Defensive end, Michigan State, 2016–19
Kenny Willekes
Lettered 2017–19 (school media guide)
- Number
- No. 48
- Height
- 6′4″
- Weight
- 260 lb
- Class (2019)
- Senior
- Hometown
- Rockford, MI
- Born
- Jul 22, 1997
Wikipedia readers: about 592 a month over the past year
Kenny Willekes played defensive end at Michigan State (2016–19). He won the 2019 Burlsworth Trophy. The Minnesota Vikings took Willekes in round 7, No. 225 overall in the 2020 NFL Draft.
At a glance
Career highs
13tackles, career highvs. Ohio State, 20182sacks, career highfive times; last vs. Western Michigan, 2019Honors
Players of the year, conference and regional honors: Wikipedia’s lists (CC BY-SA), each linked from its honor.
Defense
| Season | Team | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | PD | Hur |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Michigan State | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2017 | Michigan State | 72 | 33 | 14 | 6.5 | 2 | 8 |
| 2018 | Michigan State | 77 | 37 | 20.5 | 8 | 1 | 12 |
| 2019 | Michigan State | 78 | 32 | 16 | 10.5 | 0 | 16 |
| Career | 227 | 102 | 50.5 | 25 | 4 | 36 | |
Season lines from CollegeFootballData, regular season and bowls.
On the roster
| Season | Team | No. | Pos | Class | Ht | Wt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Michigan State | 48 | DE | Fr. | ||
| 2017 | Michigan State | 48 | DE | So. | ||
| 2018 | Michigan State | 48 | DE | Jr. | ||
| 2019 | Michigan State | 48 | DE | Sr. | 6′4″ | 260 |
As each season’s roster listed the player (CollegeFootballData). Classes before the latest listing are counted back from it; “Yr 1” is the year on file where that count can’t place a season he played (a redshirt, transfer or 2020 year); height and weight as last listed.
Game by game
2019 Michigan State 13 games, 78 tackles, 10.5 sacks
| Date | Opponent | Result | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 30 | vs. Tulsa | W 28–7 | 7 | 2 | 2.5 | 1.5 | 0 |
| Sep 7 | vs. Western Michigan | W 51–17 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Sep 14 | vs. Arizona State | L 7–10 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 0.5 | 0 |
| Sep 21 | at Northwestern | W 31–10 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 28 | vs. Indiana | W 40–31 | 12 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 5 | at Ohio State | L 10–34 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 12 | at Wisconsin | L 0–38 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 26 | vs. Penn State | L 7–28 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 9 | vs. Illinois | L 34–37 | 6 | 2 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 0 |
| Nov 16 | at Michigan | L 10–44 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Nov 23 | at Rutgers | W 27–0 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Nov 30 | vs. Maryland | W 19–16 | 6 | 3 | 2.5 | 1.5 | 0 |
| Dec 27 ✦ | vs. Wake Forest | W 27–21 | 9 | 4 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 0 |
2018 Michigan State 13 games, 77 tackles, 8 sacks
| Date | Opponent | Result | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 31 | vs. Utah State | W 38–31 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Sep 8 | atArizona State | L 13–16 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 22 | atIndiana | W 35–21 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Sep 29 | vs. Central Michigan | W 31–20 | 5 | 2 | 1.5 | 1 | 0 |
| Oct 6 | vs.Northwestern | L 19–29 | 8 | 2 | 1.5 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 13 | atPenn State | W 21–17 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Oct 20 | vs.Michigan | L 7–21 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 0.5 | 0 |
| Oct 27 | vs. Purdue | W 23–13 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 3 | atMaryland | W 24–3 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1.5 | 0 |
| Nov 10 | vs.Ohio State | L 6–26 | 13 | 4 | 3.5 | 1 | 1 |
| Nov 17 | at Nebraska | L 6–9 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 24 | vs.Rutgers | W 14–10 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dec 31 ✦ | vs. Oregon | L 6–7 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2017 Michigan State 13 games, 72 tackles, 6.5 sacks
| Date | Opponent | Result | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2 | vs. Bowling Green | W 35–10 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Sep 9 | vs.Western Michigan | W 28–14 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 23 | vs. Notre Dame | L 18–38 | 10 | 3 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 30 | vs. Iowa | W 17–10 | 2 | 0 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 7 | atMichigan | W 14–10 | 9 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| Oct 14 | at Minnesota | W 30–27 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Oct 21 | vs.Indiana | W 17–9 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 28 | atNorthwestern | L 31–39 | 5 | 4 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 4 | vs.Penn State | W 27–24 | 5 | 0 | 1.5 | 0.5 | 1 |
| Nov 11 | atOhio State | L 3–48 | 9 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 18 | vs.Maryland | W 17–7 | 9 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| Nov 25 | atRutgers | W 40–7 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dec 28 ✦ | vs. Washington State | W 42–17 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2016 Michigan State 1 game
| Date | Opponent | Result | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 12 | vs.Rutgers | W 49–0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Box scores from CollegeFootballData, 2004 on. ✦ postseason; ★ a career high on file.
Before the draft
Played in the 2020 Senior Bowl (North team, won 34–17).
| Drill | Combine 2020 |
|---|---|
| Height | 6′3½″ |
| Weight | 264 lb |
| Arm length | 31¼″ |
| Hand size | 9½″ |
| Wingspan | 77⅞″W |
| 40-yard dash | 4.87 s |
| 10-yard split | 1.69 sW |
| Vertical jump | 32½″ |
| Broad jump | 9′11″ |
| Bench press | 32 reps |
| 3-cone drill | 7.39 s |
Unmarked: Combine and pro day results compiled by array-carpenter (nfl-draft-data); W: Pre-draft measurables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). Rosters and honors: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).
In the NFL
1 season, 5 games with a stat; latest team: Minnesota Vikings.
| Season | Team | G | Tkl | Sacks | Int |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Minnesota Vikings | 5 | 16 | 2.5 | 0 |
Regular seasons, from nflverse (CC BY 4.0). G counts games in which the player recorded a stat.
Other pro football
| Years | League | Team |
|---|---|---|
| 2024–25 | UFL | Michigan Panthers |
| 2026– | UFL | Columbus Aviators |
Leagues other than the NFL, from the infobox of his Wikipedia article (CC BY-SA), as it names the teams.
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