""It wasn't really one of my top schools ... I don't know what it was," he said this week as the Aggies (1-1) prepare to face the Gators (1-1) Saturday afternoon. "I didn't really like the campus for some reason."

The trip to Gainesville is more than a return to the Sunshine State for Stewart and the Aggies -- it's the SEC opener and a game both teams must have to keep their 2024 seasons on a positive footing.

"I feel I'm feeling pretty confident in Saturday. We'll go in there, (and) coming come out with a W," he said.

Stewart is one of the mainstays of a defensive front that is expected to be one of the nation's best -- but it hasn't performed that way yet. Slowing down the running game, starting this weekend, he said, is a priority for the defensive line.

"It all begins up front with the defensive line. We try to pride ourselves in not letting the ball getting around on us, and we always put it on our backs," he said. "We don't ever want the ball to get to the second level and let other people try to make the play when we know we could we were able to make the play. So we are trying to emphasize being more physical in the run game, to try cut that down a little bit."

Even though the Aggies have just one sack through two games, coach Mike Elko said he was satisfied with the pass rush due to the amount of pressure applied to Notre Dame's Riley Leonard and McNeese's Kamden Sixkiller. Stewart took a similar approach when asked about the lack of sacks so far.

"It's not a big concern, because we know when it rains the pours. A wise man once told me, 'The more you think about them, the less you get them,'" he said. "So we're trying to just focus on doing our jobs to the best of our abilities, and they'll eventually come."

Who was the wise man?

"My dad," Stewart replied. "He was my defensive line coach in high school."

The Aggies may have two targets to chase after this week, with starting quarterback Graham Mertz returning from a concussion which kept him out of Florida's 45-7 win over Samford. Willis product DJ Lagway stepped in admirably for Mertz, throwing for 456 yards and three touchdowns, and Stewart said A&M would have to be ready for both players.

"I've had some friends at Florida, and they've been hyping (Lagway) up, so I'm excited to see what he can do," he said. "Their other quarterback (Mertz) is pretty good as well. I don't really know him personally, but I think he's really great."

While playing just a few hours from Miami represents a bit of a homecoming for Stewart, it is much more for defensive teammates Scooby Williams and Jaydon Hill, as well as defensive line coach Sean Spencer and defensive coordinator Jay Bateman. All four were at Florida last year, and a win would be even sweeter for them.

"It's a great honor to go against a team you were once on and beat them," he said. "It kind of reminds me of the last two years we played Ole Miss with Coach Durk (DJ Durkin). Coach Durk always had, like, a little Look, little craziness to him when we played Ole Miss. And I'm gonna say vibe of all three of them, all four of them, they're excited to go back to The Swamp and hopefully bring this one home."

Stewart then paused. "How long has been (since a road win)?"

"Three years," came the reply.

"For the first time in three years," he concluded.