Ray Lewis

In the Beginning

Ray Lewis was born in Bartow, Florida on May 15, 1975. He attended Kathleen High School in Lakeland, Florida, where he was an All-American Linebacker as well as a wrestling star. He enrolled in the University of Miami, where he played on the Miami Hurricanes football team. As a freshman, he worked his way up to become a starter in the Hurricanes’ last five games, and during the season he accrued 81 tackles, 2 sacks, 2 tackles for a loss, and four pass deflections, which led to him being named to the Freshmen All American team. His next two years of college led to two more spots in the All-American teams. He finished his junior season with 160 tackles, which was the University of Miami’s second-highest in their team’s history. After his third year at the University of Miami, Lewis decided to enter the NFL Draft and was selected by the Baltimore Ravens, who were entering their first season and picked Lewis 26^th overall in the first round of the 1996 NFL Draft.

Career Accomplishments

Ray Lewis remained on the Ravens for his entire NFL career, where he helped lead them to two Super Bowl Wins (Super Bowl XXXV and XLVII). He was named Super Bowl MVP for Super Bowl XXXV. He played in 13 Pro-Bowls between 1997 and 2011 and holds the NFL record for the number of Pro-Bowls attended by an Inside/Middle Linebacker. He was selected for 7 First Team All-Pro games, and 3 Second Team All-Pro games, which ties him for the NFL record for All-Pro selections for a Linebacker (he is tied with Lawrence Taylor).

Most Known For

Other than being an incredible Linebacker, Lewis was popularized by the media after he was involved in the stabbing deaths of two men, Jacinth Baker and Richard Lollar. The stabbing occurred following a Super Bowl XXXIV party in Atlanta on January 31, 2000. A fight broke out between Lewis, two of his friends, Reginald Oakley and Joseph Sweeting, and the two deceased. The three men were indicted on murder and aggravated assault charges. Lewis’s attorneys, Don Samuel and Ed Garland negotiated a plea agreement where the murder charges against Lewis were dropped in exchange for his testimony against Oakley and Sweeting. Both Oakley and Sweeting were eventually acquitted of the charges in June 2000. Lewis was sentenced to 12 months of probation by the courts, where he was not allowed to use any drugs or alcohol. He was also fined $250,000 by the NFL, which was the largest fine levied against a player for an infraction outside of substance abuse.

Where Is He Now?

Lewis retired in 2013 after his final game was a Super Bowl XLVII victory. Later that year he was taken on by ESPN to contribute toward their NFL coverage. Image credit: istockphoto.com