Lung Transplant Survivor Inspires, Teaches Through Football
By
Doug Donnelly
Special for MHSAA.com
September 1, 2021
ADRIAN – As the final seconds ticked off the clock in the 2019 Division 8 Regional Football Final at Reading, Adrian Lenawee Christian assistant coach Jon Willett started looking for his wife.
Reading would be going on to play the next week, while the LCS’s season was over. Willett desperately needed oxygen. He could barely breath.
Hillary Willett, Jon’s wife, pulled the car as close to the Reading field as she could, and Jon opened the door.
“I got in the car and sat down,” Willett said. “And I looked at her and I said, ‘I just coached my last game.’”
As miracles go, Willett was wrong. Less than two months after that football game that Willett thought was his last, he underwent a double lung transplant at the University of Michigan Hospital. He still doesn’t know how he survived so long, but is certain there was divine intervention.
“I’ve always had a close relationship with Jesus Christ,” Willett said. “And I’ve always been passionate about football. I always thought that if I survived, I would use football as a tool to reach younger people. I’m doing that today.”
Willett helped coach the Cougars to last season’s 8-Player Division 1 championship and is back on the sidelines this season, coaching the Cougars JV team and continuing to serve as an assistant with the varsity.
He even gets in on some drills now and then, such as doing push-ups with the quarterbacks.
“Jon has been with me for seven or eight years,” LCS varsity head coach Bill Wilharms said. “He’s a great man and a great football coach. The kids love having him around, and he loves them. I love coaching with him, and he’s a big part of our coaching family.”
Willett grew up in Sand Creek, about 10 minutes south of Adrian in Lenawee County. He played on some outstanding Aggies football teams for Hall of Fame coach Ernie Ayers. Willett led the 1990 Aggies in rushing, finishing just shy of 1,000 yards his senior season.
He got into coaching when his sons, Noah and Isaiah, began playing flag football.
“I coached them in flag football, then in Pop Warner,” Willett said. “I love coaching football. When Noah was in middle school I coached him one year, then became an assistant for the varsity.”
Wilharms tabbed Willett to be the JV head coach, a position he’s held for the last couple of years. He also coaches varsity wide receivers and defensive backs and will assist the LCS scout team quarterbacks at practice. He jumps in whenever needed.
Sometimes, it’s as a motivational speaker.
“I share my testimony whenever possible,” Willett said. “I tell my players that life is short. You never know how long you are going to have. You truly don’t. You have to live your life to the fullest.”
Willett first was diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis – chronic, progressive lung disease – in April 2017 when he visited the doctor due to a constant cough and shortness of breath. The prognosis was not good.
“The doctor said at that point I had 65-percent capacity of my lungs,” he said. “They gave me three to five years unless I could get a double lung transplant. They said that would be the only option and that there was no cure.”
Willett believed the doctors, of course, but admits he wasn’t the best patient.
“I figured if I could make it 10 years, my kids would be out of school,” he said.
The disease had other ideas. While he was put on oxygen due to shortness of breath, his LCS football players had no idea.
“I never did it in front of them,” he said. “I should have. I wasn’t a very good patient. I was wanting to be with the team. I wanted to coach.”
In July 2019, he noticed a big change.
“My lung capacity had dropped,” he said.
He continued to coach. He had some doctors’ appointments here and there but remained coaching the entire season.
“It was a mental thing,” he said. “I wanted to get through the season.”
He rode the bus to the LCS-Reading game. When the game was over, he told Wilharms that he had to go home.
“I told Coach Wilharms that I was just getting in the car with my wife,” he said. “She pulled the car up to the gate because it was so hard to walk. I couldn’t get air because of not having oxygen.”
When he told his wife that he thought he would never coach again, she said no.
“She looked at me and she said, ‘(You’ve coached your last game) with those lungs.’”
By Christmas of 2019, Willett had been in and out of the hospital on numerous occasions. He was on oxygen tanks around the clock. He went home at Christmas, believing it was his last.
“I said I want to go home. I think it’s my last Christmas. I wanted to be with my family,” he recalled.
When he returned to the hospital after Christmas, his son Noah sat in the backseat during the car ride changing out oxygen tanks every few minutes just to keep his father alive. Willett’s oxygen levels were dangerously low.
“When I got to U-M, there was a whole team of people waiting for me. They worked on me and sent me up to ICU. It was bleak,” he said.
The LCS community sent out word via social media to pray for Coach Willett, his wife, two sons and two daughters, Emily and Abigail. Willett said those prayers were answered.
Willett was told by doctors he had to have a double lung transplant within 24 hours, or he would die. Seven hours and 13 minutes later, the doctor walked in, with tears in his eyes, and told the family they found a match.
Willett is feeling better now. In February of this year, about a month after Willett watched from the sidelines as LCS won the championship in Brighton, the medications he had been on took hold and he began to improve.
When the season started this summer, Willett was no doubt going to be part of the Cougars staff.
“Everything is very stable right now,” he said. “My lungs keep getting better. I can tell at football practice, walking from end zone to end zone, I’m feeling better. I’m building up. That exercise helps.”
