Darren Lewis (American football)

Darren "Tank" Lewis (born November 7, 1968) is a former professional American football running back in the National Football League. He was a 6th round selection (161st overall pick) out of Texas A&M by the Chicago Bears in the 1991 NFL Draft. He would play for the Bears from 1991-1993. He was a consensus All-American in 1990.

High school
Lewis was a star at Dallas football powerhouse Carter High School and was considered by some to be the top high school player in the class of 1987.

College
Lewis has the top two rushing seasons in Texas A&M history (1,692 in 1988 and 1,691 in 1990) and is the Aggie leader in career rushing yards (5,012 from 1987–1990). Lewis' 5,012 career rushing yards ranked him 5th on the NCAA's All-Time Career Rushing list at the conclusion of his college career, but currently rank him 15th. His college career was filled with highlights and culminated with a spot on the first-team All-America team in 1990.

1987 Season
As a freshman Lewis ran for 103 yards and 2 TDs against Baylor to lead the Aggies to a 34-10 victory, their first in Waco in 10 years. He ran for a freshman record 194 yards in a 42-24 whipping of TCU, which was broken four years later by fellow Carter high alum Greg Hill. He capped off the season by throwing a 24-yard halfback pass to Tony Thompson for a touchdown as the Aggies stomped Notre Dame 35-10 in the 1988 Cotton Bowl and finished ranked in the NCAA top-10 for the second time in three years. His 668 rushing yards were second at the time only to Curtis Dickey for an Aggie freshman.

1988 Season
His sophomore season of 1988, the Aggies were ineligible for the Southwest Conference championship due to NCAA violations, but an undaunted Lewis enjoyed a record-breaking season. He rushed 100 yards or more in each of the last 10 games of the season, setting a mark for both consecutive 100-yard games and most in one season, both still A&M records. His streak included strong road performances highlighted by a 192 yard showing in Fayetteville against the Razorbacks and a 201 yard effort at the Astrodome against Houston. Against Texas, Lewis helped the Aggies jump to a 28-0 lead by scoring a 15-yard TD and adding a 36-yard run to set up a second score. Lewis ran for 212 yards that day as the Aggies went on to beat the Longhorns 28-24 for their fifth consecutive win against their main rival. His 1,692 yards rushing that year is still a Texas A&M record and was second in the NCAA that year only to Oklahoma State's Barry Sanders. Lewis was named to the All-Southwest Conference team, his first of two such honors (1988 and 1990).

1989 Season
In 1989, Lewis helped new head coach R.C. Slocum get off to a good start by rushing for 3 TDs in a tight road victory against Texas Tech. Lewis also rumbled for 120 yards against Houston and along with fullback Robert Wilson (115 rushing yards), helped control the ball and hold a Cougar offense that averaged nearly 60 points in their other games to just 13 against the Wrecking Crew. His strongest performance of the season was against Rice, in which he ran for 201 yards. Although his 961 total rushing yards were a down year by Lewis' standards, the total still ranked 7th best all-time at Texas A&M.

1990 Season
In 1990 Lewis etched his name into the A&M record books by finishing his college career with perhaps his finest season, as he led the country in rushing and was named a first-team All American. He set a scoring benchmark against Houston, as he ran for 124 yards and four rushing touchdowns, breaking 3 tackles on a 12-yard run for a score in the 4th quarter in a 36-31 loss to Houston. His 232 yards against Texas Tech is 2nd all-time in Texas A&M history and was the highest total for an Aggie in 40 years. The Aggies would go on to demolish BYU and Heisman Trophy winner Ty Detmer 65-14 in the Holiday Bowl behind Lewis' 104 rushing yards and 2 TDs vaulting the Aggies from unranked to a #15 finish in the AP Poll. Lewis finished his college career with over 5,000 rushing yards, which at the time was 5th all-time in NCAA history. His 45 career rushing touchdowns were a Texas A&M record for nearly 20 years until being broken by Jorvorskie Lane in 2008. His 27 career 100 yard games are still an A&M record and his five career 200 yard rushing games are both a Texas A&M and Southwest Conference record.

Professional career
Despite his spectacular college career, Lewis stock fell quickly after testing positive for cocaine at the NFL Combine. He was finally selected in the 6th round of the 1991 NFL Draft (161st overall pick) by the Chicago Bears. After recurring problems and limited playing time, the Bears released Lewis in late 1993 shortly after he was involved in a domestic dispute. He played in 33 games for the Bears, starting 5 of them and totaled 431 rushing yards in his career.