Defensive end Donnie Wingate has three of SIU’s nine sacks this season. The Lindenwood transfer also has 22 tackles and an interception. (Photo by SIUSalukis.com)
By Barry Bottino
In Donnie Wingate’s first season of college football, he experienced 60,000 fans storming the field at Oklahoma State after beating rival Oklahoma.
The “Bedlam” game, as the rivalry is known in the state, is comparable to his latest rush of being a big brother.
“I was an only child until about a month ago,” said Wingate, a fifth-year senior defensive end at Southern Illinois. “That’s been a huge shift in my life. It’s a great one. I’m enjoying it.”
While in high school, Wingate’s father passed away. His mother has since remarried and recently gave birth to a baby girl.
“I like having a little sister, and it gives me a little more motivation on the field,” he said. “My mom has been sending me pictures. My sister has little Saluki shirts.”
Wingate once collected shoes, has learned plenty about rugby from his girlfriend – Lindenwood University All-American Irie Farley – and enjoys a family tradition of catching catfish in a very unique way.
Get to know all about Wingate in our Moving the Chains Q&A series.
After being at another school for several years, how was the transition to a new team?
It was great. I came in (from Lindenwood) and felt like I got acquainted with the guys super fast. Slowly, I started hanging out with people outside of football too. I feel like I meshed well with the guys. I hit it off right off the bat.
Do you remember the first teammate you hit it off with?
Probably (Jake) Parella because we’re in the same position group. He’s a good dude, comes in with a smile. He’s a big blonde guy with long hair. It’s hard not to notice him.
What are your favorite things about playing defensive end?
I love the grittiness. To play in the trenches, you have to be able to go to a different place. I like the violence that comes with playing defensive end. It’s also about hunting the quarterback.
Your high school – Choctaw High in Oklahoma – won a football state title last season. Were you able to keep up with them?
I try to check in on them and some of the coaches who coached me. They always check in on me and see how I’m playing. There are classes (in Oklahoma prep football) and the highest it goes is 6A. There are two divisions in 6A, though. There’s 6A-1 and 6A-2. Choctaw is in 6A-2. The 6A-1 class is the biggest of the big.
Is Choctaw known for a specific sport?
It’s known for football now. When I first got there as a freshman, Choctaw wasn’t known too well for football, but nothing like the program is now.
Choctaw has won numerous team and individual state wrestling titles. Did you wrestle?
I did. I loved wrestling. It was one of those sports that I did to get better for football. But I also fell in love with it. I played linebacker and defensive end in high school. The leverage that wrestling gives you helps, and it teaches you how to control other peoples’ bodies, change levels. The footwork translates to football too, especially for a position like linebacker or defensive end where you’re constantly making contact with somebody. That was the main reason for me doing it.
You went to high school about 10 miles east of Oklahoma City. What do you enjoy about your home state?
There’s plenty of stuff to do, that’s for sure. I like the layout of Oklahoma. We do have a big city, but at the same time, there’s a lot of country, lakes, rivers, lots of land for whatever you want to do. I’m a big outdoors guy, so hunting and fishing is everywhere.
Deer season is right now. I’m going out to shoot my bow this evening with (teammate) Shug Walker. I’m also a huge duck hunter. That’s probably my favorite kind of hunting to do.
In the summer, we fish for catfish, crappie, bass. My favorite is noodling, where you catch the catfish with your hands.
Can you explain the process of noodling?
My uncle and my dad always did it when I was young. As soon as me and my cousins got big enough to get in the rivers and lakes, we were hopping in with them trying to see if we could find some fish. It’s been in my family for a good amount of time. My great grandparents did it.
There are holes under rocks and concrete and wood, whatever is in the water. The catfish will go under there and that’s where they have their babies, in those holes.
They’ll be in there protecting their eggs.
When you put your hand in there, they’ll come out and smack your hand. You try to grab them up when they do that. The adrenaline is insane.
