He also played in the Midwest Football League and AFL III as a member of the Cincinnati Models and Bengals.
[2] Following his senior year, Willging was named to the All-Ohio, All-Midwestern, and All-Catholic national rosters.
Willging joined the local Cincinnati Reds, of the National Football League (NFL) in 1934.
After the year he would join the Cincinnati Models of the Midwest Football League, appearing in 12 games over three seasons.
He was named All-MWFL in 1937, after helping his team reach the league championship serving as starting guard/tackle and assistant coach.