In the Trenches 606 - UTEP Recap Transcript
9/19/2026 8:25:00 PM | MGoBlue Podcasts
Jon Jansen • 00:00
Michigan ends the non conference season three zero with a resounding victory over the minors fifty two seventeen. We're going to hear from Jason Avant, Brian Boesch, Jack Miller, Doug Karsch and obviously head coach Kyle Whittingham, all on in the Trenches.
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Jeff Laurence • 00:14
Welcome to the official podcast of Michigan Football in the Trenches with Jon Jansen. Presented by Meijer, presenting sponsor of the twenty twenty six Michigan football season and proud supporter of hundreds of local sports teams across the Midwest. Nobody covers Michigan football. And the two time captain, national champion and Michigan athletics hall of honor inductee.
Jonah Lea'ea • 00:37
I kind of got a weak set from the center and he bailed out pretty early, so I stayed attached to him and you know, I just found where the running back was and tracked down the ball. You know, a little luck involved there, for sure, but that's something we practice.
Jeff Laurence • 00:47
This is in the Trenches presented by Meijer. Once again, here's Jon Jansen.
Jon Jansen • 00:53
At this time I want to bring in my partner, mister Brian Boesch.
Brian Boesch • 00:56
Jon, the Wolverines seem to take the first half personally based on how they played in the second half.
Jon Jansen • 01:01
Well, yeah, and it was all about how they came out, really how they went into halftime getting that last field goal, but they were able to get it because the defense got a three and out and it was, that was impressive. They, the clock management calling timeouts, knowing that they had the chance to, you know, get within field goal range, getting those three points, taking a lead into halftime. And then the way that they came out and forced first to three and out and then take that opening drive down and score like they, they set the tone, you know, the defense did and the f. The, the offense followed suit.
Brian Boesch • 01:32
Yeah, we mentioned it earlier. Seventy three yards for UTEP on the first drive of the game. Offensively only seventy seven the rest of the way. And I mean the penetration, you expect that for, for close to sixty minutes. But Michigan's ability to pester EJ Colson, their quarterback in the backfield was impressive.
Jon Jansen • 01:48
Yeah, I mean, to be able to get after him and I mean I was just putting some stats together and you had four sacks, eleven TFL's. And when you are harassing a defense like that and we saw the defense adjust right, you know, early on, jet, jet sweep was, was giving them some fits and they adjusted with the penetration with those corners attacking defense and the what the way that Jay Hill adjusted and was blitzing the linebackers. We've been talking about Troy Bowles, it seems like obviously for three weeks now, but the impact that he has had and some of those other linebackers are really stepping up and playing well.
Brian Boesch • 02:21
Tell me about your impressions of Bryce Underwood. Nineteen of twenty five, two hundred twenty three yards and two touchdowns through the air, only twenty two rushing yards is. Michigan had its ability to air it out and Bryce took advantage of it.
Jon Jansen • 02:33
Well, it's all about growth. And I know a lot of people were all over Bryce after week one, but you, in this game, you are allowed to get better. And we have seen him progress, we've seen the game plan shift a little bit. And today to be able to take some of those shots downfield, I mean, that touchdown to JJ Buchanan, that little slant route, I mean, that was an absolute laser beam that Bryce threw. So it was on time, it was on target. Everything that he was doing today was it all. All a step in the right direction. Building confidence. As you approach the Big Ten season,
Brian Boesch • 03:02
it's nice to be able to throw to two guys like Andrew Marsh and JJ Buchanan that can help boost confidence in those guys. Seventeen catches and almost two hundred yards combined.
Jon Jansen • 03:11
Well, yeah. And you know, coaches talked about getting Andrew Marsh involved, more involved in the offense. Ten catches, one hundred five yards. And you saw the fact even in special teams like Andrew was just, he was out there trying to make plays.
Brian Boesch • 03:24
How about Michigan getting a chance to bring in some younger guys, some younger players. And obviously the big story here, someone very important to you and so many in the maize and blue, Lloyd Carr, getting to see his grandson, Tommy Carr, throw his first career Michigan touchdown.
Jon Jansen • 03:39
Yeah, it's a special moment. I mean, you know, Coach Carr has had so many special moments in this stadium with his own Michigan teams. And having known Tommy since he was born, it was, it was special for me to be able to see him. And you know, I played with his dad now watching him and then you, you had a chance to see in the booth there how that, what that meant for. For Coach Carr and the Carr family.
