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Speaker 1:

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast by the host and guests may or may not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of ºÚÁÏÉçÇø.

Speaker 2:

I am going into my last semester of chemical engineering.

Speaker 3:

I'm a senior journalism major.

Speaker 4:

And I'm minoring in supply chain and operations management.

Speaker 5:

I'm a biochemistry major.

Speaker 6:

Classes are going great, extracurriculars are going great.

Speaker 7:

I'm an RA on campus.

Speaker 6:

I'm thriving.

Jason Meggyesy:

Hi, I'm Jason Meggyesy and this is Major Insight. This is the podcast where we talk college life with amazing ºÚÁÏÉçÇøs about how to find your place and purpose on campus.

Wil Stevens has come a long way from his Chicago neighborhood to Miami, where he plays on the Men's Basketball team, and where he's also studying East Asian Languages and Culture.

On campus, Wil is also a member of the Black Student Action Association, and a member of Miami's Blockchain Club. And today we'll also talk about how he found his love of language and culture, how he balances athletics with academics, how he learning to build confidence through hard work, and all while staying true to himself.

[Music/Fade]

Jason Meggyesy:

So today we finally got this one going, I'm happy to have this person in the studio today talking. First question I like to ask everybody is who are you?

Wil Stevens:

Who am I? I'm Wil Stevens from Chicago, Illinois. I'm a junior on the man's basketball team. And I'm here today with my man, Jason, and we about to have a great conversation.

Jason Meggyesy:

Yes sir. All right, appreciate you coming in. Besides being on the basketball team, what are your majors here?

Wil Stevens:

I'm a Chinese major right now, a East Asian languages and cultures major with a Chinese concentration.

Jason Meggyesy:

That's a very unique one. I never heard of that. I didn't even know that was something that you could specifically hone in on. So we'll unpack that here in a little bit, but take me back before you came into college. Just talk about your time in Chicago, growing up, family life, all that kind of stuff.

Wil Stevens:

For sure. I grew up in some of Chicago's most violent neighborhoods, most underprivileged neighborhoods. I grew up in some of the most crime infested neighborhoods. So growing up for me was a little bit of a challenge navigating that and seeing that every day. That's something that I learned that I didn't want to be a part of. I had family members who was in street life, in and out of jail, friends that was killed, all type of stuff that comes with that life. It was easy to get distracted. I seen some of my closest friends get distracted and veer away. Just keeping that faith and that hope alive helped me to get out of that situation and out of that life and just having...

Wil Stevens:

I'm blessed to have my mom in my life who kept me away from the streets, away from that negativity, and kept me on the straight path, because so many people from where I'm from, it's easy to get into that because it starts with the families. A lot of people come from broken families. So that's a big part into that, bro. Chicago's been a big reason for who I am and just the toughness and you got to grind it out for real because that's what it is. That's what we come from.

Jason Meggyesy:

Most definitely, man. I can see that grind mentality in you and all the things that you've done up until this point. Obviously being in Oxford is probably a big switch up for you. So how do you bring that perspective from your hometown here and use it in your everyday life here?

Wil Stevens:

So bringing that from my hometown here, I like to just remember where I come from, because it's easy for me, sometimes I'm out here, it's like I'm in a bubble in a way. It's easy in a way to forget my roots. I'm just around this fantasy in a way. So I try to stay grounded and remember where I come from and just remember to stay true to myself pretty much. I went to a boarding school, a predominantly white boarding school and high school in Boston, Massachusetts. So I had that experience already, coming from Chicago, a predominantly black middle school into a predominantly white high school was a little bit of a challenge for me, but it helped prepare me to be here at Miami. So being in these spaces, it just taught me to really stay true to myself. I feel like being out here has allowed me to really touch back into my roots and just focus on those things that make me who I am.

Jason Meggyesy:

Back it up and unpack that for me. What was it like going from middle school to high school? Not just in a different social setting with different people, but in a different state entirely. What was that like for you?

Wil Stevens:

Man I had to take a deep breath for real. It was everything, though. I got to see a different perspective. Like I said, coming from Chicago, that was all I seen. So going out to Massachusetts, it was a whole new world and the school I was at, it was a lot of wealth too. So just seeing that privileged world was just eye opening for me. It just helped me to realize there is more to the world than my Chicago neighborhood, and it just taught me how to navigate spaces with other people that look different from myself. Going to Brooks, it was a high level academic school, so that's one thing I loved about it too. It was positive peer pressure. So I had to work hard and I couldn't slack because everybody's really performing at their top notch game and you want to value that education.