Some day he plans on reaching out to the family of the person who donated lungs to him. For now, he’s grateful to be alive and thankful for every moment he gets to spend coaching football.
“I’m feeling great and loving the opportunity I have to keep coaching and be with the kids,” Willett said. “The story I get to share with my players is truly a miracle. God took me to the point where it was 100 percent out of my control.
“If I can use football as a tool to keep talking to the youth and help them become better men, I’m going to do that. Football is what drives me.”
Doug Donnelly has served as a sports and news reporter and city editor over 25 years, writing for the Daily Chief-Union in Upper Sandusky, Ohio from 1992-1995, the Monroe Evening News from 1995-2012 and the Adrian Daily Telegram since 2013. He's also written a book on high school basketball in Monroe County and compiles record books for various schools in southeast Michigan. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Lenawee Christian head varsity coach Bill Wilharms (holding football) gives assistant Jon Willett a hug after last season’s 8-Player Division 1 Final win. (Middle) Willett returned to the sideline a year after a double lung transplant. (Below) Willett serves as junior varsity head coach and varsity assistant. (Photos by Jeff Jameson/Lenawee Christian Schools.)
1st & Goal: 2022 Playoff Week 2 Preview
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
November 4, 2022
The MHSAA Football Playoffs are set up purposely to begin with local matchups and continue to branch out along more unfamiliar paths.
This weekend’s 11-Player District Finals and 8-Player Regional Finals still include a good share of familiarity – whether they are pitting regular-season rivals for a rematch or past playoff opponents who have become more known over years of similar November meetings.
Below is a glance at a game in each division that especially pops off the page. Click here for all things football matchups – schedules, scores as they come in and next-round pairings as they’re determined – and if you can’t make it to a game live this weekend, 85 percent of those games will be streamed live on MHSAA.tv.
11-Player Division 1
Caledonia (9-1) at Rockford (10-0)
The much-hyped Week 9 game matching undefeated contenders for the outright Ottawa-Kent Conference Red title turned into a 38-15 Rockford win over the Fighting Scots. But we’ve already seen plenty of rematches going the other way this postseason, even after a big win in the first meeting. Rockford opened the playoffs with a 50-14 victory over East Kentwood, putting up its most points this season and outdoing its 41-20 win over the Falcons on Sept. 23. Caledonia did similar in its 48-26 first-round win over Grandville after previously defeating the Bulldogs 50-40 during Week 5.
Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Grand Ledge (8-2) at Holt (7-3), Clarkston (8-2) at Davison (9-1), Romeo (8-2) at Macomb Dakota (10-0).
11-Player Division 2
Muskegon Mona Shores (8-2) at Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central (10-0)
The Rangers have been piling up strong seasons for the last seven, and made the Division 2 Semifinals in 2017. They haven’t advanced past the District level since, but defeating Mona Shores to do so this weekend certainly would be considered a breakout performance. Forest Hills Central hasn’t given up more than 14 points in a game and is allowing only 5.7 per game this fall. That should get a strong challenge from the Sailors, who even in their defeats put up 27 and 35 points – and they’re averaging 43 per game. Mona Shores has won its last three playoff meetings with FHC (over the last four seasons) including 31-7 last fall.
Keep an eye on these FRIDAY South Lyon (7-3) at Dexter (10-0), Warren De La Salle Collegiate (9-1) at Roseville (8-2), Birmingham Groves (7-3) at Birmingham Seaholm (8-2).
11-Player Division 3
Zeeland West (9-1) at St. Joseph (9-1)
The Dux are playing in their fifth District Final in six seasons but seeking to advance for the first time since their most recent championship run of 2015. St. Joseph shut West’s pursuit down quickly last year with a 29-26 District-opening victory that turned into an unexpected Semifinal run for the Bears after they’d entered the playoffs 5-4. Expectations are much higher this time as St. Joseph hasn’t lost since Week 1, and the offense especially is surging scoring 42 or more points in four of its last five games including three against playoff teams. West’s only loss was to Mona Shores in Week 6, and its 36-28 win over Lowell last weekend was especially noteworthy among Division 3 matchups.
Keep an eye on these FRIDAY DeWitt (7-3) at Mount Pleasant (9-1), Trenton (9-1) at Gibraltar Carlson (9-1), Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice (4-5) at Walled Lake Western (9-1).
11-Player Division 4
Tecumseh (10-0) at Riverview (10-0)
Riverview deserves more due after completing a third-straight undefeated regular season, and a first District title since 2017 would add another highlight to arguably its most impressive run of the three. Tecumseh’s story has been told a few times in this space – the team was a combined 8-25 over the last four seasons but has reached 10-0 for the first time since 1991. Tecumseh’s offense is up to 51 points per game after going over 50 last week for the seventh time this fall. Riverview is giving up 15 points per game and has never allowed more than 28 – giving this matchup the feel of a potential back-and-forth tug-of-war.
Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Hudsonville Unity Christian (6-4) at Grand Rapids South Christian (10-0), Charlotte (9-1) at Hastings (9-1), Freeland (8-2) at Goodrich (9-1).
