Former WVU AD Says Bill Stewart Collapsed While Telling a Story
Former West Virginia University Athletic Director Ed Pastilong says former Mountaineer football coach Bill Stewart died suddenly on the golf course at Stonewall Resort in Lewis County Monday.
“There was no consciousness from the point he fell down there on the golf course,“ Pastilong said Monday night on MetroNews Statewide Sportsline.
Pastilong, Stewart and Nick Mavromatis were playing in a threesome as part of an annual golf outing.
“It was a tremendously enjoyable day here. The weather was nice and Billy was in a real jovial mood,“ Pastilong said.
Pastilong says the three had teed off on one of the holes and were standing within a few feet of one another when they were set to take another shot. Pastilong says they were joking about something and Coach Stewart broke into a story about a former boss, retired Air Force head coach Fisher DeBerry.
“He said, ‘Fisher DeBerry always said…‘ and boom—-I looked over and he was on his back,“ Pastilong said.
Stewart, 59, who hadn’t said anything about not feeling well according to Pastilong, had no response from the time he fell to the ground.
Pastilong says Mavromatis immediately began CPR and Stonewall Resort responded quickly with medical personnel. He says Coach Stewart was in the emergency room at Stonewall Jackson General in Weston within 45 minutes where a team of doctors tried to revive him.
“The doctors were very courteous to Nick Mav and I and they would come out and say, ‘There’s no response, but we’re going to continue,‘ they continued for almost an hour,“ Pastilong said.
The former athletic director, who hired Stewart as head coach just a few short hours after the Mountaineers upset Oklahoma in the 2008 Fiesta Bowl, says there was nothing anyone could do.
“It was one of those situations whereby it was one of those huge heart attacks. It was massive. It was over,“ Pastilong said.
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Congratulations to Hunter Ashley for getting a 2nd place in the Discus throw. He may be a Freshman, but he can definately out throw a lot of sophmores, Juniors and seniors. Way to go Hunter. Practice always pays off. Proud of you.