Willie Stewart joined Rich Wallace's staff in August 2026 as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator.
Stewart brings a wealth of experience, with 25 years of coaching under his belt at the collegiate level. Most recently, Stewart spent 11 seasons at Mercer as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. Prior to that, he spent 13 years in a multitude of roles at Georgia State, Elon, and his alma mater of UNC Asheville, which included five seasons as head coach at UNC Asheville.
Under Stewart’s tutelage at Mercer, he oversaw an impactful offense that powered the program to three Southern Conference regular season championships (2016, 2017, 2026), one Southern Conference Tournament Championship (2019), and one NCAA Regional appearance at the NCAA Athens regional in 2019, and an impressive 379 total wins. He helped the Bears notch 379 wins in just 11 seasons, averaging 34 wins per season during his time in Macon.
Most recently in 2026, Stewart guided Mercer’s offense to several Southern Conference top marks. The high-powered Bears led in batting average (.319), on-base percentage (.436), slugging percentage (.583), OPS (1.019), HR (130), RBIs (504), hits (641), walks, (341), doubles (126), total bases (1171), and runs scored (533). Mercer's offense also finished in the top five nationally in slugging percentage (third, .583), on-base percentage (fourth, .436), home runs (130) and batting average (fifth, .319). This effort culminated in 44 wins (the most in a single season with Stewart on staff), as well as a 15-6 in-conference record en route to a Southern Conference regular season championship.
2019 was another pivotal year for Stewart and the Bears at the plate. Mercer paced the conference in home runs with 73, hit by 12 different players. Nine different Bears drove in 20 or more runs on the season, leading Mercer to their second Southern Conference Tournament championship and fourth NCAA Tournament appearance.
In Stewart’s first season at the offensive helm (2016), Mercer led all NCAA Division I programs with an average of 1.52 home runs per game, 93 sacrifice bunts, and 366 walks. The Bears also ranked in the Top 10 nationally for home runs (second, 93), on-base percentage (fourth, .414), slugging percentage (seventh, .491), and runs scored (seventh, 473). This offensive explosion guided Mercer to its second consecutive Southern Conference regular season title.
In all, Stewart consistently oversaw a high-powered offense. During his tenure, Mercer led the Southern Conference in home runs in nine seasons (2026, 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016).
Numerous individual offensive performers provided fantastic seasons under Stewart’s guidance. Most notably in 2016, junior outfielder Kyle Lewis was named the Golden Spikes Award winner after totaling 20 home runs, 72 RBIs, a .395 batting average, and a .731 slugging percentage. Lewis was then selected with the 11th overall pick in the 2016 MLB Draft by the Seattle Mariners, where he would later go on to win the 2020 AL Rookie of the Year award.
Other Big Leaguers include outfielder Colby Thomas, a 2022 3rd round pick by the Oakland Athletics, and utility man Collin Price, a 2022 6th round pick by the Houston Astros. In total, Stewart guided nine Mercer Bears to the MLB Draft.
Prior to his time with Mercer, Stewart spent four seasons as the hitting coach at Georgia State, while also serving as the Panthers’ assistant head coach in 2015. He helped lead a Georgia State offense that played a key role in two 30-win seasons. The Panthers also ranked top five nationally in several offensive categories during his tenure in Atlanta, including batting average (2013), runs scored (2013), home runs (2014), doubles (2013-14), and slugging percentage (2014) under Stewart’s direction. In total, Stewart guided six Panthers to the MLB Draft.
Before his time at Georgia State, spent eight seasons (2001, 2003-09) on staff at his alma mater, UNC Asheville, including the final five seasons as head coach. Under his leadership, the Bulldogs captured their first and only NCAA Tournament berth in 2006, also winning the Big South Tournament title with a program record 26 wins. During his time in Asheville, Stewart mentored seven MLB Draftees, a mark that accounts for nearly a third of the program’s overall total.
Stewart also spent a season as assistant coach at Elon University in 2002. In that lone season, Stewart helped the Phoenix reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history.
Stewart served as a second baseman at UNC Asheville, where he was a four-year letterwinner from 1996-2000. Stewart saved his best season for last in 2000, where he achieved All-Big South First Team honors, thanks to his .300 average and 32 RBIs. He also set a then-school record with an 18-game hitting streak.
A native of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Stewart graduated from UNC Asheville in 2000, with a bachelor's degree in business and marketing. He and his wife Christine have two children, a son Kendall and a daughter Kailyn.