#29 Josiah Vilmael
True Freshman | 6-0 | 195 lbs. (+21) | Richmond, Texas
- Position: Cornerback
- Projection: Redshirt/Scout Team
- Remaining Eligibility: 4-5* years (*if 5 to play 5 goes into effect or he redshirts )
- Status: On Scholarship
Josiah Vilmael (b. Nov. 24, 2007) is a talented young 4-star cornerback from Texas who plans on majoring in business administration. I expect him to redshirt* but still play and appear on the depth chart as a reserve.
That said, his 21-pound weight gain since reporting to winter conditioning and spring camp has impressed many, including director of sports nutrition Scott Trausch:
Josiah stepped into Vanier at 174 pounds and in 51 days, he gained 19 pounds of muscle and put on 2 pounds of fat, but for
putting on that much muscle, and for the scale to go from 173 to 197 in 51 days, is incredible. His goal was (to) scale weight. He wanted to gain weight. You’re not going to be a great defensive back at 173 pounds.
Vilmael prepped under head coach Trey Sissom at Fort Bend-William B. Travis High School in Richmond, Texas, where he was viewed as the 83rd-best cornerback in the Class of 2026 by ESPN, while he is ranked No. 97 by Rivals.
A team captain who recorded four interceptions during his senior season en route to first-team all-district honors as both a cornerback and safety, Vilmael was named the district’s cornerback of the year and also competed in track and field, posting personal-best times of 10.66 seconds in the 100-meter dash and 21.29 seconds in the 200-meter dash, as well as earning six USATF All-America honors. (He also runs a 4.33 40-yard dash!)
A highly coveted player, he committed to K-State and signed last December after a Thanksgiving official visit over offers from Arizona (a.k.a. DB U!), Arizona State, Baylor, California, Houston, Iowa, Maryland, Missouri State, Oklahoma State (from which he decommitted after Mike Gundy was fired), Stephen F. Austin, Texas, UNLV and UTEP, as well as recruiting interest from Houston Christian, Louisiana, Minot State, North Texas, Sam Houston, TCU and Texas Tech. On3 said new head coach Collin Klein delivered the final pitch to Vilmael, which paid off, because his younger brother, Joshua, is one of K-State’s most highly ranked recruits in the current Class of 2026.
Their father, Joinel, played football at the University of Dubuque, while their mother, Damaris, was a track and field athlete at Drake.
*Keep in mind that starting this season, redshirted players can play in up to nine total games and retain their year of eligibility. If the 5-for-5 rule survives its court challenges, that number goes from nine to “all of them.”
