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The Indiana Daily Student

sports football

Dameon Willis Jr.'s underdog mentality fuels his NFL aspirations

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As IU linebacker Dameon Willis Jr. wandered off the field Nov. 25, 2017 at Ross-Ade Stadium in West Lafayette, Indiana, pain began to seep in.

There was the initial sting of defeat. With a 31-24 loss to Purdue, IU would finish the season 5-7, one loss short of bowl eligibility.

It was also the first time in Willis’ career the Hoosiers had not lifted the Old Oaken Bucket, given their four straight wins over the Boilermakers between 2013 and 2016.

Then there was the pain of uncertainty. 

With a planned graduation date of May 2018, there was a legitimate possibility the late November contest against Purdue would be Willis’ final time donning the cream and crimson.

As the fall shifted to winter and winter to spring, that same uncertainty remained.

Following discussions with former IU coaches Kevin Wilson and Deland McCullough, Willis was prepared to flip sides rivalry and head to Purdue for his final season of eligibility.

But before he could receive his transcripts, IU Coach Tom Allen sat down with Willis to discuss a return.

Following meetings with Allen and then-linebackers coach Kane Wommack, it was decided in June that Willis would return to the Hoosiers.

The self-proclaimed underdog was back for a chance to show NFL teams that football was in his future.

“They can expect a foxhole guy, plain and simple,” Willis said of what teams should expect of him. “A guy that has been through the fire, that’s seen it all before. So he’s prepared to go to whatever extent it takes to get the job done.”

The 2018 season was one that oozed with ambiguity for the IU defense. While Allen completely revamped the beleaguered unit from Wilson's tenure, he had to replace then-senior cornerback Rashard Fant and senior linebackers Tegray Scales and Chris Covington.

The stiffest test came in filling Scales and Covington’s combined 73 appearances over four years.

In their place stood Willis and redshirt junior linebacker Reakwon Jones, a twosome who had played in all of 46 games. And while that may not appear the most stark contrast, Jones and Willis had both been primarily used in reserve roles.

Willis’ 2018 began hot. He notched six tackles in wins over Florida International University and the University of Virginia, including one tackle for a loss against UVA.

As the season wore on, bouts with inconsistency plagued Willis. He totaled just two and three tackles, respectively, against Ball State University and Michigan State the following two weeks. A season-high nine tackles against then-No. 3 ranked Ohio State Buckeyes followed two weeks later.

Then Willis' slide down the depth chart began.

With the return of sophomore T.D. Roof and the emergence of freshman Micah McFadden and redshirt freshman Thomas Allen, Willis’ role in an increasingly crowded linebackers room faded into a slight level of obscurity.

But this was just Willis’ latest appearance in an underdog role he's come to endear himself to.

As a high school prospect, he received just two Power Five Conference scholarship offers — those came from IU and the University of Louisville, per 247Sports. A few of the Midwest’s major programs such as Michigan State, Penn State, Michigan and the University of Notre Dame showed interest, but no offers came.

“Underdog, that’s really been my mentality,” Willis said. “I’ve always been overlooked. Always been there with the top guys, never really received the notoriety.”

With the final chapter of Willis’ IU story careening toward a whimpered ending due to the ongoing inconsistencies, the Cleveland, Ohio native found himself in a familiar spot.

The Hoosiers entered their final game of the season, Nov. 24, 2018, against Purdue at 5-6, needing one more victory in the Old Oaken Bucket game to reach bowl eligibility for the first time since Willis’ sophomore year.

In a wholly uninspired first three quarters, the Boilermakers gashed the Hoosiers defense, taking a 21-7 lead into the fourth quarter.

Seeking the proverbial knockout blow, Purdue’s offense marched into IU territory with just under 10 minutes remaining. Soon thereafter, Boilermakers junior running back Markell Jones rattled off a seven-yard scamper. There to impede his path was Willis.

In the grand scheme of things, Willis’ tackle was rather nondescript.

But there was something poetic to his final recorded statistic as a Hoosier. Willis had never been one for the spotlight. Undoubtedly, awards and recognition are nice, but working outside the glitz and glam is what gave him his edge.

Minutes after that final tackle, the 6-foot-1-inch, 225-pound linebacker would walk off the field at Memorial Stadium one final time, albeit in defeat.

For the second straight year, Purdue retained the Old Oaken Bucket. For the second straight year, IU would miss out on bowl eligibility in the final week of the season. And for the second straight year, Willis didn’t know what his football future would hold.

Currently, he’s planning to train at Apec Sports in Tyler, Texas to prepare for IU’s Pro Day later this spring.

With a strong showing in front of scouts, perhaps Willis will hear his name called in April’s NFL Draft. More likely, he’ll be headed for an undrafted free-agent contract. 

But no matter, uncertainty is no longer a source of pain for Willis as it was following the November 2017 loss at Ross-Ade Stadium. Rather, it’s a source of hope.

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