Chris Lewis wins battle with cancer

Brady Fitch Photo Chris Lewis (6) brings in a hail mary pass in a 2023 game against Western Kentucky.

Troy wide receiver and student assistant coach Chris Lewis announced that he finished treatment and is cancer free last week.

Lewis made the announcement on X, formerly known as Twitter, last Thursday. The post capped a hard-fought battle for the star receiver, who opened up about his diagnosis in March.

“I was just lost,” Lewis had told ESPN’s Pete Thamel. “How did that happen?”

Lewis dealt with left knee pain throughout his breakout 2023 campaign, but he didn’t get it checked out until after Troy’s win in the Sun Belt Conference Championship game. An MRI revealed a mass behind his knee.

After undergoing treatment over the offseason and at the start of this season, Lewis announced he would miss the year and work as a student assistant coach.

The diagnosis came after a dominant 2023 season where Lewis had 735 receiving yards and 10 touchdown catches. He was named to the All-Sun Belt Third Team and became a regular on SportsCenter, making plenty of jaw-dropping catches throughout the year.

His 22.97 yards per catch led the nation as he became a regular deep threat for the Trojans. Lewis recorded two 100-yard games and dropped only two passes on 73 targets.

“It’s been a huge motivation for me, just going back and looking at what I did [in the 2023] season and knowing I wasn’t at my full ability,” Lewis said to Thamel. “Seeing that makes me want to go back out there and show everyone what I can do at 100%.”

Although Lewis won’t return to the field this season, he’ll continue his recovery and look to prove what he’s capable of.