By Harry Minium
CONWAY, S.C. – Bruce Stewart was hired by Old Dominion in 2007 to help create a football program from scratch, and in the process, became the architect of what was considered the most successful start-up football program in NCAA history.
ODU's coaching staff excelled in the early years and quarterback Taylor Heinicke, who set ODU passing records likely never to be broken, led the Monarchs to early success. ODU was ranked as high as fourth in the country and maintained itself in the upper echelon of FCS.
Stewart was the guy behind the curtain, much like the Wizard of Oz, who planned virtually every detail of ODU's fledgling football program.
He oversaw construction, hired personnel, selected apparel, oversaw the budget, and brilliantly pieced together schedules that allowed the Monarchs to be competitive, yet also play teams that ODU fans cared to see. ODU quickly sold out Foreman Field before the inaugural 2009 season began.
And while his contributions to ODU are generally appreciated by Monarch fans, I doubt more than a handful realize he did the same at Coastal Carolina.
When the Monarchs venture to Coastal's Brooks Stadium Saturday at noon (ESPNU), Stewart will see two programs that have his finger prints all over them.
In a sense, for Stewart, it will be like watching two children you raised go head-to-head.
"He left his mark on this place, an indelible mark," Coastal Athletic Director Matt Hogue said of Stewart, now ODU's deputy athletic director and COO.
"He is remembered here."
A Columbus, Ohio native, Stewart came to Coastal in 1998 after graduating from Morehouse College with a degree in psychology and then earning a joint J.D./M.A. degree at Ohio State. He was in a four-year program at Ohio State that combined studies in law with sport management.
Coastal announced in 1999 that it would begin playing football in 2003, and although he was a young administrator, just one year out of law school, Stewart was tasked with guiding and supervising the program from its inception.
Instead of studying treatises, he studied the infrastructure of successful startup programs at South Florida and Georgia Southern, and a long-established program at Penn State.
He said he quickly realized that their success had been built upon "people, alignment and culture."
By alignment, he meant putting the right people in the right positions in order for them to flourish.
"I've applied those tenets to all of the programs I supervise," said Stewart, who now supervises men's basketball and men's and women's tennis, in addition to football.
It's a formula that obviously worked. Coastal was 6-5 in its first season and the Chanticleers were just getting started. They finished 10-1 in 2004, 9-2, and won a share of the Big South title, in 2005.
Then, in 2006, Coastal finished 9-3, won the Big South title and lost to Appalachian State in the FCS playoffs.
It was then that ODU approached Stewart.
"When I told people I was going to Old Dominion, most were in disbelief," Stewart said. "I had been there for nearly a decade, and we were experiencing unprecedented growth and success.
"They couldn't understand why I would want to go somewhere else and start from scratch again.
"I guess I'm a glutton for punishment, because starting a football program is a monumental lift that takes a great deal of collaboration. It's not simply an athletic endeavor. No one person is responsible for a program's success. It takes the entire University and the community working together to make it successful.
"When I departed, I wanted the cupboard to be full, and the program in good hands. I knew we had something special in the works at Coastal."
Bruce Stewart at ODU's tennis center
Something special indeed. Coastal won seven Big South titles before moving up to FBS in 2016.
Coastal had a breakthrough season in 2020, the pandemic year, when they opened by upsetting Kansas, then knocked off No. 8 BYU, 27-22, at home during prime time on ESPN. The BYU game was scheduled after the season began after both teams had other games canceled.
They finished the regular-season 11-0 but lost in overtime to Liberty in the Cure Bowl.
Last season the Chanticleers again upset Kansas and spent most of the season in the Top 25 en route to an 11-2 finish and their first bowl game victory.
Coastal is 6-0 this season and received votes in the Associated Press Top 25 poll this week.
ODU, meanwhile, has gained national notice under coach Ricky Rahne.
The Monarchs won five of their last six games last season to claim their first bowl bid in five years. ODU is 2-3 but upset Virginia Tech in its opener and dropped a narrow, 16-14, defeat at Virginia on a last-second field goal.
Hogue, the Coastal athletic director, was the radio voice of the Chanticleers when Stewart arrived. Early on, they shared an office and constantly bounced ideas off of each other.
They remain close friends.
"Matt is one of the most astute individuals I know in the profession," Stewart said. "Any time I get to see him, it's a joyful moment."
Hogue said he knew early on that Stewart was headed for big things.
"We kind of broke into the business at the same time," he said. "Bruce has a tremendous skill set and such an extensive knowledge of business.
"The guy has a law degree, which always plays well in the world of college athletics. What made Bruce so strong was his ability to remain calm in a crisis, to build consensus and his strong demeanor. He would take a difficult situation and take the air out of it."
Hogue said they are much more than colleagues.
"Whenever we see Bruce, it's like seeing my brother," Hogue said. "We have such a closeness, such a bond as friends. Our families are close. He's basically a part of my family."
Hogue is not only the former voice of the Chanticleers, he doubled as the voice of reason when Stewart was offered by ODU.
"He was very instrumental in helping me decide to go to Old Dominion University," Stewart said. "His wife was raised on the Peninsula. He knew the Hampton Roads area.
"I always trusted Matt's judgment. He told me he saw great potential at Old Dominion and advised me to take the job."
It was good advice that gave Stewart a unique resume, unlike anyone else's in athletics.
Said Hogue rhetorically: "How many guys in America can say that they have been on the frontlines, the central figure, that executed the establishment of two programs that started from zero and are now playing in FBS?"
Stewart spoke with passion of his former colleagues at Coastal.
Stewart had a hand in scheduling 13 games against Virginia Tech, including six in Norfolk.
"They have given me so much and hopefully, I was able to return the generosity, the investment in me, their kindness. Life is about opportunity. I was extremely fortunate to start my professional career at Coastal Carolina. I spent nearly a decade calling Myrtle Beach home before relocating to the Hampton Roads area," he said. "I witnessed what a successful program could mean to a university and a community as a whole. Athletics has a way of bringing people together and football helped bring people together at both Coastal Carolina and Old Dominion.
"Ultimately, it was the lessons I learned at Coastal that have been invaluable in my current role at Old Dominion University.
"I've been humbled to be entrusted to work at two great institutions and create long-lasting memories.
"I will always root for Coastal Carolina in every game in every sport except, of course, when they're playing Old Dominion.
"I treasure my time there. We did some remarkable things together."
Just as he continues to do remarkable things at ODU.
Contact Minium at hminium@odu.edu for follow him on Twitter Facebook or Instagram
Minium: Bruce Stewart Will be Watching Programs he Started From Scratch When ODU Takes on Coastal Carolina
