TROY FOOTBALL: Columbus native Willis shining at cornerback for Trojans

TROY — Troy offensive coordinator Neal Brown watched Bryan Willis carry the ball during a game at Shaw High School in Columbus, Ga., and immediately got worried.

Brown, who recruits that area, had spotted Willis during his junior season and immediately thought he could be a cornerback at this level. Defensive coordinator Jeremy Rowell agreed, and the Trojans offered Willis.

But Willis shined on both sides of the ball during his senior year, including a 16-carry, 298-yard performance against LaGrange that had Brown buzzing.

“I’m thinking, ‘Man I fouled this one up,’” Brown said. “We should have taken him on offense. But we had a bigger need (at corner). He could have played running back for us because they were doing a lot of what we do on offense.”

But Willis’ first love was defense. He had 12 interceptions over his last two years at Shaw, returning four for touchdowns. He committed to Troy late in his senior year and signed with the Trojans in 2008.

After a redshirt season, Willis won a starting cornerback spot. He leads the Trojans, who play at Western Kentucky at 4 p.m. today, with three interceptions.

“Coach (Jeremy) Rowell liked how physical I played and he liked to see me hit,” Willis said. “I liked running the ball, but I wanted to be a DB (defensive back).”

Troy has gotten a lot of players from Columbus. Starting safeties Chris Bowens and Courtland Fuller are from Columbus, and Bowens went to Shaw. Last year’s starting nickel, Terence Moore, also went to Shaw.

“Shaw had a pretty good run and we had gotten a lot of those kids,” Brown said. “He had a really good junior year and didn’t play much offense. His recruiting heated up when they let him play some offense. We were able to hold off some (other schools).”

Willis wasn’t under-recruited, and could have gone to Vanderbilt and played in the SEC, but felt Troy was the place for him.

“Troy was a good school for me to come to,” Willis said. “You can go to any school and start. You don’t have to go to a big school just to get major exposure.”

Willis has made some big plays early for the Trojans, including an interception in the end zone in an early UL-Monroe drive in last week’s 42-21 win. Rowell isn’t quick to stroke his ego, though, as he and junior college transfer Barry Valcin have gone through some growing pains in their first year as starters.

Still, the ceiling is high for Willis. He has the tools to follow in the same path as former Trojan defensive backs Leodis McKelvin and Sherrod Martin, who are now in the NFL.

“He’s got athletic ability,” Rowell said. “He’s relaxing and making plays on the ball. There’s a lot of difference between being athletic and making plays than understanding everything.”

He said he wasn’t surprised that he became a starter before his first college game.

“I knew I had a chance to get a spot in the spring, and I showed up,” Willis said. “They decided I was ready. I got better with my back-pedaling and learned the plays and just put it to use.”