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CDO plans to celebrate its eight state championship baseball teams at a reunion Friday afternoon, and you might imagine the fascinating conversation Lewis, Class of ’94, could have with his former teammates.

“What have you been up to all these years, Justin?�

“How much time do you have?� Lewis might say.

“I lost track of you after we won the ’94 state title. Did you play any more baseball?�

“I got cut by Pima College and went to work for Jim Click Ford, washing cars. I was sort of a knucklehead. Took me a while to figure things out. The 45-year-old Justin has changed a lot from the 20-year-old Justin.�

“Glad to hear that, but I thought you might’ve made your career in sports.�

“Oh, I went back to baseball. A year or so later, I tried out at Central ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ College, eventually made the team and became a starting center fielder. Then I transferred to Louisiana-Monroe and made the all-conference team.â€�

“Any pro ball?�

“No. I went back to Central ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ and coached ex-Dorados Ian Kinsler and Scott Hairston, who both got to the big leagues. But I was only making $18,000 a year as an assistant coach, so had to get a real job.â€�

“Don’t tell me you’re selling cars. …�

“Well, I did sell cars. I sold mortgages, too. I sold manufactured homes. I worked on the maintenance crew at the Starr Pass golf course. I moved to Phoenix and to Texas and to Kansas. Then I moved back to ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ and became a firefighter and EMT at Golder Ranch for 10 years. Played a bunch of fastpitch softball. Couldn’t get sports and coaching out of my blood.â€�

“Wife? Kids?�

“I married a sweetheart from CDO, my old classmate, Amy Reimer. Remember her? She was a terrific basketball and softball player. Amy has been a teacher and professor all these years. We have two kids. She’s a saint, putting up with all my career moves. Our son, Jack, has autism but he’s very functional. So I started a non-profit to support autism. I even wrote a book and started a podcast.�

“Do you ever regret getting out of coaching?�

“Oh, I got back into coaching. Amy convinced me it was the right thing to do, even though we both had secure jobs in ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥. We moved to Texas and I coached Division III softball. I was almost 40 but it all clicked. Now I’m a head coach in Division I softball, at Nicholls State. That’s in Thibodaux, Louisiana.â€�

“How did you pull that off?�

“I contacted Mike Candrea at ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ and asked if I could help coach at his camps. I was just some random firefighter calling him up and asking him for a chance. Pretty crazy. But he didn’t blow me off. Mike interviewed me for two hours one day and gave me a shot. He expects the best and I liked the challenge. Mike is the godfather of softball, If you can work for him, you’ve got a chance.â€�

“And then you jumped to Division I head coaching? Just like that?�

“It wasn’t that simple. I coached three years at Texas A&M-Kingsville. We almost won the 2019 NCAA championship. We were No. 2 at the World Series. Then I moved up to A&M-Corpus Christi, a D-I school. I went back to school along the way, getting up at 5 a.m. to do my schoolwork. I got my master’s degree with a 3.98 GPA. As I said, nothing comes easy. While we were there, Hurricane Ida almost wiped us out. It has been quite a journey.’’

“Did you ever hear from Candrea again?�

“He phoned a year or so ago and told me Fresno State needed a hitting coach. He gave me his endorsement. I got the job and the next thing you know we’re playing No. 2 UCLA in extra innings at the NCAA Regionals. That was a good thing to put on the résumé when I applied for the Nicholls State job.�

“Jeez, that’s quite a story, Justin. Almost like an HBO movie.�

“Sometimes I just shake my head thinking of all the different paths I’ve taken. Four and a half years ago I was driving a firetruck. When you get to 40 and you don’t have head coaching experience, your chances of getting a D-1 job are pretty slim.�

“Have you been able to visit with our old coach, Phil Wright?�

“When I see Coach Wright, I’m going to apologize for running around ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ with my head on fire as a young kid. I thanked him at my press conference when I became the head coach at Nicholls State. He coached all those big-leaguers like Colin Porter, Jason Stanford and the Duncan brothers. But he didn’t give up on me.â€�

“Turns out you didn’t give up on yourself, either.�

“I got a lot of drive from my dad, Terry. He was in the Marines. He’s an expert mechanic, retired now, enjoying life. We started out living in a mobile home in a not-so-nice neighborhood, but it didn’t stop him. I had a good role model. He pushed me hard.�

“Can you win at Nicholls State?�

“We finished 11th out of 12 in the Southland Conference last year, but we’ve got a good tradition. We were 40-15 in 2018 and 37-20 a year earlier. I love the challenge of returning us to power. We’re not ready to go to ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ and play ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ at Hillenbrand Stadium. But that would be a special homecoming someday.â€�

Happy Thanksgiving, indeed.