Stuart Schweigert established this scholarship in 2008 to assist a student athlete from his alma mater, Heritage High School. While attending Heritage, Stuart was ranked as the No. 9 defensive back and the No. 78 player overall in the nation by Prep Football Report, as the No. 18 best skill athlete by SuperPrep and a four-star recruit (out of four) by Rivals.com. He was a PrepSport All-American and named to The Detroit News and The Saginaw News dream teams. Stuart totaled 1,502 rushing yards with 22 touchdowns as an option quarterback. He threw for 500 yards with four touchdowns and recorded 50 tackles with three interceptions and seven pass breakups on defense. Stuart was named the Detroit Athletic Club Male Athlete of the Year as a senior. He also led the league in rushing and scoring and won the 100m dash State Championship as a junior with a time of 10.32.
After a successful athletic career at Heritage High School, he went on to play defensive back at Purdue University. Stuart was a semifinalist for the Jim Thorpe Award (given to the nation’s top defensive back) in each of his last three seasons at Purdue. He was named to the Bronko Nagurski Trophy “watch list” (nation’s outstanding defensive player) in his junior and senior year. As a senior, he was named All-America by The Sporting News and Associated Press, All-Big Ten Conference and Academic All-Big Ten and team Most Valuable Player. Stu started 45 of 49 games for Purdue, recording 360 tackles (226 solos) with 2.5 sacks, 16 stops for losses of 38 yards, three forced fumbles and 23 pass deflections. His 360 tackles rank ninth on the school’s all-time list. He also intercepted 17 passes for 176 yards in returns, breaking the old Purdue career record of 11 pass thefts previously held by Rod Woodson.
Stuart was drafted by the Oakland Raiders as the 3rd pick in the 3rd round (67th overall). He started all four years and led the team in tackles in 2007 with 109 and recorded four interceptions, 22 passes defended, three forced fumbles, five fumble recoveries and 303 total tackles in four years with the Raiders. Stuart signed with the Detroit Lions in 2008.
With this scholarship, Stuart hopes to help a fellow student athlete fulfill their dreams of attending college.
Qualifications
- Minimum 3.0 GPA
- Graduating senior from Heritage High School pursuing an undergraduate degree
- Resident of Saginaw County
- Full-time enrollment
- Must have lettered in a varsity sport at Heritage High School
Evaluation Criteria
- Financial need (40)
- Athletic skills (25)
- Awards and honors (10)
- Overall involvement in work, school and community activities (10)
- Scholastic record (5)
In the event of a tie, an additional 10 points will be added to students from a single parent family.
Special Attachment Required
Please refer to the online scholarship application for more information