*This story can also be found in the August 31 edition of the Arkansas State Football digital game day program*

Charles Willekes' foray into college football was not the most conventional route – one that eventually led to Arkansas State.
 
After graduating high school in 2017, the Rockford, Michigan, native took two gap years and worked as a snowmobile mechanic, where he showcased his strong work ethic over 14-hour shifts.
 
Willekes' sister and brother-in-law owned the business in Grand Rapids, which eventually began as a salvage yard before evolving into selling new parts. There, he honed mechanical skills, but also people skills that would one day come in handy as one of the chief communicators on defense.
 
"Working at the shop, they gave me a pretty good role," Willekes said. "I worked the front desk a lot, so I did a lot of customer service and dealt with people. I was working the phone and front desk as a cashier but was able to (work) on snowmobiles, and really enjoyed doing that."
 
After leaving the snowmobile shop, Willekes walked on at Michigan State, where his brother also walked on before becoming an All-American and winner of the Burlsworth Trophy – an honor given annually to the most outstanding FBS college football player who began his career as a walk-on.
 
However, after two years in East Lansing, Willekes found a new home at Arkansas State with the help of his little league coach, who played wideout at Central Michigan under A-State head coach Butch Jones.
 
Willekes joined the Red Wolves ahead of the 2021 season as a walk-on, earning time on special teams, where he earned his stripes en route to eventually earning a starting spot at linebacker – and a scholarship.
 
"Special teams is where you earn your spot on the bus," Willekes said. "It's where you earn the coaches' trust. Coaches will put kids out on special teams first to see if they can really do it at live-game speed. Once they see you can do that, they're able to work you into your position. Getting out there on special teams was nice, because in a sense there's less pressure. You can go out there and get your first couple of live reps before you're doing something like running the defense."
 
Now on scholarship, Willekes is one of the leaders not just on the defensive side of the ball, but on the entire team. The 2023 Burlsworth Trophy nominee started in all 13 games as a junior, racking up 89 tackles and earned SBC Honorable Mention honors.
 
But like many great leaders, Willekes has a strong supporting cast around him to help maintain the high standards of A-State football – even with as many as 50-60 new players on the squad.
 
"I have a good group of leaders around me, especially in the linebacker room with Justin Parks and Dane Motley," he said. "In the DB room I have Trevian Thomas. James Reed is younger but coming into a little bit of leadership role. Having those guys around me helps getting so many new guys on the team (get acclimated). We have a culture and a standard to uphold and show what that looks like to everyone coming in. It takes a lot, every single day, to uphold that - if you don't, it can go away.