing a one-day contract to officially close out his remarkable hall-of-fame career, Lewis was being lauded by those fellow gridiron warriors with which he shared the field.
And most of those accolades centred around how the electrifying receiver — arguably the greatest talent and undeniably the hardest working at his position — helped turn a struggling franchise into a perennial contender.
“I’m glad he’s coming back here and retiring in the Red & White,” said Stampeders quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell. “He’s definitely one of the most deserved of anyone who has ever put the uniform on and worn The White Horse. I’m very proud of the guy. I learned a lot from the guy, so I’m very thankful.
“My first year starting and those three games I played, he was very (helpful) to what was going on with me. He was always in the huddle, always in my ear, just letting me know certain things about the offence and the entire thing about the CFL game while I was trying to play as a young American trying to come in not knowing enough. I owe a lot to that guy.
“The league owes a lot to that guy, and so does the organization.”
Stamps head coach Dave Dickenson, who played alongside Lewis during the team’s 2008 Grey Cup run, echoed that sentiment.
“We love Nik,” Dickenson said. “I’ve always felt like he was a Stamp for life and have always treated him that way. The thing we’ve always said about Nik is he enjoyed football and loves the game and loves life, but he also sacrificed everything for the game and would lay it on the line week-in and week-out like nobody else.
“Nik’s a Stamp for life, and we’re excited to have him back in the family.”
All that wasn’t lost on Lewis on Friday.
“It was an opportunity to build what we built here,” said Lewis of his early years in Calgary. “It’s a great honour to know that I was a part of that group with Cope (Jeremaine Copeland) and (KenYon) Rambo and Romby (Bryant) and (MarTay) Jenkins and Joffrey (Reynolds) and Hank (Burris). We put in the work to change the mentality around here to give us a standard — and now that standard still lives.
“The team lost — what? — three home games in seven years. We wanted people to know that you’re going to get Stampeder football all the time, and it looks good right now.
“I watch all those recaps from back in 2008, ’09, ’10, ’11, ’12. I enjoy watching them,” continued Lewis, adding Johnny Forzani to a long list of Stamps pass-catchers with whom he shared a special bond. “Those were special guys. We competed for the ball, we competed for each other and we competed against each other constantly to be the best.
“And together, we were the best.” In turn, the push provided by Lewis & Co. propelled teammates on the other side of the ball to excel.
“When I got here, I didn’t know much about the organization. I heard they maybe weren’t that good,” said longtime Stamps cornerback Brandon Smith. “(Thencoach John Hufnagel) came in and brought a work ethic and mindset where we have to be as good in practice as the way you want to play in a game. Nik bought into that — him and (Ken-Yon) Rambo, Copeland, (Ryan) Thelwell ...(the stars on offence). They went out in practice and made it hard on the defence, so we had to make it hard for them.
“So we had a lot of competition. That started to change the mindset here.”
Said GM/president John Hufnagel of the future Canadian Football Hall of Fame player, “Nik was an important player for this organization for many years, and it’s fitting that he retires as a member of the Stampeders. In particular, I recall Nik’s outstanding performance in the 2008 Grey Cup — 11 catches for 122 yards — to help us win a championship.
“His accomplishments on the field speak for themselves as Nik was certainly one of most popular players in Stampeders history with our fans. We celebrate his career on this day and wish him all the best for the future.”