Lake County All-Area captain Stewart finishes among IHSA’s best ever in numerous categories with his determined, relentless running style

Let’s be blunt: Warren Township standout running back Aaron Stewart had a season for the ages.

The University of Illinois-bound Stewart was a workhorse and them some out of the backfield in helping the Blue Devils run the table in the North Suburban Conference at 7-0 and advance to the second round of the Class 8A state playoffs.

The 5-foot-8-inch, 190-pound Stewart carried the ball a whopping 338 times this season for 2,782 yards (against many 10-man boxes) and scored 46 touchdowns.

Those 46 touchdowns tied for fifth all-time in recorded Illinois High School Association history. He was named an Illinois High School Football Coaches Association Class 8A all-state first-team selection and the unanimous choice as the North Suburban Conference player of the year.

He’s also the easy choice as the Captain of the 2025 Daily Herald Lake County All-Area football team for a second year in a row.

“Aaron Stewart may go down as the best Warren football player in recent history and we have had some great ones,” Warren coach Bryan McNulty said. “He is a tireless worker who never misses the weight room and manages a very high-end wrestling schedule. I do not believe I have ever coached a player as strong both physically and mentally as him. I do not believe I will coach another as good as Aaron. He’s an outstanding teammate and someone you don’t really replace.”

McNulty saw one key difference this season with Stewart. “His ability to finish big runs,” he said. “We really challenged Aaron to score when he would get loose and he did this year, often running away from the opposition’s fastest player. In a lot of situations, the defense knew Aaron was going to get the ball and it did not matter. I believe Aaron may have more yards after contact than any other back in the state’s history.”

Stewart’s numbers this year were indeed ridiculous. He started the season running for 455 yards (ninth all-time in IHSA history) against a Hersey team that won the Mid-Suburban East title and advanced to the Class 7A state quarterfinals.

He topped the 200-yard mark 8 times and went over 300 yards in 4 games. Stewart, who led the state in rushing yards in each of the last 2 seasons according to one online statistical service, racked up 41 explosive runs this season (runs of 20 or more yards). No team held Stewart to less than 100 yards in the Blue Devils’ 11 games.

“He finds lanes that shouldn’t be open with his speed and patience,” Lake Zurich junior all-NSC and All-Area linebacker Arturo Zarinana said. “What impressed me the most is his ability to stay on the ground and not go down on first contact until there are 11 guys tackling him.”

Zarinana recalls a third-and-4 play in the Bears’ meeting with Warren this season, a game that Stewart ran for 337 yards, helping the Blue Devils to a 27-17 win.

“I believe we had him dead to right but he went outside and broke a tackle for a first down, which later that drive turned into a touchdown,” Zarinana said. “It was very frustrating (knowing Stewart is hard to take down), especially on those third downs.”

Hersey coach Tom Nelson said what makes Stewart elite is his center of gravity/balance and physicality.

“He also has very good vision and burst,” Nelson said. “When game-planning, you have to fit every run/gap correctly or he will burn you. Much like in the National Football League, if you misfit one run on defense, it’s a touchdown.”

“Aaron was an outstanding back,” Stevenson coach Brent Becker said. “His strength, balance and willingness to fight for every inch made him very difficult to bring down. Those qualities gave him the ability to break multiple tackles. Game-planning for him required getting multiple hats to the ball.”

Mundelein coach Johnny Cowhey laid out why game-planning against Stewart was such a nightmare.

“Load the box and Stewart has the ability to hit you outside and outrun the defense, plus make life miserable on your defensive backs who need to cover wide receivers and tackle the running back. Stay balanced with outside-inside and Stewart had the strength and endurance to pound you for 5 yards a carry until you made a mistake. Aaron Stewart was a phenomenal football player in a state with a lot of phenomenal football players. What separates Stewart from a lot of his peers is his lack of weaknesses. He was a special back that I will miss watching, but will not miss game-planning against.”

Stewart, a 2-time Class 3A state-champion wrestler who plans on playing football and wrestling at Illinois, said there wasn’t much change to his game from junior to senior season.

“The only difference I can think of is I was more confident in my abilities,” he said, “but I don’t want to take all the credit. I had a great offensive line in front of me helping me out and I have to give a lot of props to them because without them I can’t do what I do.”

Stewart said stamina was never an issue for him, despite the fact he carried the ball 920 times over the last 3 seasons for 7,020 yards (sixth all-time in IHSA history) and scored 100 touchdowns (tied for fifth all-time).

“I’ve built my stamina up over many years doing football and wrestling all my life,” said Stewart, who has a 3.8 grade-point average at Warren. “Not to mention the fact I have both of these practices every day. By the time I get to the game, it’s easy to stay under control.”

Stewart noted his training has played a significant role in his success. McNulty said Stewart increased his lifts to 585 pounds on the back squat, 405 on the bench press and 605 on the straight bar deadlift. McNulty added Stewart, who also runs track at Warren, never missed a Warren lifting session in 4 years.

“For how much I lift, I think my body is basically created to take the load. Benching 405 and squatting 600 isn’t something everyone is doing, so I’ll say my body is able to take the pressure. Honestly, I never really get tired. Yeah, I would get banged up every now and then, but really who’s going to be 100 percent throughout an entire football season, so you just have to keep going.”

Tim Budge says Stewart is one of the best running backs he’s seen in his 25 years of coaching at Libertyville.

“Usually, if you can get a defender free to make a tackle, you are all good,” he said. “Definitely not the case with Stewart. His toughness and resilience is what sticks out to me. When you think you have him tackled and he gets out of it to make a big play, that is really what separates him. He truly is a special player.”

Stewart said being a part of the Warren football program has been special.

“We have always had a great program with great coaches around us,” he said. “I am not the first good guy to come out of Warren and I am sure I am not going to be the last. Our coaches instill that plus-2 effort that all of us players will live with and use the rest of our lives. I’m really going to miss all my guys and the family we have become. I will always remember the bond I have with my guys.”

Stewart added he hopes he’s remembered for all the great he’s done at Warren, “and I hope I am able to inspire the guys coming up to work hard and follow their dreams, because if you put in enough work, you can do anything you set your mind to.”