By BRIAN REED-BAIOTTO, Sports Editor While PCC’s athletic programs aren’t necessarily known for being a consistent powerhouse, its Sports Information Director, Robert Lewis, is known for his 25 years of excellence. Lewis, 51, is seen by those at the school and within the community college circles as the gold standard for his tireless work, his […]
By BRIAN REED-BAIOTTO, Sports Editor
While PCC’s athletic programs aren’t necessarily known for being a consistent powerhouse, its Sports Information Director, Robert Lewis, is known for his 25 years of excellence.
Lewis, 51, is seen by those at the school and within the community college circles as the gold standard for his tireless work, his professionalism, versatility, and for leading the charge when it comes to changing with the times and technology.
A sports information director, for those who aren’t aware, has the tireless and tedious task of keeping official stats for each sport and both genders. But that’s just one of their many duties.
The stats are then uploaded online and into a system so that fans of the school can keep up with scores and stats and the write ups that Lewis creates, but more importantly, it serves to help the athletes at a two-year school get noticed by outside forces in the hopes of helping junior college athletes at getting an opportunity at four-year schools.
Take the statistical part of his job, for a second. It might sound easy on paper, but spend 10 minutes in the PCC press box at a football game and you’ll see what a precise and difficult art Lewis has mastered.
On a single play alone, it’s his duty to document who ran or passed the ball, how many yards the player got, who tackled that player and where the exact line of scrimmage is before going to the next play some 20 seconds later.
On any given day, PCC could have multiple sports, and while Lewis can only be at one place at one time, and despite essentially being a one-man crew, by the end of the day, Lewis will have stats and stories up for each event on the schools website.
When he first started in 1991, he would have to write up press releases on a typewriter and they sent a fax as a way of getting information out.
Today, it’s just a tweet or email away.
In the middle of a sporting event, Lewis is also known to consistently update scores and scoring plays for those who can’t be there live. It makes a parent, grandparent or a friend feel like they were there, and all because of Lewis’ tireless dedication to the athletes and school he’s called home for 25 years.
While you won’t get wealthy doing his job, it has been a very rewarding endeavor for Lewis.
Lewis recalls getting up in the middle of the night, booting his computer up and fixing a stat he either forgot to add or a mistake that might have come to his mind while laying in bed.
“The reason I get up in the middle of the night is that there is a parent or student-athlete out there that will have a smile on their face if I can get that player a shout-out or mention,” he said. “It’s all about them. For 2-year athletes, some may never play another game after PCC. This is their time in the limelight.”
His co-workers, bosses (current and past) have nothing but glowing words to describe Lewis.
“PCC is lucky to have Robert Lewis,” longtime athletics director and coach Skip Robinson said. “I thought it was very important we had an SID with a background like Robert. He’s done a phenomenal job in that capacity. His sports programs have won awards and he’s a tremendous credit to the college. He brought us out of the darkness, because we didn’t have a real informative sports information person that could get the info out to the people. He believes in his craft, and is at multiple events, because he really cares about the kids and college as a whole.”
Lewis has always loved sports and was a relief pitcher at Santa Monica College in 1985-86, which was the same year his daughter Olivia was born.
He went on to get a degree in Journalism at Cal State Northridge, and became an award-winning play-by-play broadcaster on the radio for his work with the Northridge football and basketball programs.
Lewis was first a sportswriter at the Outlook (Santa Monica) and Daily Breeze, and worked at Channel 13 news as a part-time sports producer and intern. He was a statistician for the Fox Baseball Game of the Week on Saturdays for several years.
He also worked the stats for CBS Radio for the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs when they involved the LA Kings or Anaheim Ducks.
He also developed and ran the rankings for the CCCWVCA State Women’s Volleyball Top 25, which no one else did during the 1990’s.
Lewis received the Brass Top Award for meritorious service, the top honor in the state.
In his 25 years at the school, the women’s basketball program in 2009 was the only time a Lancers program won a state championship.
But his time at the school has never been judged on wins and losses.
“My job is to get as much information and accurate stats out there in the hope of getting our student-athletes to the next level,” Lewis said. “I am always really busy and don’t have a staff like (4 year) colleges do, but I love doing what I do. It’s all about helping the school, the programs and the athletes as much recognition as we can. The media doesn’t care much about junior college sports anymore, so I want to make sure these kids get the attention they have earned and deserve.”
