Ken Willis
Ken Willis
Moves between deep coverage and the slot. Two head coaches in three seasons, at two different programs. The receipt: 3 tackles against App State — Week 12, 2025.
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- positional archetype classification
- head-coach lineage
- game log
Career Arc
Coaching Lineage · 2023–2025
2 coachesCoaching transition mid-career: Damian Wroblewski → Bob Chesney. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
2025 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
Splits & context
Supporting Cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Billy Napier
Awards
Player Standing · 17 rungs
Tier 1 · 2-deepR04 · Rotational
Rotational. Tackle volume for the position in rotation-piece range.
Career stats
| Season | Team | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | James Madison | 6 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | -- | -- |
| 2024 | Cincinnati | 7 | 7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2023 | Cincinnati | 23 | 12 | 1.0 | 0.0 | -- | 2 | -- |
| Career | 36 | 23 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 2 | -- |
How he plays
Play style
Moves between deep coverage and the slot — the modern positionless DB.
CFB Index positional classification
2026 Outlook
James Madison
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Safety · James Madison
Returning around him
- Transfer portal: +7 net (37 in / 30 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
James Madison · Last season: 12-2 (AP #19) · Talent rank #127 · 2026 recruiting class #80
DNA match
Player DNA
Hybrid Nickel
Moves between deep coverage and the slot — the modern positionless DB.
His 2023 production profile sits closest to James Reed III’s 2023 season.
Matches James on
Differs from James on
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a freshman, his production profile tracks closest to Simeon Harris's freshman season at Colorado (2022).
Matches Simeon on
Background
2025: Played in all 14 games Had seven tackles (four solo) to go with one pass breakup Season-high three tackles and a PBU vs. App State (Nov. 15) JMU Athletic Director's Scholar-Athlete (Spring 2026) 2024 at Cincinnati: Played in all 12 games Had seven tackles (all solo) Made a pair of tackles v...