Goodfellow Airman to Announce Dallas Cowboys Pick at 2018 NFL Draft

SAN ANGELO, TX—Goodfellow Air Force Base has announced that one lucky airman gets to announce one of the Dallas Cowboys 2018 Draft Picks from the fourth to the seventh round on April 28.

Airman Donovan V. Lewis, a Technical School Trainee, gets this distinguished honor due to his win at the second annual Caliber Collision Military Combine.

 “I heard about the Military Combine competition from a fellow student, and that there were more event details at the base fitness center” Lewis said. “So I went to the gym, read more about the combine and signed up for the preliminaries.”

Lewis was one of more than 200 military athletes to compete in the preliminary event held in Frisco, TX. He had to face athletes from nine other Texas bases such as Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland and Fort Hood.

The top 50 athletes from that event were taken to AT&T Stadium where they competed once again in events not dissimilar from the NFL combine.

“I was invited to a football camp at AT&T Stadium when I was in the seventh grade,” Lewis said. “This was the second time I stepped on the Cowboys’ field, but the stadium felt just as big this time as it did when I was 12 years old.”

Athletes took part in the 40-yard dash and vertical jump, both highly analyzed events at the NFL Combine.

Lewis posted a time in the 40-yard dash that would make Cowboys’ Owner/General Manager Jerry Jones think about offering a contract.

“I clocked 4.4 seconds in the 40-yard dash, which stayed on top of the leaderboard,” Lewis said. “So when they revealed the top finalists’ times and statistics, I knew I had a chance at hearing my name announced as the winner.”

To put it into perspective, Lewis’ time would tie him for 13^th at the NFL Combine with names like former Penn State running back and almost-certain first round pick Saquon Barkley.

“That day and the win were surreal, made even more special because the day of the competition was also my birthday,” Lewis said. “I appreciate the opportunity to represent my hometown, Salem, New Jersey and the Air Force.”

Lewis also got to meet two legends in the Chicago Bear’s Mike Singletary and the Cowboy’s Darren Woodson.

“I love the game of football and I love to compete,” Lewis said. “I always want to do my best as an athlete, but most importantly I strive to progress as a person every day.”

Air Force Staff Sgt. Erin Hutcherson, of JBSA-Lackland, was the top female performer at the combine. That means she will also get to announce a third day pick for the Cowboys on April 28.

The NFL Draft will take place at AT&T Stadium in Arlington with the first round taking place April 26 and the fourth through seventh rounds concluding the festivities on April 28.