11-Player Division 5
Belding (9-1) at Muskegon Oakridge (9-1)
Only three of eight teams on this side of the Division 5 bracket won their league’s championship this fall. Belding was one of those three, its only loss to another league champion in Cadillac. The Black Knights’ offense is churning at 43 points per game but next runs into an Oakridge defense giving up just under 13. The Eagles finished second in their league, losing only to still-undefeated Whitehall – and aside from Whitehall, no other opponent has scored more than 18 points against them. Similarly, aside from Cadillac, Belding has scored at least 34 points on every other opponent and more than 40 points on seven.
Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Corunna (8-2) at Portland (9-1), Pontiac Notre Dame Prep (7-3) at Detroit Country Day (6-3). SATURDAY Flint Hamady (9-1) at Marine City (8-2).
11-Player Division 6
Warren Michigan Collegiate (9-1) at Madison Heights Bishop Foley (10-0)
Last season’s Division 6 runner-up Michigan Collegiate is an eight-point loss to Detroit Country Day from being undefeated, and statistically has been even better on both sides of the ball so far than during last year’s run to Ford Field. Likewise, Bishop Foley is having its best season, reaching 10 wins for the first time thanks in part to a defense that matches Michigan Collegiate’s in giving up only 11 points per game. This will be the Ventures’ second District Final in three seasons as they seek to reach the Regional for the first time.
Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Standish-Sterling (8-1) at Millington (9-1), Ecorse (9-1) at Clinton (10-0). SATURDAY Constantine (9-1) at Grand Rapids West Catholic (9-1).
11-Player Division 7
Hudson (9-1) at Jackson Lumen Christi (7-3)
This might be one of the most telling games in the entire Division 7 bracket this month. The teams have traveled much different paths to end up looking like strong title contenders. Lumen Christi opened this season 0-3 with losses to two more Division 7 powers – New Lothrop and Traverse City St. Francis – and then a three-point loss to Division 5 Hastings, the eventual champion in the Interstate 8 Athletic Conference. All three of those defeats were by seven points or fewer, and the Titans haven’t lost again. Enter Hudson, last season’s Division 8 champion, with its only loss to undefeated Division 6 contender Clinton but an impressive early-season win over another Division 6 contender in Constantine.
Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Schoolcraft (7-3) at Lawton (8-2), Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port Laker (9-1) at Montrose (7-3). SATURDAY Ravenna (7-3) at Ithaca (9-1).
11-Player Division 8
Fowler (9-1) at Beal City (10-0)
Beal City is one of three undefeated teams left in Division 8, and a regular at this point in the season having finished Division 8 runner-up last year and in 2019. This time, however, the Aggies are 10-0 for the first time since 2013. Fowler is making its fourth-straight trip to a District Final as well. The Eagles handed Carson City-Crystal both of its losses and got past rival Pewamo-Westphalia for the first time since 2014. Fowler is giving up only 9.1 points per game and aside from a loss to Division 6 Laingsburg hasn’t allowed more than 16. Beal City has been similarly up to the task defensively, but also is scoring 42 points per game after putting up 63 in its playoff opener.
Keep an eye on these FRIDAY Saginaw Michigan Lutheran Seminary (9-1) at Ubly (10-0), Bark River-Harris (8-2) at Iron Mountain (9-1), Clarkston Everest Collegiate (7-3) at Marine City Cardinal Mooney (8-2).
8-Player Division 1
Newberry (9-1) at Munising (10-0)
One of the very few non-blowouts these teams played was against each other in Week 2, when Munising won 14-0 on the way to eventually claiming the Great Lakes Eight Conference East championship. Newberry is averaging 43 points per game despite that shutout and put up 54 last week on previously-unbeaten Rogers City to earn this rematch. Munising scores 52 points per game, so it’s anyone’s guess if this will be another low-scoring matchup or one that will keep the scoreboard moving. Both defenses have five shutouts this fall as well.
Other Regional Finals FRIDAY Breckenridge (8-2) at Merrill (10-0), Deckerville (7-3) at Brown City (9-1). SATURDAY Adrian Lenawee Christian (8-2) at Martin (8-2).
8-Player Division 2
Mendon (8-2) at Colon (10-0)
These neighbors met three times in the 11-player playoffs and will meet for the first time in 8-player with Mendon having made the format switch last year. Mendon has given up 49 points total over its seven-game winning streak (one victory was a forfeit). But the Hornets are facing a Magi team that also is enjoying a superlative season, which really seemed to take off with a Week 4 win over Adrian Lenawee Christian and included a 25-20 Week 6 victory over Climax-Scotts – which Mendon defeated 44-18 in its playoff opener last week. Colon has put up 60+ points in four straight games – although two of them were against the same team – and averages 55 per game despite playing half its games against playoff teams.
Other Regional Finals FRIDAY Lake Linden-Hubbell (7-3) at Powers North Central (10-0), Gaylord St. Mary (8-2) at Marion (10-0). SATURDAY Morrice (8-2) at Au Gres-Sims (9-1).
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PHOTO A Holt ball carrier works to find an opening during a District Semifinal win over Hartland. (Photo by Michele Hoffman.)