Brian Boesch • 04:00
Certainly some things to clean up. And because Iowa comes to town, not only a team that's perennially hanging around the Big Ten conversation, but it's a group that will exploit turnovers, penalties, miscues. Michigan certainly got better there, but still stuff to clean up.
Jon Jansen • 04:15
Well, yeah, there's always going to be stuff to clean up. And I mean, hey, it's the start of the Big Ten season. Iowa, no better way to start it. Phil Parker defense and the fact that the offense, that's always been the liability for Iowa, but they put up, you know, forty points in game one, and it was against Northern Illinois and Northern Iowa today, at least forty nine. It may even be more now. But the big battle that they had with Iowa State, a rivalry battle. And coming out on top of that, they're coming in with a lot of confidence as well.
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Brian Boesch • 04:39
Doug, The defense gave up seventy three yards on the first drive of the game, seventy seven yards the rest of the game. There was the one touchdown after Michigan's second turnover. But certainly kind of like Western Michigan, the one hundred twenty play drive in Week one. Everything else was sterling. Same deal here.
Doug Karsch • 04:55
Yeah, you called it the uninspiring beginning. And there was the same issues. Turnovers led to points. Both times Michigan turned it over. UTEP got touchdowns out of it. Penalties, they were costly early and it looked like it was going to be another one of those games. They buttoned everything up, they executed at a high level. Gotta hand it to Bryce. The thing about Bryce Underwood and watching his development is working his way through progressions. It was something that he wasn't doing as well against Western Michigan. And I thought today he did a great job of creating time with his feet, keeping his head downfield, looking off. Okay, first guy's not open. Second guy, third guy. There were a number of occasions where he extended plays, worked his way through his progressions and completed the football. And you know it's utep, right?
Doug Karsch • 05:44
This is what it's supposed to look like against utep, but it's kind of supposed to look like that against Western Michigan as well. So now I have a ton of respect for Western Michigan, so let's be clear about that. But at the end of the day, Bryce Underwood maybe takes another step forward. We'll find out more when a tough Iowa team comes to town next week. But to the before the game pregame show and talking with Kyle Whittingham, he said we want to keep the penalty yardage under fifty. When it was all said and done, four penalties, forty four yards and a couple, I mean the roughing, the passer, sure, yeah. And then the celebration penalty as the game was out of hand there it was really those first two penalties and then pretty much clean football after that.
Brian Boesch • 06:22
Yeah, you, I, you have to say there was a step forward there. You mentioned Bryce. He comes up with nineteen for twenty five through the air, two hundred twenty three yards, two touchdowns, no interceptions. And of those nineteen completions, seventeen went to either Andrew Marsh or JJ Buchanan. Marsh ten for one hundred and five at a score. Buchanan seven for ninety two and a score. And there were certainly a few tight windows, but we saw Buchanan all non conference play, what he can do and we Were reminded what Andrew Marsh can do today.
Doug Karsch • 06:51
Yeah, there was an effort to get Marsh the football.
Brian Boesch • 06:54
Unquestionably.
Doug Karsch • 06:55
And the catch he made on that third down and ten on absolute circus catch kind of going Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. I don't know how he got a foot down inbounds.
Brian Boesch • 07:04
And didn't put the heel down. It was just. It was incredible.
Doug Karsch • 07:08
Yeah, that was. That was one heck of a catch along that far sideline. Kept the chains moving on a scoring drive. They got him the football. You know it's time they start. They're using all their weapons really with maybe the exception of the tight end at this point. But Hogan Hansen got back on the field and he was earlier in his career looked like he was going to be an issue for defenses. So it's good to see him healthy. And now a chance for this Michigan offense to have a little confidence going into Big Ten play. Because in spite of beating Oklahoma and doing what needed to be done it was really pretty much Bryce in the run game. And not much else worked offensively. But they wore down a defense today. We'll see if they can run run the football. It wasn't exactly a vintage attack but as that game went on the ground game got better and better and better.
Brian Boesch • 07:54
We'll see if the seesaw continues. Right. Uninspiring game against a group of six team. And then Michigan elevated its play against Oklahoma. A game where you felt like they couldn't make a lot of mistakes. You have a rough first half today against UTEP and Iowa comes to town. Kirk Ferentz and his crew, they will rarely make mistakes. You can ill afford a slow start against them and you certainly can't lose a turnover battle.