Jason Meggyesy:

So what what was the motivation... If it's not too personal of a question, what was the motivation to go from Chicago to Boston?

Wil Stevens:

Man, motivation was to get out of Chicago, bro. You feel me? Get out of Chicago. I wanted to relieve your stress from my mom. I didn't want to be in a city having to look over my shoulder every day and think about anything other than academics, school, and just social life. That's what all too often kids got to worry about these other factors that really shouldn't matter, you know what I'm saying? And one thing that also helped me to make that decision, when I was younger, my younger brother was a victim of gun violence at the age of four. So it was a no brainer. I'm trying to get out of the city. So that was a big motivation for me.

Jason Meggyesy:

Was it just you that left or did you guys both leave?

Wil Stevens:

So he ended up following me out there two years later, he's two years younger than me, and he graduated from Brooks too. So we got a chance to be in high school together, which is cool.

Jason Meggyesy:

So what does being that older brother mean to you? I mean, you had to take that first step and be that one to take the leap. What does that mean to you and how has that experience shaped you as a person?

Wil Stevens:

Man, I think that experience of being an older brother is a big part of how I carry myself today. I got to be a role model to my younger siblings, and it means a lot to me to... Because I know how much it means to me to have somebody to look up to and model behind. So I know that they watching my every move, because I'm a person that I watch how people move. I learn from any little thing from literally everybody. So I know that they're watching me at all times, so I'm just trying to keeping that relationship tight with them and telling them that I'm there for them, letting them know that, and that they can really follow their own path too.

Jason Meggyesy:

That's awesome, man. So now let's get back onto the academic track. I know before we were talking about... You had this certain experience with a principal at your school and that influenced how you got into the Chinese culture and the East Asian studies, so just talk to me about that relationship and that story about how that came up.

Wil Stevens:

Yeah, so Dr. Shabaz, I call him doc, that's my principal from my school, Wadsworth STEM that I attended when I was in middle school. I'm just fortunate to, one, have that relationship with him. That's somebody I still keep in contact with. It's a father figure to me and someone who's been guiding me throughout my time in high school, throughout my time in middle school, and even throughout my time now in college. So initially I was thinking about going into high school, I was thinking about taking up French, just to take it up. And then he was like, "Why you taking up French? What you going to use it for?" And I thought about that and he was like, "You should take Chinese." And I'm like, "Okay, Chinese, that's different."

Jason Meggyesy:

That's from left field,

Wil Stevens:

That's from left field. So I'm like, "Man, that's different." I know he won't steer me wrong in any direction. So I listened to him. It's one of the second largest, at least spoken languages. The business is booming over there. If I want to play basketball or do something with basketball over there, that's an option. So I'm like, "That's a great point." So I'm not just taking the language just to be taking it. I'm taking it to actually utilize it. And Dr. Shabaz helped me understand the importance to, one, have another language behind you, and also to be speaking Chinese as a black man, you don't hear about that too much. Sometimes when I used to go to the rec, freshman year, I'd be hooping and I'd be hooping with some Asian ºÚÁÏÉçÇøs. And if I could tell that they're Chinese, I'll say something and Chinese ask them if they speak Chinese and they'll be like-

Jason Meggyesy:

And throw them off.

Wil Stevens:

[inaudible 00:08:13] Chinese, it's cool, bro, because it's different. It's a different type of challenge. I feel like everybody in a way should have another language to be able to speak with a different world of people.

Jason Meggyesy:

So what about the Chinese culture interests you so much and what is it about that space that you wanted to focus your studies on?

Wil Stevens:

So for me, actually, I have a lot of friends who are Chinese so I love the culture. I love how different everything about... Even the grammar structure is different from our grammar structure and the family dynamics. They're big on family over there in China. And just comparing and contrast, my reality in America with some of my Chinese friends, I wanted to dive more into it and really understand where they were coming from. Be able to understand the culture aspect and stuff like that.

Jason Meggyesy:

Now talk to me about when basketball became a part of your life. Because obviously you're on the team here.

