The first real look at Tariq Boney came with production attached.
Michigan’s freshman edge rusher had been barely on the field through the first two weeks, logging just one snap. Then Week 3 against UTEP changed the picture fast. Boney finished with four total tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss and his first career sack, the kind of stat line that turns a name people had heard about into a player everybody notices.
That didn’t come out of nowhere. Boney had already been a talking point during fall camp, with head coach Kyle Whittingham and defensive coordinator Jay Hill repeatedly pointing to him as a freshman who was making noise before the season even started. The praise started early and kept coming.
On August 21, Whittingham said “Two freshman defensive ends, Carter Meadows and Tariq Boney, are having an outstanding camp, and they’re gonna be involved.”
Hill kept the drumbeat going on August 26: “Tariq Boney and Carter Meadows have done unbelievable things for freshmen,” and then on September 2 he added, “as a young freshman, has really done some great things.”
Against Oklahoma, Boney’s only snap offered a glimpse of what Michigan thought it had. Coming off the right side, he blew past the offensive lineman and forced quarterback John Mateer to climb the pocket and avoid what could have been a sack.
Against UTEP, the finish matched the flash.
Late in the third quarter, Boney lined up in that same spot, drove through the blocker again, slipped past the running back’s attempt to help, and brought down EJ Colson Jr. for the sack. It was the kind of play that showed why the staff had been so high on him from the start.
After Michigan’s 52-17 win, Whittingham put the freshman’s tools in plain language.
“His quickness, his explosion, he is a powerful guy,” Whittingham said after Michigan took down UTEP 52-17. “He’s built like a fire hydrant and strong as an ox in the weight room.
Just his strength and explosion is as good as I’ve ever seen in a true freshman. … He’s got a very developed body and relentless motor.
His motor never shuts down. He’s constantly in pursuit.”
Boney’s numbers backed up the description. He was part of a crowded defensive effort that produced at least 0.5 TFLs from 12 Wolverines, and his 1.5 TFLs tied sophomore Benny Patterson III for the team lead on the day.
And for at least one teammate, none of it looked surprising.
“It’s definitely in line with what I’ve seen in practice,” sophomore Chase Taylor said. “He played for sure because you can see that he’s got the size, talent, build, speed. It’s just coming together.”
In Other News...
Michigans Ranking Climb Just Made This Big Ten Stretch Feel Real
Michigans latest jump in the AP Top 25 came with a little more punch than the usual early-season polling shuffle. After a 52-17 win over UTEP, the Wolverines climbed one spot to No. 18, a small rise that still matters because it reflects how far the program has steadied itself in the first few weeks under first-year coach Kyle Whittingham. At 3-0, Michigan has already worked through an early ranking dip and now looks more settled than it did in September.
The next test is the one that will say even more. No. 17 Iowa is up next in a Big Ten matchup, giving Michigan a chance to turn a modest poll move into something more meaningful against a ranked conference opponent. For a team that has been building momentum and credibility, this stretch starts to feel like the point where the conversations around progress become harder to ignore. [Read more 🡒]
Iowa Has A Real Chance To Climb In This Poll Shakeup
USCs 42-35 win over Rutgers gave the Trojans a fourth victory and added another wrinkle to a polling picture that has already been turned on its head by a weekend of upsets. With LSU and Texas A&M both taking losses, the AP Top 25 is in line for movement that could reshape not just the top of the ranking, but also the way the conference race looks heading into the stretch run.
For Michigan readers, the bigger takeaway is the ripple effect. Iowa has a real opening to climb, and USCs path gets even more interesting with Oregon coming to Los Angeles next, a matchup that could carry major weight in the poll shakeup. In a season where every upset seems to pull another team into the conversation, the next round of conference games may tell us even more about who is built to stay put. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Just Got Answers From Players It Needed Most
Michigan closed non-conference play with a 52-17 win over UTEP, and the bigger takeaway for this staff was not just the score but the way several players answered questions. Andrew Marsh gave the passing game a steady outlet with 10 catches for 105 yards and a touchdown, while Savion Hiter kept the ground game moving with 62 rushing yards and two scores. On the other side of the ball, Tariq Boney and Jonah Lea'ea both showed up in ways that changed the games feel.
For a team looking to sort out who can be counted on when the schedule tightens, that kind of production matters. Whittingham had reason to point to the players who made those contributions, because Michigan needed more than a routine win out of this one. It got exactly that, even if the real value may be in how those performances shape what comes next. [Read more 🡒]