Rocket Spotlight on Jacquez Stuart

Jacquez Stuart is a senior running back and kick returner from Miami, Fla. He has tallied 1,730 rushing yards, 1,664 kick return yards, and 18 touchdowns in his Toledo career. In high school, Stuart won the FHSAA 6A state football championship and was also a state champion in track in the 100m and 4x100 relay.

On growing up in South Florida:
"I'm originally from Miami, Fla. I lived with both of my parents, James Stuart and Sandra Stuart. Overall, it was good living there. You learn a lot of things down in Florida that you might not know up here in Toledo, and I've learned things at Toledo that I never knew growing up."

On his start in football:
"I started playing football when I was five years old, and my first position was center. My Pops wanted me to get used to contact first before I started running the ball. That was his way of building me up into my football career."

On switching to running back:
"The last game of the season, there was a play I decided I didn't want to hike the ball anymore. So, I told my dad, 'let me run the ball' and I ran the ball and scored. After that season, my dad put me in track & field. After he put me in track & field, I turned into a different beast."

On first hearing about Toledo and his recruitment:
"I first heard about Toledo from NCAA 14, so I've known about the Toledo Rockets. Once I saw Kareem Hunt come from here, that's when I knew I may want to take my talents to Toledo. I chose UT because of the love and support, which didn't stop 24/7. Every day they would call me, or visit Miami or visit me at my school. Toledo's the only school that did that, so I appreciated it and that's why I came here."

On his high school track career:
"I competed in the 100 meter, 200 meter and sometimes the 400 meter. I was always on the relays because I was one of the fastest on the team. Running track helped my football career because over the years football has evolved and began to get faster. With football being in the fall and track in the spring, I was able to use track to help me in the off-season."

On being recruited for college track:
"I was recruited for college track by 10 schools including by Carl Lewis at Houston."

On what he learned early in his Toledo career:
"I learned how to be patient. I knew this wasn't going to be a 100-meter dash. This was going to be a marathon. I had to sit back and take in all of the information and display it on the field. So, it took some time to develop that but eventually I caught on."

On overcoming challenges throughout his college career:
"The biggest challenge I had was playing. When you have seniors in front of you, other good players in front of you, that's really the ultimate challenge because you're trying to challenge them everyday. Being behind good players like Bryant Koback and Shakif Seymour, sitting behind those guys made me realize the bigger picture of everything and how college football actually works. I learned what it takes to be a great player, be a great teammate and put up great stats. Those guys specifically taught me a lot."

On what excites him this season:
"I'm excited because it's a whole new different team, and I'm just excited to show Rocket Nation what we have in store."

On life after football:
"I graduated with my bachelor's in marketing. I'm planning on getting my real estate license and my mortgage license so I can work on mortgage homes and rent out properties to people. I can also help out people at the same time. I might have to look into HGTV, like the Property Brothers."

Players Mentioned

Jacquez Stuart

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