What are your favorite things about Carbondale and the southern Illinois region?
Kind of like back home, there’s a good amount of things to do outdoors here. There are some lakes down the road, a couple minutes away, lots of woods. Having some boys around here that like to go fishing in the summer, that’s been one of my favorite parts of being out here.
You’ve played football and wrestled in your career. What have you learned about rugby from your girlfriend, Irie Farley, who plays at Lindenwood?
My girlfriend introduced it to me. I love it. I think it’s a great sport. If I didn’t play football and the sport was a little bigger in Oklahoma, I might have played rugby. It has that style that I like – the grittiness, the contact, the violence. My girlfriend was an All-American last year. She’s a dog.
As a football player, what parts of rugby did you need explained to you?
I still don’t understand the rules. (Laughs) She’ll be talking to me about something that happened in the match. I know the basics of it. I know the points are called tries, but I’m still learning. There’s a lot to it that I don’t know.
Tell us about your family back home in Oklahoma.
My mom is a program director at a college. She just gave birth to my little sister, not even a month ago. That’s been a huge shift in my life. It’s a great one. I’m enjoying it. I like having a little sister, and it gives me a little more motivation on the field. My dad passed away when I was in high school. He was a sheet metal mechanic at Tinker Air Force Base.
My mom remarried and is married to a great guy. I was an only child until about a month ago.
My mom has been sending me pictures of her. My sister has little Saluki shirts.
In Oklahoma, what’s the split between OU and Oklahoma State fans?
It’s probably half and half, I’d say. It just depends on where you’re at in the state. That rivalry is huge. Bedlam is the biggest thing in Oklahoma. It’s sad that they’re not having it anymore because Oklahoma is in the Southeastern Conference. I would love to see that come back one day. It’s one of the biggest things in Oklahoma.
My family probably leans OSU because I went there. We have some people in the family who are OU fans, too.
Do you have any gameday superstitions?
I don’t. I used to be a little bit superstitious when I was younger. I just try to stay relaxed before the game, go have fun with it and enjoy the game.
Do have a favorite uniform combination from your time at SIU?
I’d say the all-whites are one of the better uniforms we have. The Blackout Cancer game uniforms looked really good too.
What’s your favorite place that you have traveled to in your life?
I haven’t been too many places. I’d say Colorado is up there. We used to go there when I was younger to snowboard and ski. I really enjoy it up there in the mountains when it’s all snowy. I snowboard, but I haven’t gone in a few years. I’m probably pretty rusty.
Are there any places on your travel bucket list?
I want to go everywhere. Obviously, I want to go to Hawaii, which is where my girlfriend is from. I want to go to Mexico and somewhere tropical. I’ve been to Florida once, and I enjoyed it, but I want to go somewhere that’s really tropical.
Have you ever had a hobby in which you’ve collected something?
When I was in middle school and early high school, I collected shoes. I had so many pairs of Jordans. I was trying to get as many as I could. I got up to a good number. I would buy some, then sell them to make some money.
Do you have a dream job after football is over?
It would be to open up a place where I can train athletes. That’s my passion outside of football – working out and training. I love the whole aspect of that.
Do you have a favorite stadium that you’ve played in during your career?
North Dakota State was cool. Saluki Stadium, when it’s jumping, is a great place to play. My favorite game was Bedlam during my freshman year at Oklahoma State. That was crazy. There were 60,000 fans and everybody stormed the field. Winning Bedlam and being in the middle of the field with 60,000 people storming the field is crazy.
I’ve never seen that many people at once all moving somewhere.
Who is an unsung hero to you in the Saluki football program?
For us as players, I’d say Coach Meade Smith (SIU’s head strength coach) and the training room staff. I don’t think people realize how much work goes into our bodies and keeping us healthy. That happens in the weight room. That happens in the training room.
Barry Bottino is a co-founder of Prairie State Pigskin and a 19-year veteran of three Illinois newspapers. He has covered college athletics since 1995.
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