Stoner finds inspiration in his late uncle, Cleve
STILLWATER — Two weeks ago last Wednesday, the heart of Oklahoma State football was torn in two along with star receiver Tylan Wallace's knee ligament.
With pain in every direction, Dillon Stoner stood strong in the center of it all.
He was offering himself to fill the gaping void Wallace's season- ending knee i njury left. Then he backed up the offer with performance on the field.
It was a galvanizing moment for an OSU team that had more than a couple reasons to believe its season was trending southward.
For Stoner, it was a natural reaction. Football is important to him for a lot of reasons.
Maybe the biggest of those reasons is Cleve Bridwell.
Stoner's uncle Cleve won't be at Boone Pickens Stadium when the No. 22 Cowboys take on Kansas at 11 a.m. Saturday.
He passed away in the
summer of 2015, at age 52, just before Stoner's senior season at Jenks High School.
Cleve had Down Syndrome, and though he loved football, he could never play it.
His passion inspired Stoner then, the same as it does now.
“He was never given the opportunity to play football, just like a lot of people with mental disabilities aren't given that chance,” Stoner said. “My biggest inspiration has always been my uncle.”
As much as Cleve l oved football, even more, he loved watching his nephew play.
“If you met Cleve, never, ever again were you a stranger,” said Kim Stoner, Cleve's sister and Dillon's mother. “So a lot of Dillon's teammates, and their parents, they were all his buddies, and they thought the same of him.
“When he would come to one of Dillon's games, everyone knew him. A lot of them came to his funeral.”
Cleve never left a game without something to commemorate the day.
“He was all about the programs,” Dillon said. “Any game he went to, he wanted to make sure he had a program to look back on it, and look through players and the pictures and all that.
“He was always happy, no matter what. People looked at him as less fortunate or not dealt a fair hand, but the way that he and other people who have mental illnesses, or Down Syndrome in particular, they always have a smile on their face and it brightens your day to be around them.”
Cleve wasn't just happy, but also thankful, for his life, his family and his friends.
“He never wished for this or that,” Kim said. “He was just so full of life, and I think that has been a motivating factor, that things don't always go the way you wish.
“But it's a constant reminder to always be grateful and thankful in taking what you've been given. Don't take anything for granted, and be a positive influence like Cleve was.”
In his own way, Dillon has a knack for inspiring others with his toughness and drive to succeed.
Teammates call him their hardest worker, whether it's the fourth quarter of a close game, a Thursday practice or a midFebruary morning workout.
A redshirt junior, Dillon has become the perfect example of a player immersed in the Cowboy culture on which coach Mike Gundy has founded his program.
“He fits it to a T,” Gundy said. “That's just who he is. He's gonna play in the NFL for that reason. He's fast enough. He's got good enough hands. He's smart enough, he's tough.
“He's got a mental makeup that you just don't find. It's
pretty rare in young men nowadays. He's pretty special when it comes to all those different areas.”
And a little bit of Cleve's joy is sprinkled through everything Dillon does.
“When times are tough,” Dillon said, “I always think about Cleve, and I just do it for him.”