Led by Rayshaun Benny, Michigan’s new-look DL is taking shape in spring practice

Michigan Football has to replace a ton of production at defensive tackle, but Rayshaun Benny and a pair of incoming transfers appear to be thriving in the early portions of spring practice:

When you think of what Michigan has been best at recently, its dominant defense comes to mind. More specifically, one might consider some of the great defensive line talent that’s made its way through Ann Arbor dating back to the early Jim Harbaugh years. Maurice Hurst, Mazi Smith and Kris Jenkins have been plugging up the middle, while guys like Aidan Hutchinson, Kwity Paye and Chase Winovich have been terrors off the edge.

There’s been no exception the last two years with Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant at defensive tackle, arguably forming the best duo in the nation at the position in 2024. But Michigan will have to replace them this offseason as they head to the NFL Draft .

Surely, there might be some concern from the fanbase with the defensive line now being somewhat in a state of flux. However, if there’s a short list of programs in the country seemingly always able replace talent up front, Michigan would be on that list.

As the 2025 version of the team takes form in spring practices, the defensive tackle position is also taking steps in the right direction. Those steps are being taken by guys that haven’t played big roles on the field for the Wolverines yet, but based on head coach Sherrone Moore’s comments on Monday, the position still appears to be in good shape.

The name that should sound most familiar to fans is Rayshaun Benny, a fifth-year senior that was an integral piece of Michigan’s 2021 recruiting class. The Oak Park native hasn’t been higher than third on the depth chart in his career, although that’s through no fault of his own as he’s consistently been surrounded by elite talent.

Now with a clear shot at a starting role, Benny is poised to break out in 2025. According to Moore, Benny is already making his mark this offseason.

“Rayshaun’s done an outstanding job, really great offseason, looks great,” Moore said.

It might be a lot to ask Benny to fully copy and paste what Graham was able to do last season, but Moore did mention there is one similarity between those two so far — Benny changed from No. 26 to Graham’s old No. 55, which is what Benny had in high school.

Although Benny offers plenty of promise for this year, he won’t be alone. Moore and the Wolverines were quick to add reinforcements from the transfer portal, welcoming in Tre Williams (Clemson) and Damon Payne (Alabama). Moore says the duo appears to be fitting in nicely so far.

“Tre and Damon have been awesome, very seamless transitions for both of them,” Moore said. “They’ve just assimilated to the culture, put their heads down and worked.”

Both are likely to be vital pieces for the Wolverines, as they have shown a tendency to rotate their defensive tackles pretty heavily. The progression of Williams and Payne would be a positive development for the position, as the group lacked quality depth last year.

Even beyond the promising trio of Benny, Williams and Payne, Michigan is looking to get more from some players on the roster that haven’t played major roles so far in their Michigan tenures, such as Trey Pierce, Enow Etta and Ike Iwunnah. Factor in the progression of Michigan’s edge rush group — which Moore also appears to be bullish on based on his comments from Monday — and Michigan could be cooking with gas up front once again.