Wil Stevens:

Man, basketball started to be a part of my life when I was a kid. I always had a ball in my hand. I know everybody say that. But I didn't really start to take it serious until the fifth, sixth grade. And that's around the time I also started to work out and really learn how to play the game a little more. That's also when I met my mentor and my trainer and my big brother, everything. His name's Carlos. My basketball journey's been completely just different, something I didn't see coming first starting out. I thought it'd be a smooth sailing journey. But I played my first AU team in the seventh grade, was with Mac Irvin Fire, and that's a highly known team out of Chicago.

Wil Stevens:

And I got cut from that team. That experience was something that kept me going. I had some coach was... I feel like he had a personal vendetta in the way out to me, but I never really expressed that. I just kept my head up and kept working. But seventh grade, to be cut from a team is something that still sticks with me. And he told me... I remember after that game, once he was like, "You're going to retire in high school." And I'm like, you know that-

Jason Meggyesy:

To a seventh grader?

Wil Stevens:

Yeah, a seventh grader. I don't even know if I even played that game, you feel me? But yeah, bro. So having that behind me going into high school, I'm trying to really prove myself and really figure out this thing, bro, because I know what I'm capable of doing. So going into high school, I had high hopes of playing varsity my first year. That didn't happen. I didn't make it on a team. Got cut from tryouts. So I played JV. That was a great experience for me because I got a chance to really build up my confidence for real. My coach Jones, that's my man, shout out coach Jones, but he did a great job, just helped me build up my confidence.

Wil Stevens:

And then my junior year is when I actually fully made the team, made the roster. I didn't play that much my junior year, I had some injuries and stuff. But my senior year that's when I started to play a more. We had a lot of seniors that left and I got a chance to play. I didn't play to my full capability that I wanted to. I'd say all those experiences, bro, with coaches and just being that, in a way, underdog, I'm just hungry to really like... I haven't touched my full potential yet, you know? I'm trying to max out and touch my full potential. I know what I'm capable of doing so I'm just working right now and just staying patient. But that's summarized into what makes me who I am today.

Jason Meggyesy:

Man. That's crazy, bro, because I feel like a lot of people, they would get discouraged and probably even quit, you know what I'm saying? But the fact that you kept going, because this is something that you're real passionate about, it's amazing to hear. Now talk to me about your senior year of high school. What ultimately made you come from Chicago to Boston to Oxford, Ohio, and why did you not opt to go play somewhere else, and why did you choose to come here?

Wil Stevens:

I chose to ultimately come here... So for the past about five summers, I served as a golf caddy, I worked as a golf caddy out on Nantucket Golf Club. Through that program, it helped me to get an Evans scholarship. So I'm an Evans scholar and I'm here at Miami [inaudible 00:12:38]-

Jason Meggyesy:

I didn't know that, bro.

Wil Stevens:

Evans scholarship. So coming out of high school, bro, it was tough for me to make a decision. I'm thinking like, man, bro, I'm trying to go play basketball, and I'm not sure what's going to happen over in Miami if I go here, but I do want to play D1. I had some D3 looks coming out of high school. I chose to ultimately come to Miami. I had some friends that was here, so I chose to visit and loved the campus when I visited. But just I want to walk on, see if I can walk on and play D1. I know I can. I'm not sure what the journey's going to look like, but I know I can do this. I want to challenge and see if I can do it for real.

Wil Stevens:

And my advisor in high school told me something that helped me make the decision much easier. She's just like, "Whatever decision you make, you're going lose out on something." Because I was like... I was trying to make the best decision, like, "Okay, if I go over here, this could play out like this. If I go over here, it could potentially play out like this." It doesn't really matter where you end up it, it matters what you do with it. So what she said. You're going to miss out, you going to lose out on something, wherever you end up. So I say that all of that helped me to choose Miami.

Jason Meggyesy:

That's something that I don't think a lot of peoples understand, especially when they're coming into the school, it's like you think you have this roadmap that you're like, "All right, I'm going to come in and it's going to play out like this." But it never ends up being like that. I mean, I'm a senior now and I can tell you that my plan has changed about 40 different times, you know what I mean? And I think it's good to implement that mindset early so you don't have... Not that it's bad to have expectations, you know what I'm saying? But be able to adapt and make those adjustments, you know what I'm saying? And do you think you've done that for sure?