Lewis recalled that 2009 state title and how many hats he has to wear. It also reflects the heavy hours and light money that is paid to those who are in this line of work.
“I was the first person to work with the state about calling play-by-play for the state championship events. In 2009, we were in Fresno’s Selland Arena and PCC women’s basketball played in some great games, including a wild triple-digits game versus Ventura that PCC won to make it to the finals,” Lewis said. “In the championship, I called the game and worked with a color man, but I had to leave because I had a flight that I had to catch. In all my years at PCC this was our only state championship team and I couldn’t enjoy that moment of celebration. I just took my bag of clothes and a computer bag and jumped into a taxi. On the plane, I did toast a cocktail for the team’s victory. It was bittersweet in a way. I enjoyed though, calling the moment of victory on the radio. That was memorable.”
As much as Lewis has done for the 16 programs at PCC, his role in creating and maintaining the PCC Hall of Fame is as valuable as many.
Lewis is in charge of the annual event, is in part responsible for who is inducted and in many cases, it’s up to Lewis himself to track down athletes from 30-40 years ago to not only let them know they are about to be inducted but to also invite them to the event.
When asked what he see’s his duties as SID, Lewis explained:
“Well, you write, produce and keep records of the 16 sports teams. You are covering home events, some road for playoffs, because some schools don’t have SID’s. We still do media guides and that’s so time consuming. I had to transfer a ton of info from our old website to the new one we launched in June, and that was a chore in itself. There are ton of “other duties” that I do at events depending on the need. So I might be the public address announcer, a statistician, a game manager. I have the Hall of Fame that I do all aspects of and have to keep going. I always feel like I’m a man of many hats. I have to, since I’m virtually bald.”
Tammy Knott-Silva coached women’s volleyball from 2007-2012.
“Robert is very supportive and easy to work with,” she said. “He is so invested with our athletic programs. He is also one of my best friends. Even if he was just there and helping with stats, he would also talk to the kids afterwards to get stories. He advocates for our teams and wants them to be marketed. He does so much for all of us.”
Andrew Wheeler is currently the SID at Citrus College and considers Lewis a mentor and friend.
“When I was a young SID 11 years ago, Robert Lewis was there for me to help answer any stupid question I had, or to help correct an immature, but well-meaning entry-level professional,” Wheeler said. “I’ll never forget my first year when I knew nothing and no one. I was a baby-faced and freshly married SID who made the trek to San Luis Obispo for our summer California Community College Sports Information Association meeting, my first. I literally had $30 to my name at the time. Not knowing that, but appreciating the effort that a new SID made, Robert handed me $40 as I headed out the door to help offset the trip. Little did he know how much that would mean to someone who was just trying to make it not only in life but in a brand new profession.”
Stephen Ramirez has been a local writer for more than two decades and has spent plenty of time around Lewis.
“Robert is arguably the top junior college SID in the state, right up
there with Andrew Wheeler at Citrus and John Van Gaston at Cerritos,” Ramirez said. “They all make reporters’ jobs easier. If there is a record set, a key stat, or a personal milestone approaching, Robert let’s you know. No one works harder. He brings a Division I approach to community college
athletics.”
Sheryl Herchenroeder has been a mainstay at Chaffey College and is
another of Lewis’ peers.
“Robert has a true passion for athletics. When I began in my role, Robert welcomed me and offered both moral support and assistance in learning the ropes. Ten years later, when I have a question, he’s still the first call I make. He truly cares about our student-athletes and takes pride in providing the most accurate information for PCC, opponents, the South Coast Conference, and the state. I am honored to call him a mentor, colleague, and friend.”
Lewis is always busy, but the joys of his life are his daughters Olivia and Lilly, wife Vicky and grandsons Matthew, Benjamin and
Keith.
Lastly, what makes the low pay and the long hours worthwhile?
“Watching the alumni accept their mini Hall of Fame plaques after announcing them. It’s an emotional and exhilerating experience, not just for the honoree. I think the other part is covering the games and talking to happy coaches after games. When it’s a loss, you feel like you are the therapist with the coach. When they win, they can’t stop talking and are really obviously excited for their teams.”
Editors Note: I have covered PCC off and on since 2000 and no SID has ever been more accommodating, more informative or helpful to me and those in my profession than Mr. Lewis. In fact, he can typically tell you the month and year the last time PCC did this or did that throughout any game, so we have the most up to date information. Often times, he gives us far more information than we could ever use, but he never gives you less than you needed.
