Avon Lake senior Luke Stuewe follows father's footsteps to play football at Virginia Tech

Bright lights and a clear game plan led Luke Stuewe to the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Avon Lake senior safety/wide receiver committed to Virginia Tech on Sunday, announcing his decision on social media. Stuewe said he considered a number of schools, but his decision came down to Virginia Tech and Miami (Ohio), both of which made him an offer. The decision gives him the chance to play for the same school as his father, Michael, who was a standout wide receiver for the Hokies from 1993-97. He caught 53 passes for 689 yards and five touchdowns during his Virginia Tech career. "They had a good game plan for me and I didn't have any questions about how they were going to use me," Stuewe said. "They told me straight up how they're going to use me and that was promising. It's big-time football. I've always wanted to play in front of tons of fans. It worked out perfectly." He said the Hokies recruited him as an athlete, meaning he could wind up playing offense or defense, whichever fits best, and he will likely help out on special teams, too. Avon Lake still intends to deploy the 6-foot 2, 190-pound senior on both sides of the ball this season. "We're super excited for him," Avon Lake coach Matt Kostelnik said. "He's been trying to figure out where he wanted to go and what he wanted to do. Having an ACC offer like that, he realized that was great for him. We're excited for him. The process has been long and grueling. He had offers from three different levels. The fact that he was able to find a home was pretty exciting for us." Stuewe's junior year started with a bang. He caught four passes for 104 yards in the team's 19-14 season-opening win over Strongsville. However, he broke his collarbone just before halftime of Avon Lake's 48-7 win against Midview in Week 5, which sidelined him for the rest of the year. He finished with three catches for 34 yards against the Middies. Despite playing in less than half the season, Stuewe piled up 33 tackles, 18 solo and one for a loss, with four interceptions, five pass breakups and two forced fumbles, earning him honorable-mention All-Ohio honors. He caught 19 passes for 317 yards and a touchdown. "It's tough to duplicate his production, especially on defense," Kostelnik said. "His ability to get to the ball is unbelievable when he's on the field. Then, on offense, he's such a downfield threat, so losing him hurt. We're excited to get him back and get him rolling." Aside from the rehab, Stuewe said his offseason approach didn't change. He worked on his technique, footwork and watched lots of film on himself to improve at safety, as last season was his first year playing the position. "It's senior year so there's that little extra push because it's your last year of high school football," Stuewe said. "I bet every senior does the same thing. It feels great (to commit) because now there's nothing else to worry about but playing football. "I just want to go out and have a fun and productive senior season. I just want to have a good season as a team. Personal goals will come with success. I just want to go out there and show them what we can do." Contact Chris Sweeney at 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com. Follow him @CSweeney1686 on X.