The 15th installment of “Profiles in K-State fandom” features Dave Lewis, who was the K-State public address announcer for 15 years. Dave has nominated some people for this series, but was also nominated by multiple people.

I met Dave at a tailgate before a spring football game many years ago. I don’t remember the year. I remember is there were a lot of people there wearing purple, eating food, and drinking beverages. I also remember someone offering Dave a beer and he declined because he was announcing the game that day. Probably a good call!

I am sure you will enjoy reading a little bit more about Dave and his K-State story.

JM: Tell me a little bit about your background.  Where were you born/where did you grow up and how did you become such a huge K-State fan?

DL: I grew up on a farm south of Abilene, KS, next to a little town called “Elmo.”  (Population 23….salute!!). I attended Hope Grade School, then  Chapman High School.  

My dad was a big Jack Hartman fan and my brother was a big Ted Owens fan…So I followed dad’s lead in cheering for the Cats.

I attended Cloud County Community College and was the first DJ at Rock Quarry.  Radio took me to Abilene (KABI), Manhattan (KMAN/KMKF), Wamego (KAWQ/KSKT), Salina (KSAL/KYEZ) and back to MHK (KMAN/Manhattan Broadcasting).

When I started at Cloud, I started DJing school dances and then eventually wedding dances.  My first wedding was in 1980, and this year, I performed my 1,000th wedding.  With my K-State background as the Public Address announcer, I’ve been known to add plenty of “Wildcat nuances” to wedding receptions.

I started hosting the “Game Show Road Show” in 2002 and have performed in 13 states.  I emcee a ton of events, and own a podcast production company.  I keep pretty darn busy.

I left radio around the time my wife passed away in 2006.  Our daughter was 10 at the time.   One month later, Jim Muller from K-State Athletics called and asked me to fill in as PA announcer for  a women’s game.  A few months later, I was asked to announce K-State Football and Men’s Basketball…and held that role for 15 years.  The timing of getting that call from Jim, a month after my wife’s passing, meant a LOT to me.  I’ll be forever grateful to K-State for the opportunity.

In 2007, I helped start “Manhattan Magazine,” and in 2010, I was elected to the Riley County commission and served one term before returning to radio.

JM: Did you attend K-State? Did you graduate? What years did you attend?

DL: I did not.

JM: Are you married?  Kids? 

DL: I am widowed with a daughter and son…and they both love K-State! I do have a “significant other” who is an alum and works at K-State….and she’s a huge fan…and we’re really looking forward to Wabashing together when I can be in the stands with her.

JM: What do you do for a living? 

DL: I’m now full time as an emcee, disc jockey, game show host and podcaster.  I host up to 90 events a year and produce nearly 100 podcasts annually for local organizations.

JM: Do you live in or around Manhattan? What’s your favorite restaurant or hangout when you’re in town? 

DL: I live in MHK….and my favorite meals are a Vista Burger with cheese hold the onion, and the White Flour Taco with shredded beef from Hillside Cafe.  I also like Rock-a-Belly, Kite’s and RC McGraw’s.

JM: Do you have a favorite K-State team?

DL: I like them all!…but 2013 was a very special year. So was 2018 men’s basketball.

JM: Do you have season tickets? If so, which sports?

DL: I do not.

JM: Do you travel to K-State away games?

DL: Occasionally, as my schedule allows. 

JM: Do you have a favorite away game place or story to tell? 

DL: Attending the K-State/KU game in Lawrence when we beat KU …and tore down their goal posts.

JM: Need a reminder of this? Here you go!

JM: Any negative road game experiences?

DL: OU fans can be pretty nasty.

JM: What is your favorite K-State sports memory? 

DL: Beating Nebraska in 1998 and watching Willie do K-S-U on top of the press box. A close second would be when we had Beasley/Walker/Pullen and beat KU for the first time in Bramlage.

JM: Who is your favorite K-State player(s), past or present? 

DL: That’s tough.  There’s a load of those, but I was able to have some great friendships with the likes of Chris Merriewether and Rodney McGruder.

JM: Who is your favorite K-State coach(es), past or present? 

DL: Mike Clark, Bill Snyder, Wooly, Huggs, Frank, Bruce and Jeff Mittie.  I consider them all friends, especially Mike.

JM: If you had to guess, what percentage of your wardrobe is purple?

DL: Not quite half….and the piece I like most is my purple sequined tuxedo jacket….with the matching bow tie.

JM: As the K-State PA announcer, do you have a favorite press box story to tell? Or stories to tell? 

DL: My first game, on my second “first down” call, I said “good for another Wildcat…).”  Dr. Frank Tracz got on the hotllne to the booth.  I learned that day that saying “another” adds two syllables to the cadence and it throws off the band.  

Lots of great friendships…especially with the spotters.  

Becoming known as the “One Minute”  guy was NOT on my radar. Another thing I take credit for is the “It’s THIRD DOWN…”  We started that organically here and now everybody across the nation uses something like it.  I liked to sound intimidating.

JM: Do you have a favorite Bill Snyder story? 

DL: In 2006, I was the featured speaker for the local United Way campaign kickoff.  Sharon Snyder, Bill’s wife, was serving as the campaign’s honorary chair and was set to introduce me at the event.  Well, poor Sharon got injured that morning on the golf course and had to go to the hospital.  She asked Bill to fill in, which he did. I recently asked Coach if he’d ever introduced a speaker before….he said “no”…so I got that going for me.

JM: You were also on the radio in Manhattan for many years? Any favorite radio stories or favorite interviews?

DL:  I certainly got a lot of attention for my efforts during the 1993 flood.  I’ve met so many wonderful people through my radio career, but meeting Paul Harvey and Gordon Jump would be obvious highlights.  Being a part of so many community events and peoples’ lives are things I’ll always cherish.  Another highlight was being inducted into the Kansas Association of Broadcaster’s Hall of Fame in 2019.

JM: What does the “K-State Family” mean to you? 

DL: It means being deeply touched by all those that have reached out to me over the years.  I had a number of personal struggles during the 15 seasons I called games, but I always felt like my Wildcat friends had my back.

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If you would like to nominate someone to be featured in “Profiles in K-State fandom,” please reach out to me and I’ll contact them.

You can follow me on X at https://twitter.com/joemathieu and Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/kstatejoe

You can follow Dave on X at https://twitter.com/davelewislive.