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Former walk-on Kenny Willekes becomes first Spartan defender to capture team award twice
By Paul Harvey
Published:
Kenny Willekes is putting the finishing touches on an extraordinary career in East Lansing!
The former Michigan State walk-on and All-American defensive end has turned into one of the most disruptive forces in the B1G. As a senior, Willekes has put up 69 tackles, 14 tackles for loss, and set a new career-high with 8.5 sacks with a bowl game still to come.
On Sunday night, Michigan State Football announced Willekes has also become the first Spartan defender to win the Governor’s Award twice. That award is given to Michigan State’s team MVP each season, an award Willekes previously captured in 2018.
Willekes joins George Saimes, Eric Allen, Lorenzo White, Scott Green, Drew Stanton, and Javon Ringer as the only Spartans to win the team award multiple times:
Congrats to @kennyw97 for becoming the first-ever Spartan defensive player to win the Governor's Award (team MVP) twice! Check out the rest of the winners from today's annual awards banquet ⬇️https://t.co/jfjTzEubXm
— Michigan State Football (@MSU_Football) December 1, 2019
For his career, Willekes has 219 tackles, 49.5 tackles for loss, and 22 sacks. He is Michigan State’s all-time leader in tackles for loss.
Paul is a lifelong fan and student of all things college football. He has been covering college football since 2017 and the B1G since 2018.