Sherman Lewis

Sherman Lewis

Position:	Running Back
Personal information
Date of birth:	(1942-06-29) June 29, 1942
Place of birth:	Louisville, Kentucky
Career information
High school:	duPont Manual (KY)
College:	Michigan State
AFL draft:	1964 / Round: 9 / Pick: 67
Career history
As player:
Toronto Argonauts (1964–1965) New York Jets (1966–1967)
As coach:
Michigan State (Asst. Coach) (1969–1982) San Francisco 49ers (Running Backs) (1983–1990) San Francisco 49ers (Wide Receivers) (1991) Green Bay Packers (Offensive Coordinator) (1992–1999) Minnesota Vikings (Offensive Coordinator) (2000–2001) Detroit Lions (Offensive Coordinator) (2003–2004) Washington Redskins (Offensive Assistant) (2009
Career highlights and awards
4× Super Bowl champion (XIX, XIII, XXIV, XXXI)

Sherman Lewis (born June 29, 1942, in Louisville, Kentucky), is an American football coach and former player, most recently an offensive consultant and offensive play-caller for the Washington Redskins of the NFL. He spent thirty-four years as a coach, but had been out of football since the end of the 2004 season before joining the Redskins mid-way into the 2009 season, where he replaced head coach Jim Zorn as the team's offensive play-caller after the sixth game of the season. He attended Michigan State University as an undergrad and later received his graduate degree from Michigan State in education administration.

Lewis began his football career at Michigan State as a halfback. He was named to the College Football All-America Team and finished third behind winner Roger Staubach and runner-up Billy Lothridge for the Heisman Trophy in 1963. His professional playing career included parts of the 1964 and 1965 seasons with the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League. He also played the 1966 and 1967 seasons with the New York Jets of the American Football League (when the AFL was absorbed by, but not yet merged with, the National Football League).

After a brief career as a professional football player, he was hired as an assistant coach for the football team at his alma mater, Michigan State, from 1969 through 1982. He went on to become the running backs coach for Bill Walsh, under whom the San Francisco 49ers won three Super Bowls. Subsequently, in 1992, he became the offensive coordinator for Green Bay Packers head coach Mike Holmgren.

On October 6, 2009, Washington Redskins owner Daniel Snyder announced that Lewis had come out of retirement to serve as an offensive consultant for the team under head coach Jim Zorn. On October 19, ESPN reported that Redskins General Manager, Vinny Cerrato, had taken away play calling duties from Zorn and given them to Lewis. Zorn & Cerrato were both fired following the 2009 season. Lewis was not retained by the replacement coaching staff.