Doug Karsch • 08:17
And the other thing that's great for the locker room is a lot of guys got to play you. All those guys down the depth chart got on the field. That's what you hope to have on a day where you have an opponent that you should overwhelm. And so Tommy Carr getting his first touchdown pass. Salesi Moa his first touchdown catch. You and I sat a couple weeks ago with Jonah Lea'ea. What a. What a fun loving kid who said at one point I think he was through his junior year in high school and his. His self description of himself as a player. Do you remember what he said?
Brian Boesch • 08:45
Something like, he wasn't very good.
Doug Karsch • 08:46
He said I sucked and. But played at a well respected high school. Got an opportunity and. And that was. That's a great moment for him to get in the end zone. He was so excited to be in Ann Arbor Loves Michigan, loves the college town and a lot of feel good stories today here at the Big House.
Brian Boesch • 09:03
I can tell you his personality in the end zone matched his personality when we talked with him before the season opener. And hey, congrats to Tommy Carr. The Carr family. So cool to see the namesake of the tunnel, Lloyd Carr, taking it in here on a rainy day. That was really, really special.
Doug Karsch • 09:17
A great moment for the Carr family. I've known him for a long time, Tammy and Jason, and I'm sure CJ's gotten word that Tommy threw a touchdown and you know, that was, it was a fun watch. I don't know if they're on their way to South Bend right now or if they split up or whatever they did. But Lloyd, Lloyd was, was here today and he was, he was fired up. You could tell on that tv. Tight shot of him in the sweep.
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Brian Boesch • 09:39
Jack, your initial takeaways? We'll start offensively from Bryce and this passing attack.
Jack Miller • 09:44
Well, tale of two halves as far as the team goes, as far as the offense. I really like the adjustments they made at halftime. It felt like they came out in the second half with a great game plan to test the edges of utep. Get your playmakers in space, let them beat guys one on one and outrun guys. A lot of talent on that offense. They're, they're slowly finding ways to use it the right way. Was a sluggish start. Didn't look great offensively to start this one, but about midway point of the second quarter they started to get in a little bit of a rhythm. It was really nice to see they got the ball back, were able to drive down, but I think there was only about forty, fifty seconds on the clock left. Kick it to go up at halftime and then played really, really solid in the second half today. Bryce looked incredibly comfortable. He looks like he's progressing as far as making reads and being, you know, at ease in the pocket, finding guys down the field that might not be his first or second read, but the check down to the third guy looks like it's coming together slowly but surely on the offensive side.
Jack Miller • 10:39
The offensive line played well down the stretch. Started to open up some seams and the running game got going.
Brian Boesch • 10:44
Let's talk about Savion Hiter. Eleven carries, sixty two yards with Jordan Marshall a little bit banged up. Did not see him as much this, this was a season high twelve carries for Jordan Marshall. He has not been used a lot. Michigan hasn't had enough success on the ground, but Hiter probably had the best burst of action that third quarter that we've seen from any Michigan tailback this year.
Jack Miller • 11:05
He's awfully talented for being a young guy. His, his strength, his balance, he can stay on his feet. He's getting more patient reading and just slowing down a little bit, letting the blocks develop up front and then hits that seam. And he's the type of guy who does not go down with arm tackles. You got to get a gang of guys to bring him down and by that point you're looking at three, four, five yard gains like we saw in that second half. A really, really explosive guy. And he's versatile. They can use him in between the tackles, they can get him on the edge, they can use him in the passing game.
Brian Boesch • 11:33
He's quite a weapon to have defensively, this unit's ability to bounce back as quickly as it did. I know they ended up giving up ten points after the first drive. Resulted in a very legitimate, pretty lengthy drive for a touchdown for utep. But boy, the second half, if, if they can provide that type of execution, energy, impact, Michigan has a chance to do a lot of special things.
Jack Miller • 11:58
And at all levels it's working really well. The defensive line playing solid, a lot of youth playing well. I mean, Carter Meadows, Jonah Lea'ea, Benny Patterson, Tariq Boney, guys that we have not seen and are young are getting in there and being impact players. The linebackers were a question mark going into the season. I think that question's been resolved. They are solid in the middle of that defense and then the back end continues to just be locked down and they are all over their assignments. The defense is playing fast, they're playing physical, they know where to be, when to be there. And they play with this, this mean attitude that I think permeates through the rest of the team. And the defense is what's going to carry this team throughout the season. When they play like that, they're going to stay in games with anybody.
