KEY STEWART DOING WELL AS RIDER ROOKIE

Kye Stewart
Photograph by: Bryan Schlosser, Leader-Post

REGINA — If the first two games of the 2009 CFL regular season are any indication, the Saskatchewan Roughriders may want to send a thank-you note to Maurice Fitzgerald.
Fitzgerald was the head coach of the Pearl-Cohn Firebirds in Nashville, Tenn., when Kye Stewart attended the high school. It was Fitzgerald who convinced a disillusioned Stewart to stick with football — and that path has led the talented young linebacker to the Roughriders.

"I didn't play that much in my junior year because I moved from (Ridgeland) South Carolina to Nashville, Tennessee," Stewart, 24, recalled Tuesday after the Roughriders practised at Mosaic Stadium. "I only played on maybe one special team.

"Going into my senior year, I didn't think I was going to have the opportunity to play. I was lifeguarding all summer and I had gotten real small — I was down to like 160 (pounds). But my coach came and got me at the pool and said, 'Do you still want to play?' I said, 'Yeah,' and I had a wonderful senior year.

"That's when my career kind of blossomed and it took me through college."
Stewart went from Pearl-Cohn to Illinois State University, where he starred for the Redbirds. In four seasons, he racked up 380 defensive tackles, including 131 as a senior.
Undrafted and unsigned by any NFL teams, the 6-foot-0, 210-pounder signed with the Roughriders in January.

"Coming into camp, I just wanted to make the team," Stewart said. "My goal was to make the practice roster. I was even more flattered to make the active roster and know that I would at least play special teams."

Stewart proved he was a sure tackler in Saskatchewan's first game, recording two special-teams tackles in a 28-24 victory over the B.C. Lions on July 3.
He turned in a stronger performance in Saturday's 46-36 triumph over the Toronto Argonauts, registering two defensive tackles — including a solid hit on running back Jamal Robertson after sniffing out a screen pass — and two special-teams stops.

On Tuesday, Stewart spent time with the starting defence as the weak-side linebacker. Tad Kornegay was playing halfback in place of Lance Frazier, whose status for Saturday's game against the visiting Montreal Alouettes is unknown because of a hip pointer he suffered in Toronto.

Being more involved is a natural progression for Stewart.

"He's a smart young man and he's got good speed and quickness," said linebackers coach Alex Smith, who noted the game plan called for Stewart to play more. "He's going to get more opportunities because when he goes in, he doesn't make mistakes."

"Since I've been here, the coaches have said I'd have the opportunity to play a little bit more, so I had to prepare myself as if I was going to play each week as a starter," Stewart added. "I'm happy to get more reps and just jump into things and play."

Jumping in and playing seem to be part of Stewart's makeup. He's a certified scuba diver as well as a self-proclaimed star when it comes to the Madden video games.
He and his roommate, fellow rookie Jerrell Freeman, are in the process of determining a champion at home.

"I'm new to Xbox 360, but once I get it down, he's going to have to watch out," Stewart said. "I'm a big trash-talker."

"When we go home, we'll probably get in a game," Freeman countered. "I'll probably beat him 20 out of 20 times."

ihamilton@leaderpost.canwest.com
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