Despite his status as an Ohio State commit, there was plenty for DeShawn Stewart to learn from his official visit to Columbus this past weekend.
Whether it was deeper conversations with the coaching staff, developing rapport with future teammates or figuring out tricks to improve his game while he’s still in high school, the four-star safety prospect enjoyed and gained knowledge from the trip.
“They created me a little logo. I approved of it, I liked it,” Stewart told Eleven Warriors. “There's some changes that are going to be made to it. Getting to that, getting around the coaches more, spending time, getting to the playbook. Seeing how we're feeling in the defense, like what spots will be open after this year, who's leaving, who's staying. Getting around the players, seeing life outside of football, how they act, personalities and all that. It was all cool throughout the weekend.”
BIA
— Deshawn Stewart (@shawnstewartjr) June 2, 2024
Its Not A Slogan pic.twitter.com/5AVlJqLXIo
Stewart put up strong numbers last season for DePaul Catholic in Wayne, New Jersey, which is also home to Ohio State four-star wide receiver commit De’zie Jones. He racked up 56 tackles and 19 pass deflections out of the defensive backfield in 2023.
Ranked 295th overall and 26th at safety for the 2025 class in the 247Sports composite, Stewart is still searching for ways to hone his craft, however. He got some one-on-one time with his future safeties coach Matt Guerrieri on that topic in particular.
“It was great,” Stewart said. “We went over film, like my film and Ohio State’s film, and compared it to each other and showed what I would be doing in drills and stuff, showing how it translates to the field. He taught me a lot throughout the process.”
Guerrieri’s advice about tackling stuck with Stewart in particular. That’s something he’ll need to dive into deeper as he transitions positions at the next level.
“He showed me the way they tackle up there compared to the high school level, different teachings, alignments with the safeties and stuff because I play corner in high school,” Stewart said. “So it was different looking at it from a corner standpoint, (how) safeties line up and how they play with their eyes, so I’ll definitely transfer that over (to my game).”
Stewart also got a chance to sit down with defensive coordinator Jim Knowles, who encouraged him to enroll early and get a head start on his development process.
Cornerback Davison Igbinosun played host to Stewart on the visit and the former Ole Miss rebel didn’t sugarcoat the level of competition Stewart will walk into at Ohio State. With Brian Hartline’s continued churning of elite talent at wide receiver, there will be no shortage of iron-sharpening competition.
“(Igbinosun) told me nothing is given, everything is earned here, that you've got to come in with that mentality and live with that edge on your shoulder, because you're going to go against the best of the best every day,” Stewart said. “He also told me how Coach (Tim Walton) is like, the realest in the game, he's going to tell you straight up.”
"You've got to come in with that mentality and live with that edge on your shoulder, because you're going to go against the best of the best every day."– DeShawn Stewart
While connecting with current players like Igbinosun, Stewart also bonded with some 2025 classmates. Fellow Buckeye commit and linebacker Tarvos Alford was also on campus for an official visit.
“It was great, man. We had some nice laughs,” Stewart said. “We went out, we ate, had dinner, and the vibe was good. No weirdness going on. We already knew each other, so I look forward to spending more time with them when I get up there.”
While there Stewart and Alford got a chance to get in some peer recruiting of two top 100 defensive prospects in edge Justin Hill and linebacker Riley Pettijohn.
“I spent a lot of time with Justin, so while being around him, I tried to throw little hints out there, a couple little jokes to get him to try to commit,” Stewart said. “I think he's taking his time right now but he knows what it is.”
Stewart said he plans to take no other visits this summer, a sign that he remains fully locked in with OSU. He plans on returning to Columbus for The Game on Nov. 30.
He’s bought into what he and his classmates can achieve, a group that stands less than eight points behind Notre Dame for the No. 1 class in the composite team rankings despite having eight fewer commits.
“This class will definitely be capable of a national championship, for sure,” Stewart said. “Add in everybody you had in the previous class, the ‘24 class, it will definitely be one of the top classes to ever come to Ohio State, which I believe and all the coaches believe.”