Brian Boesch • 12:37
Iowa, they are three and oh as well. It is a team that they're not the litmus test in the Big Ten, but it feels like that's the team that if you don't have a high enough floor, they have a chance to get you. They're. They're not going to make a lot of mistakes, they're not going to hurt themselves very often. And with the way Michigan has played at times this season, it will be pretty revealing to me how the Wolverines fair in that matchup because of some of the self inflicted wounds and the things that just haven't quite gotten There consistently enough, we've seen the ceiling. Yeah, Michigan already has a marquee win, but if they don't bring it in enough areas next week and consistently enough Iowa could get them.
Jack Miller • 13:16
We're going to figure out the maturity of this team. You had a Western win that obviously was incredibly ugly, a great bounce back against Oklahoma and find a way with your back against the wall to get a win. And then this UTEP game, the first half, and then, you know, basically the first part of the second quarter was ugly, undisciplined penalties, turnovers, just self inflicted as you said. But then they figured it out and now I think we're really going to figure out in game four, getting into the Big Ten play Iowa, a team that will not shoot itself in the foot. They won't make mistakes. If Michigan can play their best, if they can get to their ceiling, you can beat anybody in the country, but it's going to take that. Now you're not going to be able to get away with some of the things that we did in the first half and be able to put twenty eight points up in the third quarter.
Jack Miller • 13:57
That's just not going to happen throughout the rest of the season. A real big test for this team because what's lacking in this team right now is exactly the way Iowa plays football. If they're able to overcome that, get rid of some of the stupid mistakes, play solid. You don't have to hit home runs all the time, but you can't go backwards, you can't hurt yourself. And Iowa does not do that. So for Michigan, a real test of maturity. We'll see where this team is at in week four when Big Ten play starts.
Brian Boesch • 14:20
Excited for it. We look forward to getting it going. Jack, great stuff as always.
Jack Miller • 14:24
Thanks. Go Blue.
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Brian Boesch • 14:26
Outstanding analysis from the Michigan radio crew after a Wolverine win fifty two seventeen over utep. Some big positives from the second half, but obviously some things to work on before Iowa comes to town for next week's Big Ten opener. Before we get into our thoughts from the locker room with head coach Kyle Whittingham and a handful of players from Drip to Dry, Original Roofing Company is the team you want on your side. Original Roofing Company is a Michigan based family owned company that provides top quality roofing services across the entire state. With that rain here at the Big House on Saturday reminds you that Original Roofing's extensive experience helps homeowners, business owners and condo associations secure the insurance coverage they deserve through a seamless hands off process. So if you're unsure about the condition of your roof.
Brian Boesch • 15:10
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Jon Jansen • 15:24
Coach, Congratulations on the win three zero coming out of the non conference. What, what's your mess to the team as you approach the Big Ten season?
Kyle Whittingham • 15:30
Well, it's a, you know, a good job today, particularly in the second half by our guys and you know, we talked at halftime first half, you know, we didn't play with a lot of passion and energy and we turned the ball over twice and it's tough to, it's tough to, you know, be productive when you're, you know, not having excitement and enjoying what you're doing and when you're putting the ball on the ground. So we got that corrected in the second half. A whole different ball game. You know, we took care of the football. They played with a passion and emotion and, and that was the result. So we got obviously Big Ten play starting now. And that's what it's all about for us is trying to win a Big ten championship. And it starts next week with a
Jon Jansen • 16:04
tough Iowa team in the second half. When you guys started off, it was negative nine yards for UTEP rushing the football. What did you see from your defense? Because it was eleven tfls, four sacks. I mean that front seven was getting after it.
Kyle Whittingham • 16:16
They were, and they're, they're physical guys. And, and it all starts with those two big tackles up front. Well, three of them actually. Trey, Jonah, and we got, you know, and so those three guys are just physical as can be. And then the edge guys, you know, we got a whole bunch of edge guys that we really like. Five or six of those guys and those, they set the tone. They set the tone for the entire defense.
Jon Jansen • 16:37
What was your reaction to seeing Jonah with the pick six?
