The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1526802
10 THE WOLVERINE ❱ OCTOBER 2024 ❱ INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS Michigan senior defensive tackle Rayshaun Benny had a great first game against Fresno State, coming back from a broken leg suffered in the Rose Bowl to play at a high level. He's a huge part of what the Wolverines want to do up front this year and should continue to get more reps throughout the season. Benny talks about returning from injury, expectations and more: The Wolverine: What was the most difficult thing you had to go through with your injury? Rayshaun Benny: "Missing [three quarters of the Rose Bowl and all of the national championship game] was probably the biggest thing, the hardest part. But the guys, we won, so that made it a lot better. "[But] I felt alone [during the recovery process]. Not that I was alone … I just felt alone. It was just different for me. It was a different type of serious injury." The Wolverine: What helped you get through the grueling rehab in the offseason? Benny: "It was hard, to be honest, but my teammates made it better for me, just keeping me positive, keeping me around, letting me know that I'm not alone. Guys would always just check on me. That's something you don't have to do, so it just meant more when they randomly asked me, 'Hey, how you doing?'" The Wolverine: When did it become clear that you were going to be ready for the season? Benny: "It was pretty much as we got closer to the season and got closer to August and camp was coming, we came up with a plan. That's when I got to believing. And once camp came, I was on the go, and then I felt it and I felt great. I knew." The Wolverine: Your coaches said they had to ease you back into practice this fall and wanted to take it easy on you. How did you handle that? Benny: "I'd get mad at [head] coach [Sherrone] Moore and [defensive line] coach [Lou] Esposito when they wouldn't play me enough … when I felt like I wanted to keep going, when I felt great. [But I know] it was just all to protect me." The Wolverine: How did it feel to be back out there in game action in the opener with Fresno State? Benny: "It felt great just to be back out there and just to move around. I felt like a kid again, almost … like a big kid. I was so happy. "But the happiest people were my teammates. I don't know if you saw on the sack, J-Stew [senior edge Josaiah Stewart] ran up on me. I didn't even know where he came from. I looked at the film — he ran all the way from the other sideline to hype me up. So, that was good." — Chris Balas After suffering a broken leg in the Rose Bowl, Benny returned to the lineup this fall. He racked up 7 tackles in the first two games, includ- ing 2 stops for a loss and 1 sack. PHOTO COURTESY MICHIGAN ATHLETICS Michigan has been a force to be reckoned with at home over the last 10 seasons (since 2015), with the Wolverines going 53-8 at The Big House in that span. Michigan has five more opportunities to come out on top in Ann Arbor this season, but the Texas Longhorns snapped a 23-game home win- ning streak — the third-longest stretch in program history and longest since 1969-73 — with a 31-12 win Sept. 7. It had been 1,379 days between home losses for the program. The Wolver- ines hadn't even suffered a setback in the regular season for 616 days at the time. The Longhorns have the makings of a national title contender, similar to some of the squads that have won road contests at The Big House over the last decade. Four of Michigan's eight losses in that span have come at the hands of top-10 squads. Three of the five times U-M fell at home, too, came in the 2020 season, when the Big Ten limited the amount of spec- tators allowed, severely impacting any home-field advantage. Here's a look at Michigan's home record and recent losses inside The Big House since 2015: — Clayton Sayfie ❱ Sitting Down With Senior Defensive Tackle Rayshaun Benny MICHIGAN LOSES EIGHTH HOME GAME SINCE 2015 Season U-M's Home Record 2024 1-1 2023 7-0 2022 8-0 2021 7-0 2020 0-3 2019 6-1 2018 7-0 2017 4-2 2016 8-0 2015 5-2 Date Opponent Score Sept. 7, 2024 No. 3 Texas 31-12 Nov. 28, 2020 Penn State 27-17 Nov. 14, 2020 No. 13 Wisconsin 49-11 Oct. 31, 2020 Michigan State 27-24 Nov. 30, 2019 No. 2 Ohio State 56-27 Nov. 25, 2017 No. 8 Ohio State 31-20 Oct. 7, 2017 Michigan State 14-10 Nov. 28, 2015 No. 8 Ohio State 42-13