By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University quarterback Justin Lewis has achieved considerable success on the football field, with the 6-foot-2, 190-pound Kennesaw, Ga. native winning a state championship in high school and earning the opportunity to play Division I football at Merrimack College.
Justin Lewis is expected to vie for Washburn's starting quarterback job this fall after transferring from Division I Merrimack College. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
But Lewis has been just as successful, maybe more so, in the classroom, graduating magna cum laude with a degree in business administration from Merrimack, located in North Andover, Mass., before opting to finish his college career at Washburn.
And Lewis, who is in line to be the Ichabods' starting quarterback this fall, said the key to his success both on and off the football field is making both sports and academics major priorities.
"You always have to have a balance of both because football just doesn't last forever, you know,'' said Lewis, who is pursuing his Masters of Business Administration degree at Washburn. "So having that degree to fall back on and those things, you've got to be the same way you are on the field in the classroom.
"You've got to be the same person you have always been and stay true to that. I think you'll inherit success on the field, but also off the field when you have that same mentality.''
After making the decision to transfer following the 2024 season, Lewis considered several other schools before ending up in Topeka for the spring semester.
"I knew after I was done with my fourth year and graduated that I would want to explore another opportunity, so I hit the portal,'' Lewis said. "I had a lot of opportunities and Washburn was actually my last visit. I ended coming on the visit and meeting coach Wat (Zach Watkins), coach Dane Simoneau (offensive coordinator) and the whole staff.
"They've done an unbelievable job with their vision. They told me their vision and everything they were expecting from me and it immediately felt like home for me, so out of all the schools that I talked to and that offered me in the portal, Washburn was the one that stood out to me.
"And it wasn't just from the football aspect, it was from the family aspect and the aspect of what coach Wat wanted from this program. Him being in his first year, too, that's something new and that's awesome to me and I wanted to be a part of that.''
Lewis served as a backup at Merrimack but will get the chance to lead the offense at Washburn as the Ichabods look to bounce back from back-to-back losing seasons, including a 3-8 record last fall.
"It's awesome,'' said Lewis about the opportunity to be a starter. "I've been very patient. I've learned a lot over the years. I've earned a lot of how to run an offense and how to take charge, be a leader and things like that and it took a lot of maturing and a lot of studying to get to where I'm at right now.
"It's a credit to the guys I'm around every day, the team, and them trusting me and coach Wat trusting me, so I'm really excited to lead our team this year and hopefully have a historical season.''
Lewis and the Ichabods will open the 2025 season at Yager Stadium on Aug. 30 with a non-conference game against Truman State before hosting Northwest Missouri in their MIAA opener on Sept. 6.
