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Keith Willis 2021

Keith Willis

Assistant Head Coach/Defensive Line
2nd Year
Northeastern '88

Long-time coach and NFL standout Keith Willis joined the Edinboro football coaching staff on April 6. Willis, who most recently served as an assistant coach with the Tennessee Titans, joins Nulph's staff as the assistant head coach/defensive line coach.

Willis brings an impressive resume to the staff, with almost 25 years of coaching experience after playing 12 years (1982-93) as a defensive end in the NFL.  He played 10 seasons with Pittsburgh (1982-91), plus on season at Buffalo (1992) and Washington (1993). Willis entered the NFL with the Steelers as an undrafted college free agent from Northeastern, where he was a four-year starter and led the team in sacks each of his final three seasons.

Keith WillisHead coach Jake Nulph is excited to see Willis become a part of his coaching staff.  "It is a great honor to announce Keith Willis as the assistant head coach/defensive line coach at THE BORO," he commented.  "Keith's experience both as a player and a coach will make him a tremendous asset to Edinboro University. He is a great man of character and our young men are going to learn so much from him."

The feeling is mutual for Willis, who looks forward to a return to coaching and working with the student-athletes. "I'm excited about coaching with Coach Nulph and the rest of the coaching staff," he related.  "I want to come in with the goals of winning big and helping the student-athletes graduate from the university."

During his time in the NFL, he totaled 139 games played, 224 tackles and 59 sacks, including a career-high 14 sacks during the 1983 campaign. He added 12 sacks in 1986. All of his sacks came as a Steeler and his 59 career sacks still rank sixth-best in the history of the Steelers. He led the Steelers in career sacks when he concluded his career in 1991. Willis was part of four AFC playoff teams with the Steelers, winning two AFC Central Division championships, with the 1984 team reaching the AFC Championship Game before losing to Miami.

Keith WillisWillis spent 2016 and 2017 as the assistant defensive line coach with Tennessee. The Titans had a 9-7 record both years, earning a berth in the playoffs in 2016. They defeated Kansas City in the wild card round before losing to New England in the AFC semifinals.

In 2016, the Titans ranked second in the NFL in run defense, the highest run defense ranking for the team since 2003. Defensive tackle Jurrell Casey earned his second Pro Bowl invite as he set a new career high in quarterback pressures (29) to go along with five sacks.

At the conclusion pf his 14 seasons as a player, Willis embarked on a long career as a coach in 1995, serving as an assistant coach at Slippery Rock until 1998. During his four seasons as the defensive line coach, SRU won 37 games, winning the PSAC Western Division in 1997 and '98. After posting an 11-2 record in 1997, The Rock was 12-2 in 1998, reaching the NCAA Division II national semifinals.

Willis departed Slippery Rock to serve as the defensive line coach at the University of Cincinnati for two seasons. He helped lead the Bearcats to an 8-4 record in 2000, capped by a 25-14 win over Marshall in the Motor City Bowl.

Next came a six-year stint as the defensive line coach at Boston College, with the Eagles making six bowl appearances. During his stay with the Eagles, he helped develop five professional players, including Mathias Kiwanuka, who was an All-American and was named 2004 Big East Player of the Year and was a first round draft choice of the New York Giants in 2006.

Keith WillisBoston College would appear in a bowl game in each of Willis' six seasons, winning each year. The Eagles won 53 games during that period, with the 2006 squad posting a 10-3 record, the second-most wins in school history.

Willis would move on to coach at North Carolina State, again as the defensive line coach, from 2007-12. He was part of a Wolfpack program that appeared in four bowl games in his six seasons. The 2010 squad won the Champs Bowl with a 23-7 win over West Virginia, ending the year with a 9-4 record, tied for the second-most wins in school history. He coached five players with the Wolfpack who moved on to play professionally.

Willis ventured into the professional ranks in 2013, coaching the defensive line with the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League for three seasons. Montreal made the CFL playoffs in 2013 and 2014. In 2015, he guided John Bowman to a league-leading 19 sacks and Montreal finished second in the league in total sacks with 55.

Willis joined the Titans after three years (2013-15) as the defensive line coach for the Montreal Alouettes in the Canadian Football League. In 2015, he guided John Bowman to a league-leading 19 sacks and Montreal finished second in the league in total sacks with 55.

Prior to his time in the CFL, Willis spent 18 years as a college defensive line coach. He worked at North Carolina State (2007-12), Boston College (2001-06), Cincinnati (1999- 00) and Slippery Rock (1995-98).

A native of Newark, N.J., Willis completed work on his undergraduate degree from Northeastern University in Therapeutic Recreation with a concentration in Juvenile Delinquency in 1988.Â