East Lansing — When Kenny Willekes first came across Michigan State’s radar, the coaching staff wondered how the big, physical kid from a small school on the west side of the state had done no better than garnering Division II scholarship offers.
When he first arrived on campus as a preferred walk-on, Brian Lewerke was sure Willekes was just another guy. Nothing special, really.
So, yeah, there were differing opinions on the 6-foot-4 ball of energy who collected 162 tackles as a high-school senior at NorthPointe Christian in Grand Rapids while also carrying the ball for more than 1,400 yards and 14 touchdowns.