Carver Willis had been on track to graduate early from high school since his sophomore year. He never could have known how valuable that would be as he takes his next step in his football career.
A standout student and offensive lineman at Durango High School, Willis signed a National Letter of Intent with Kansas State University on Wednesday during the early National Signing Day.
Willis will graduate from DHS this semester and begin college classes in January. That will allow him to participate in spring practices with Kansas State and give him a leg up on other incoming freshman.
“It’s hugely important. The whole football aspect of them losing six offensive linemen and talking about me playing and starting in spring ball, it’s really important and huge for me to get that experience this spring,” Willis said.
Willis, son of Brett and Gretchen Willis, had verbally committed to Kansas State in July. Though a few other programs contacted him during his senior season, his commitment to the Wildcats never wavered. He also had offers from Colorado State, Kansas, New Mexico State, Northern Colorado and Wyoming. He is a three-star recruit.
“Once I committed, I told all the other colleges that once I commit, that’s it,” Willis said. “There was no swaying. It was K-State all the way.”
There is a buzz around Manhattan, Kansas. Head coach Chris Klieman took over the program from longtime head coach Bill Snyder and led the program to an 8-4 overall record and 5-4 mark in the Big 12 Conference – including a massive upset of College Football Playoff bound Oklahoma – a year after the team had finished 5-7 and 3-6 in conference play. Klieman and the Wildcats will play No. 23 Navy in the Liberty Bowl on Dec. 31.
“I am thrilled to go in and be part of it,” Willis said. “Even with Bill Snyder there, it was a great program. With coach Klieman stepping up, it’s been great. He’s bringing in a whole new level of recruits and game play, and I am excited to jump in and be part of it. There’s definitely something to be excited about with the spirit around that school.”
Klieman made time to visit Durango in early December to see Willis, who first met the coach at a team camp last summer.
Welcome home, @carverwillis75#KStateFB #NSD20 pic.twitter.com/bCabdrjqne
— K-State Football (@KStateFB) December 18, 2019
“We saw the physicality in film,” Klieman said of Willis in a news conference Wednesday. “We want to see the athleticism, and the athleticism was there in camp. That was a big thing we needed to see. Ability to sink his hips, ability to move his feet, ability to have good hand placement. You could tell he was a technician, and so once we saw him do those things, we felt pretty comfortable.”
Willis will get a chance to compete for a starting job early. The Wildcats will return only one lineman from 2019 who played regularly, and all five starters will graduate. There are 12 returning linemen on scholarship, and Willis was one of three linemen to sign on early signing day.
As a senior, Willis was the left tackle on a strong offensive line that helped lead the Durango Demons to the Class 3A state quarterfinals. Defensively, he had two sacks, 19 total tackles and nine for a loss.
The coaches have told Willis he will need to gain weight. At 6-foot-5, 260 pounds, Willis knows he needs to get bigger to handle the 300-pound defensive linemen of the Big 12.
“I’m not Big 12 material quite yet. I have to gain weight and get that playbook under wraps,” Willis said. “Going up against 300 pound guys at 260 isn’t going to work. But as soon as I step on campus, I’m competing for a starting spot. It’s go time from there.”
Willis is from a football family. His older sister, Kayla, played until her junior year of high school, and she is on the film crew for Texas Tech football.
“We’re hoping to get to go to a bunch of games, get to cheer and be part of the culture there,” Brett Willis said. “This is a very cool day, very surreal. It’s nice for Carver to have the recognition for all the hard work and see it actually become real. It’s been a lot of work, a lot of travel and a lot of effort. He’s had a lot of responsibility with all the communication he has to do, and when he’s gone to the camps, he’s had to be present, in the moment and be fully committed to what he was on the field for.”
Willis plans to study business in college. His ascension from a small mountain town to big-time Division I college football showed his skill and hard work and also was beneficial to his high school teammates and coaches who got to meet Klieman during his visit to Durango.
“To go through the whole experience with Division I coaches coming to the program and getting their eyes on other kids who otherwise wouldn’t get eyes on them is a blessing,” DHS head coach David Vogt said. “Especially for me to ask (Klieman) how he develops programs, what he does for team building, it was great to get advice from a coach who is successful at that level.”
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