Wil Stevens:

For sure, bro. Coming in, I had high hopes again. When I came into high school, I'm thinking I'm going to make varsity, and I had high hopes of walking on my freshman year. obviously I didn't understand to too much of the system. I thought it would just be as easy as me trying out make the team, but they had a full team, so I had to be a ºÚÁÏÉçÇø manager for two years. Man, that was a humbling experience for me. And I had to take a step back and it just helped me to observe the game from a different lens and different perspective that I needed in a way.

Jason Meggyesy:

So before we get too much into the basketball thing, talk to me about your ºÚÁÏÉçÇø experience freshman year. What was that like? I mean, you'd already had the experience in Boston, being away. Were there any differences, challenges when you first came on campus?

Wil Stevens:

Yeah, so I'd say since challenges for me freshman year was just learning how to prioritize. That's still something I'm learning to do, prioritize in my time, because you come to college, it's a lot of things at once, you feel me, so you got to really learn to prioritize and take care of your business for real. Because you got to your life, you got your academics. If you're an athlete, you got sports to worry about, and you got to worry about yourself and spend an individual time. So really just learning how to balance is something I struggle with in a way, coming in to college and something I've been working on more.

Wil Stevens:

And also just remembering to stay true to myself. Sometimes I see myself veering away from that and just adjusting or changing myself up for somebody else in a way. So I just had to remind myself you got to remain true to yourself, so that's something I think it's very important to remember and work on and actively work on in your time in college. When you first come in, you got all these different people, different friend groups, you're trying to find your niche, you're trying to find what you're majoring in. So I think it's important to take a step back and just really observe yourself, observe what's going on so you can make the best decision for yourself because ultimately that's why the think the experience is about learning how to make the best decisions for yourself.

Jason Meggyesy:

Yeah, exactly. So you came into Oxford thinking, "All right, I'm about to try out for the team about to try to walk on," but when did it really come onto your radar that this was something you could do?

Wil Stevens:

So I'd say my freshman year. When I was a ºÚÁÏÉçÇø manager, they put me in some of the drills or on the scout team and I'd be playing against some of the players, and then being able to perform against the guys as a freshman, as a manager, that gave me a boost of confidence, and I'm like, "I could play at this level. I could really really do it." Because I realized what I was missing in high school, I was missing that sureness, that confidence that you need at this level. That's all you really need, for real. So it just helped me see what I was missing and what I need to get.

Jason Meggyesy:

Now you're on the team, bro, is there anybody that you want to shout out through the process coaches, staff, things like that?

Wil Stevens:

Man, through the process who've helped me, shout out to coach Lowe. Coach Lowe was someone who, when I was a ºÚÁÏÉçÇø manager, he allowed me to work out with the guys. Sometimes I come up six in the morning, get it in with them. If they didn't need me to rebound, he'd let me just work out with them. And that was a confidence boost for me. I got a chance to really go through those workouts before I was on the team. I got a chance to see what I needed to work on, the pace I needed to be playing at. And just for a coach to believe me in that sense, it just gave me a lot of hope and a lot of just drive to keep going.

Wil Stevens:

Shout out to my trainer and mentor, Los, back home in Chicago. Somebody who's been there for me since I was about sixth grade, when I first started working out. He brought me to my first workouts. A lot of my mentality now is because of him. And shout out to my mom, my family. Everybody has just been with me throughout this process and still believing in me when it wasn't looking up.

Jason Meggyesy:

You got the Jersey, you're traveling, you're doing all this stuff. You're technically a ºÚÁÏÉçÇø athlete. You are a ºÚÁÏÉçÇø athlete. Now on to the school track. How has that changed your perception and your experience as a ºÚÁÏÉçÇø? Talk to me about that balance now that you have to play with?

Wil Stevens:

Man, it's real balance, bro. I'm still learning how to prioritize. So being a ºÚÁÏÉçÇø manager, having that jersey, I'm just learning how to organize my time in a more efficient manner so I can make sure that I'm getting in my work and being present in the spaces where I'm playing basketball and not allowing academics to affect me, because if you're not on top of academics, it can trickle over into the sports setting. So being at this stage where I've just been teaching me I need to prioritize my time more, I need to learn more organization, which I've been working on, learning how to continue to hold myself accountable, too, and making sure I'm staying on top of my business.