Kyle Whittingham • 16:40
It was great. He did the same thing last year and the year before at Utah. He's a guy that has a knack for sniffing out screens. It's tough to screen that guy.
Jon Jansen • 16:49
So let's talk a little bit about Bryce Underwood. Nineteen twenty five, two hundred and twenty three yards, two touchdowns. He did have the one fumble. But how have you seen him grow over the last two weeks?
Kyle Whittingham • 16:57
Leaps and bounds. He's had his best game by far of the first three. You know, his completion percentage was outstanding, seventy six percent I think is what my math said. And darn near ten yards an attempt, which is outstanding. If you can get me close to ten yards per attempt, then that's real efficiency with a throw game. Took care of the football through the air, no interceptions, and really did a good job leading the offense.
Jon Jansen • 17:20
What did you see from the rushing attack? Because you had Savion Hiter with two touchdowns, Jordan Marshall, both of those guys with some very physical runs.
Kyle Whittingham • 17:27
Yeah, we had a little more space in there created by the O line and so that was good to see. And I thought Savion ran extremely hard. Jordan Marshall did some good things. He had to leave the game later on with a nagging injury that has been around for a while now. But it was great to see Savion get untracked a little bit and. And Kuzdzal came in and gave us a few things as well. And then you add that to the quarterback run game. And we ran the ball pretty efficiently overall today.
Jon Jansen • 17:52
In the second half there when the game got a little out of hand, you guys were able to get some younger players in there. From experience. Talk about the value that adds, maybe even this season.
Kyle Whittingham • 18:00
Yeah, absolutely. That's invaluable for a lot of those guys. We're going to need them somewhere along the line. And Tommy Carr, I thought, came in and showed a lot of poise and ran the offense extremely well in the little bit of time that he had. Good to see a lot of defenders get in the mix. Those two freshman edge guys, Tariq Boney and Carter Meadows, are going to be special, I'm telling you right now.
Jon Jansen • 18:18
Yeah, they certainly are. Well, Coach, thanks a lot. Congratulations, and we look forward to seeing you next week against Iowa.
Kyle Whittingham • 18:23
Okay, John, thank you very much.
Brian Boesch • 18:24
Five players that Jason Avant visited with. Let's start with one of the top receivers for Michigan and a tremendous breakout performance this season from Andrew Marsh. Here's Andrew with Jason.
Jason Avant • 18:35
Andrew, it seemed like you were a big part of the game plan today. How were you so successful?
Andrew Marsh • 18:41
Really, just trusting in the coaches, trusting in the team, everybody, all the players, really just knowing that we got to get it done, done this week. I mean, I feel like we haven't really played to our true potential throughout the season, so. So this was a big game for us, just. Just getting out there, proving to ourselves what all we could do.
Jason Avant • 18:58
It seemed like you guys had it going through the air pretty much all game, but we're hindered by some penalties. How can you guys clean those things up?
Andrew Marsh • 19:08
Definitely the penalties, I mean, we just got to clean them up. We got to take Care of the football fumbles. We gotta, we gotta minimize that, really. Just the turnovers in general. I mean, those hurt our team. I feel like we still could have played better as a team, but obviously we got to show out, show some things today.
Jason Avant • 19:22
How does it feel getting that first touchdown of the season? I know you kind of jumping at the bit every good player wants.
Andrew Marsh • 19:27
That feels great. I feel like I've been waiting on it. I've been waiting on it. So it was good. I feel like I needed that one today.
Jason Avant • 19:36
Now, how do you, as a leader now with so many younger players on a team, focus on the Big Ten season?
Andrew Marsh • 19:45
Just got to keep going. I would say do more. That's one thing that's kind of been going around the facility is just do more every day, do more each week. And obviously, I mean, the football season, you can't get too far ahead. You got to kind of live week to week. So took care of this week and then we gonna put it to bed tomorrow, then get ready for Iowa.
Jason Avant • 20:04
When it comes to Bryce and the way he played today, how does that help going forward?
Andrew Marsh • 20:09
Man, it's amazing. I mean, especially when you got a quarterback that can air it out and who trusts you to make the plays. I mean, if he puts the ball in air, then we can, we can all go ball. So I think it's amazing.
Jason Avant • 20:20
Congratulation on the win.
Andrew Marsh • 20:21
Yes, sir. Thank you.
