Joe Willis (American Soccer)

Joseph Mark Willis (born August 10, 1988) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a goalkeeper for Major League Soccer club Nashville SC.

Early career

Willis played high school soccer for Chaminade College Preparatory in St. Louis. Willis played soccer for University of Denver from 2006 to 2010, serving as the starter from 2008 to 2010. He was named the team's Most Valuable Player in 2008, and was named All-MPSF from 2008 to 2010. While at Denver, he also played for the USL Premier Development League Real Colorado Foxes.

Professional career

D.C. United

left, Willis training before a DC United game in 2012
Willis was selected by D.C. United with the 50th pick in the third round of the 2011 MLS SuperDraft, and he signed a contract with the team on March 16, 2011. Willis served as the backup goalie with Bill Hamid being the first choice goalie. He made his MLS debut on August 13, 2011, recording a clean sheet in a 4–0 victory over Vancouver Whitecaps FC. Willis made only 3 appearances in his first season.

For 2012, Willis became first choice goalkeeper while Bill Hamid was with the US U23 team for Olympic qualifying. However Hamid retook the starting job on May 5, 2012, after Willis had made 9 starts. On November 8, 2012, Willis came on as a substitute in a MLS Playoff match against New York Red Bulls after Hamid received a red card. He denied Kenny Cooper from the spot on the striker's second attempt (the first penalty kick that was successfully converted by Cooper was ordered to be retaken due to an infringement on the part of Cooper's teammates) and managed to keep a clean sheet to help D.C. United get a 1–0 win, advancing them to the next Eastern Conference Finals. With Hamid suspended, Willis started the next match. However, this time he couldn't replicate his heroics as D.C. United fell to the Houston Dynamo 3–1. Hamid returned for the second leg, but D.C. United drew 1–1 and was eliminated.

Willis remained the second choice goalie for 2013, only getting an extended run of games while Bill Hamid was with the United States national team for the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup. Willis made 5 starts before Hamid retook the starting job on August 10. Willis enjoyed success in the 2013 U.S. Open Cup. On May 28 he saved 2 penalties against the Richmond Kickers as D.C. United won on penalties. Willis helped lead D.C. United to 3 more wins, including a clean sheet in the semi-finals, a 2–0 win over the Chicago Fire. Despite his strong performances in the tournament, Willis was replaced by Hamid for the final. D.C. United defeated Real Salt Lake in the final 1–0.

In 2014, Willis became third choice goalkeeper after losing his spot as the number 2 to Andrew Dykstra in preseason. Willis was sent on loan to D.C. United's USL affiliate, the Richmond Kickers. His first appearance of the season with D.C. United came in a CONCACAF Champions League match against Waterhouse on August 20, a 1–0 win for D.C. United. Willis made 2 more appearances in the Champions League, both of them clean sheets against Tauro FC.

Houston Dynamo

On December 8, 2014, Willis was traded to the Houston Dynamo along with Samuel Inkoom, in exchange for the rights for Andrew Driver (who moved to Europe and didn’t play for D.C.) and a fourth-round pick in the 2016 MLS SuperDraft. On December 19, 2014, he signed a contract with the Dynamo. Willis served as the backup to Tyler Deric for 2015 and appeared in only six games in his first year with Houston.

Willis got a chance to play early in 2016 with Deric missing time for an abdominal injury. Deric returned in week 6, but he picked up a red card, with Willis coming in as a sub and starting the next game as Deric served his suspension. Willis came in for Deric again on May 15 as Deric served a suspension for another red card. Willis picked up his first career assist in the game when he hit a long goal kick that Giles Barnes ran onto and converted to score the game winning goal over Real Salt Lake. Willis would fill in for Deric as he missed time with another abdominal injury and an elbow injury. He performed well, winning MLS Save of the Week for a stop against the San Jose Earthquakes on August 19. He also made the MLS Team of the Week for that game. He ended the season with 5 clean sheets from 26 MLS appearances. Willis's strong performances saw him named the Dynamo defensive player of the year. Despite his good play, the Dynamo missed the playoffs again.

Willis missed the start of the 2017 season due to a knee injury. He returned on April 15 and made 7 consecutive starts before head coach Wilmer Cabrera gave the starting job to Deric. Willis became the number 1 goalie during the playoffs after Deric was arrested and subsequently suspended by the MLS. He would help the Dynamo defeat the Portland Timbers 2–1 on aggregate and reach the Western Conference finals, where the Dynamo fell to Seattle Sounders FC.

Ahead of the 2018 season, Willis re-signed with the Dynamo. Off-season addition Chris Seitz started the year as first choice keeper. Willis would retake the starting job on April 21 and keep it for the rest of the season. He enjoyed a strong performance on July 21, saving a penalty kick and being named to the MLS Team of the Week after helping the Dynamo get a 1–1 draw against rival FC Dallas. The Dynamo would miss out on the playoffs in 2018, but they enjoyed success in the US Open Cup. Willis started the Open Cup semifinal match up with LAFC on August 8 as the Dynamo won on penalties. Willis kept a clean sheet in the final to help Houston defeat the Philadelphia Union 3–0 as the Dynamo won their first Open Cup in club history.

Willis began 2019 as the club's first choice keeper. He played in every game of the CONCACAF Champions League as the Dynamo reached the quarterfinals. After making a couple of costly errors in some games in mid-season, Deric got a run of 5 starts starting on July 17. Willis returned on August 11, a 2–1 loss to the Union. He started the next 8 matches before sitting the final 2 of the season in favor of Deric. It was another disappointing league campaign for Houston, failing to qualify for the playoffs for the second straight season.

Nashville SC

On November 19, 2019, Willis was traded to Major League Soccer expansion side Nashville SC in exchange for Zarek Valentin. He made his debut for Nashville on February 29 in Nasvhville's first ever MLS game, a 2–1 loss to Atlanta United FC. In a shortened season due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, Willis made 23 appearances, out of a possible 23, and kept a league best 9 clean sheets. He also was named to the MLS Team of the Week twice during the season. Willis led a Nashville defense that conceded the 3rd fewest goals in MLS, leading the team to a 7th place finish in the Eastern Conference and qualifying for the playoffs. In Nashville's first ever playoff game, Willis kept a clean sheet to help defeat Inter Miami CF 3–0. He kept another clean sheet in their next match as they defeated Toronto FC 1–0 in extra time. In the conference semifinals, Nashville and Willis lost to the Columbus Crew 2–0 in extra time.

Career statistics

Honors

D.C. United
*U.S. Open Cup: 2013

Houston Dynamo
*U.S. Open Cup: 2018

Individual
*USL Pro All-League Second Team: 2014
*Dynamo Defensive Player of the Year: 2016
*Dynamo Humanitarian of the Year: 2018

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Willis, Joe
1988 births
Living people
Soccer players from St. Louis
American men's soccer players
Denver Pioneers men's soccer players
Real Colorado Foxes players
D.C. United players
Richmond Kickers players
Houston Dynamo FC players
Nashville SC players
USL League Two players
Major League Soccer players
USL Championship players
D.C. United draft picks
Men's association football goalkeepers
Chaminade College Preparatory School (Missouri) alumni