Jason Meggyesy:

What kind of classes are you taking? What would've been some of your favorite classes, especially in a unique major like you have?

Wil Stevens:

So some of the classes I'm taking this semester, I'm taking a Martin Chinese translation course, which translates some popular Martin Chinese books into English, and I've been really enjoying that class because it's given me a different perspective. We talk about Buddhism, Confucianism, just the Chinese way of life. It's just interesting just to see the parallels. So I'd say that's one of my favorite classes right now. And I'm also taking a history of South Africa course. So that's been a class that I've been interested in too.

Jason Meggyesy:

And are you involved in any other organizations, and if so, just talk to me about your involvement with those.

Wil Stevens:

So I'm involved in the Blockchain Club here at Miami, minimally. I try to participate and be a part of it whenever I can, but that's a club that I've been actively involved in. So the Blockchain Club, pretty much, we focus on all things cryptocurrencies, NFTs, blockchain technology in general. So what just brought me to that club, I'm very interested in cryptocurrencies and this whole new wave of technology that's to come. So I'm also in the BSAA, Black Student Action Association. That's another club that I'm minimally involved in, but try to make my appearances when I can.

Jason Meggyesy:

So it's just been a flurry of things it seems like, but how would you define your college experience thus far?

Wil Stevens:

I've learned a lot about myself. I've learned that I need to take a step back, relax, and just really take in and be grateful for just the present. I feel like it's easy to have so many thoughts roaming and to be thinking about things that don't truly matter in the essence. So this whole college experience has been teaching me to value myself, to grow myself. That's what it's been about. Accountability, responsibility, and just taking action for real.

Jason Meggyesy:

So what do you hope to accomplish in this last year that you're here at Miami potentially, both academically and athletically?

Wil Stevens:

So academically I want to accomplish... I want to end out with some 4.0s. I feel like if I prioritize my time a little more, I could really max out in my academics in a way that I haven't before. For sports, basketball, man, I'm trying to win a MAC championship with my team, and that's it. That's all, for real. So just my challenge for me and my goal for me is to really take every day serious and value every day that's leading up to the championship that we're going to achieve next year.

Jason Meggyesy:

So now in a perfect world, if everything goes according to Wil Stevens, what does life after school look

Wil Stevens:

Man, everything go according to will Stevens, I'm in the NBA with it, man. But No, seriously though, I'm trying to take my basketball career as far as I can. I know what I can do. So whatever that looks like, I want to play professional ball, and I also want to continue to build and expand my clothing brand Love Loud. I got the vision for that. So I want to see that pan out, execute my plans with that and really evolve my business to a business that caters to the people. I want to be able to help as many people as I can. So that's even with basketball, I want to use basketball as a tool to help people and to spread my story, bro. I've been inspired by a lot of people's stories. Scotty Pippin, he was a walk on, he was a manager at Arkansas where he was at, and the way went through this stage that I'm going through. So I know how that was motivating for me. So my story can get out there to people and I can motivate people, bro. That's what I'm trying to do after college.

Jason Meggyesy:

Most definitely. Now the last question I like to ask everybody is what advice would you give to your freshman self? And I feel like this could be a unique one because you came in with this certain mentality and now you've had all these experiences that have shaped you into this person. And if you had 20 minutes, 30 minutes to sit down with freshman Wil, what are you saying to him?

Wil Stevens:

Man, sitting down with freshman Wil, I'm just going to tell freshman Wil to take his time? Everything's going to pan out how it pans out. You can only control what you can control. Just work, just be grateful for what you have. You got all your senses, you got perspective, you get to experience life. What more do you really need? So I would tell myself, "Man, take a step back and just observe life for real."

Jason Meggyesy:

Well, man, like I said, this one took a long time to put together, but this was a great one. It was good that we got it going, man, and your story is really inspiring. I'm glad I got to know a little bit more about you today and I wish you the best of luck in everything you got going on, man.

Wil Stevens:

Appreciate that, bro. Love to you and God bless. For sure.

Jason Meggyesy:

Wil Stevens is a junior majoring East Asian Languages and Culture with a concentration in Chinese. He is also on the men's basketball team, and hopes to play professionally after graduation.

And thank you for listening to Major Insight. If you enjoyed this podcast, share with your friends or anyone interested in navigating college life, many more episodes are now available wherever you get your podcast.