4-star WR I'marion Stewart commits to Michigan Wolverines: 'It felt like home'
Chicago (Ill.) Kenwood Academy four-star wide reciever I’marion Stewart announced a top four of Michigan, Oregon, Tennessee and Wisconsin on June 14. But for the last four-to-eight weeks, he has known that the Wolverines were his choice.
Michigan has been treating Stewart as a priority since his sophomore year. That is part of the reason why he committed to head coach Jim Harbaugh and his staff on Friday.
“It felt like home,” Stewart told On3. “It felt like everybody around me showed genuine love.”
Wisconsin made a late push for Stewart, who took an official visit to the Badgers on June 2. The 6-foot-0, 177-pound wideout went to Ann Arbor a week later, which helped him realize that Michigan was the best place for him.
Stewart believes he will develop on the field and enjoy himself with the Wolverines. The No. 7 player in Illinois also likes how Michigan’s campus is not too far away from the Windy City.
“We can definitely win a lot of games, make it to the championship and hopefully win a national title,” said Stewart, the No. 314 overall prospect and No. 54 wide receiver in the 2024 On3 Industry Ranking. “They already have a winning history, so I think it’s going to be nothing but good games and a lot of wins, especially because of the amount of people they have coming in and the talent they have coming in in the ’24 class. Then, they have the ’23 class with (Fredrick Moore), Semaj (Morgan) and all them. I think it’s going to be good.”
Stewart felt wanted by Michigan’s coaches
Stewart’s strongest connection at Michigan is with wide receivers coach Ron Bellamy. He checked in on the four-star every day and made him feel like a “need” for the Wolverines’ 2024 recruiting class.
According to Stewart, Bellamy believes he can play a big role in Michigan’s offense. Bellamy also spent time talking with Stewart’s parents, which helped the Wolverines in his recruitment.
“We have a great connection,” Stewart said. “We’ve had some deep conversations about how Michigan will set me right for even after football. We always sit down and he chops it up with my family. Him and my parents, they joke around. He’s not one of the younger receiver coaches, but the fact that he’s still like one of those friends, that’s pretty cool and it’s good to have him around.”
Meanwhile, Stewart is “almost as close” with Harbaugh as Bellamy. Every time Stewart visits campus, he spends time with the Wolverines’ head man.
“Harbaugh is a cool dude, very chill,” Stewart said. “He likes to joke around a lot, but when it’s time to handle business, it’s time to handle business. He took Michigan back to the Playoff and won back-to-back Big Ten championships. To have him coach me is truly a blessing, to be honest.”