Wake Forest Athletics
Deacon Sports Xtra: Stewart Set to Take Advantage of Opportunity in 2021
5/26/2021 12:26:00 PM | Football, Les Johns
With guidance from Coach Clawson and the Wake Forest coaching staff, returning senior wide receiver Donald Stewart set goals for him to be successful on and off the field in 2021.
For Donald Stewart, the decision was easy. In fact, he says it wasn't a decision at all. After an ankle injury diminished his potential impact in the 2020 season that was already a bit of a mess because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Stewart wanted to take advantage of the free year of eligibility offered by the NCAA and give it another go with the Demon Deacons.
But he wasn't sure he was able to show enough during the season for that to happen.
"I was nervous, because I didn't know if they wanted me back or what the scholarship situations would be like," Stewart said he wondered as postseason meetings took place.
Wake Forest coach Dave Clawson quickly put him at ease.
"We want you back," Clawson told Stewart. "You can be a big reason for us being successful this coming season."
Along with the official invite to return came a short list of three focus points for Stewart.
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Be in the best shape of his life entering fall camp. "I need to get with (strength and conditioning) coach Chad (Bari) to make sure I'm strong, fast, durable and flexible," Stewart said.
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Build a better relationship with quarterback Sam Hartman. "I've had a lot of conversations with Sam since the Wisconsin game, and we've gotten a lot closer," Stewart said.
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Sell out. "This is your last year," Clawson told Stewart."Buy into the process and trust the staff."
"I'm going to continue to focus on those three things every single day," Stewart said. "I want to become a major contributor for Wake Forest Football this fall, but I'm just taking it one day at a time. I'm so happy to be at Wake Forest. I love it."
In four seasons at Stanford, Stewart combined for 14 receptions and one touchdown. After being lightly-used in the first game of the 2020 Wake Forest season, Stewart was breaking out against NC State in Raleigh — putting together a career-best performance of five receptions for 41 yards. But then he suffered a late-game injury while setting a downfield block on a running play.
"That NC State game was the most I'd played since high school," Stewart said. "I was on the field for 60 snaps, but then I hurt my ankle on that last drive as we were heading in trying to win that game. I got tackled and got my ankle rolled up on while I was blocking. That pretty much derailed my season, but that's okay. I've had a great offseason and an excellent spring. I'm looking forward to summer camp with my teammates."
Knowing his opportunity to contribute was getting derailed because of the injury brought about a dark couple weeks for Stewart.
"It was heartbreaking, because that was the most I'd played since high school," he said. "I was blocking and catching the ball — just contributing to the team I'd given my all to over the last several months. Mentally, I was in a hole for about two weeks. I met with Dr. Rachel Conway, our sports psychologist and I met with coach Higgins."
The admonition from Higgins was pretty simple.
"Keep fighting, keep fighting," Higgins told Stewart.
"I was in the training room every single day, trying to get back," he said. "I just had to keep my faith in God and stay close to my family — my brothers and my sister. I had to keep a positive mindset to make it through that hump."
Fast forward to spring camp, where coaches and teammates repeatedly singled out Stewart as having one of the best performances over the 15 practices that wrapped up in mid-April.
"I just felt like I have really improved on my knowledge of the playbook," Stewart said. "I had a really good offseason with the entire strength staff, then got closer to all my teammates through the workouts and The Awakening. That has helped me take my game to the next level in the spring.
"The strength staff has worked with me to become faster, stronger and quicker. I've gotten my ankle back to full strength. And my teammates like Q (Jaquarii Roberson), Sam (Hartman) and Mitch Griffis have worked with me to get the playbook down. It's been quite a journey, but I'm very excited to be in this position."
And while the Wake Forest offense set a program record in 2020 by scoring 36.0 points a game, getting consistent production from the outside receivers is a massive area of opportunity — so seeing Stewart making plays this fall would be a big indicator of a successful Demon Deacon campaign.
"We definitely need to get some big plays going on the outside, and hopefully I can contribute and be that guy who steps up for us in the fall," Stewart said. "I'm looking forward to working with Sam, and the rest of the receivers and quarterbacks during the summer so we can continue to build chemistry and have a successful season."
With his ankle back to 100 percent and his body feeling better than ever before, Stewart is thrilled to have one more chance to make an impact with Wake Forest Football.
"It wasn't much of a decision at all for me," he said. "I was looking forward to the opportunity to come back with my teammates and win the ACC Championship. I'm looking forward to the grind with my teammates and coaches. I'm excited.
"They have all the resources here for me to be successful, so I just have to take advantage of that. That's what I've been trying to do. I believe coach Clawson has a great plan set out for me. I love coach Clawson and I'm thankful to be here."
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