Brian Boesch • 20:22
Staying on that Michigan offense, Jason caught up with freshman Savion Hiter.
Jason Avant • 20:26
You had a game today, multiple touchdowns. How are you so successful today?
Savion Hiter • 20:32
I can give all my credit to the O line, really. I mean, we've been working all week through getting the patience right and timing right, and we finally got it right today and you see how it turned out.
Jason Avant • 20:43
There was some. Some mistakes. You put the ball on the ground. What was the lesson that you learned from that situation?
Savion Hiter • 20:49
Really just keep my head up and keep pushing all the way through the game. And then you see how that turned out. I got another touchdown and every one of my teammates kept my head up the whole time.
Jason Avant • 20:58
Now, when it comes to you and Jordan Marshall splitting carries, how important is that going forward into the Big Ten?
Savion Hiter • 21:07
Really just staying healthy the whole season and involving coups in any way we can. I mean, we all got playmakers on the field, so we're willing to show
Jason Avant • 21:17
that Bryson has a. Not Bryson, but Bryce has a game today like he did with the accuracy and multiple touchdowns. Can you talk about how good he is as a leader and as a player?
Savion Hiter • 21:30
He's really stepped up Being a leader and being a ballplayer, really, and just dicing that thing up and keeping everybody
Jason Avant • 21:39
composed even if we're losing when, when the minors or UTEP comes in and plays, you know, outstanding in the first half. How do you guys keep your composure in order to be ready for the second half?
Savion Hiter • 21:53
We really keep ourselves up. I mean, telling each other it's all going to be good. I mean, second half and in halftime, we really were just honing in on keeping our heads up the whole time and going into the second half playing a different game than what we were in the first half.
Jason Avant • 22:09
Congratulations on the win.
Savion Hiter • 22:10
Thank you, sir.
Brian Boesch • 22:11
We'll get some thoughts from the defensive side. But first, Michigan game days are built on tradition. The maize and blue, the Michigan faithful and great drinks made right here in Michigan. As an official craft beer sponsor of Michigan athletics, Founders Brewing is proud to bring local flavor to every game day. Keep it classic with all day ipa, go bold with Mortal Bloom Hazy ipa or mix up your lineup with a new water hazard, a refreshing vodka based ready to drink cocktail. Whether you're at the tailgate, in the stands or cheering from home, make Founders part of your Michigan game day tradition. Find your favorite at founders brewing dot com. Founders Brewing Company proudly brewed in Michigan and proud to support Michigan Athletics. Please enjoy responsibly. Now to the defensive side, here's Jason with Jonah Leia.
Jason Avant • 22:53
Jonah, you had a big man touchdown today. Can you explain what happened on that particular play?
Jonah Lea'ea • 22:59
Yeah, I kind of got a weak set from the center and he bailed out pretty early. So I stayed attached to him and, you know, I just found where the running back was and tracked down the ball. You know, a little luck involved there for sure, but that's something we practice every week.
Jason Avant • 23:11
So there was a big difference when it came to the energy level for the team in general, but especially for the defense. When the defense energy came out in the second half, seemed like it was a different ball game.
Jonah Lea'ea • 23:22
Yeah, I think just when we came in the locker room in the first half, John Henry kind of helped set the tone for us. It came out flat. You know, we were giving them plays that they didn't deserve. We're being lazy, so we just had to come out and, you know, establish our dominance and just come out with good energy.
Jason Avant • 23:37
So when it comes to this defensive front and there's a lot of young guys playing today, how does that help going forward?
Jonah Lea'ea • 23:46
It helps a lot because it shows who we can really trust with depth. Our young guys really showed out today, especially Trig Bony. I think that's needless to say, but, you know, I'm proud of those guys for sure.
Jason Avant • 23:55
Congratulations on a win.
Jonah Lea'ea • 23:56
Yes, sir. Thank you.
Brian Boesch • 23:57
More from the Michigan defense. Here's Jason with Tariq Boney.
Jason Avant • 24:00
You had an opportunity today to make some plays. Talk about your mentality and what it took in order to be successful out there.
Tariq Boney • 24:07
For me, it just. Just stay ready. I know we got a loaded DNA room, so just staying ready at all times. And with my name called, making a play, that's just my mentality.
Jason Avant • 24:16
In the second half, it seemed like the defense really turned it up. What was said in order to make that happen?
Tariq Boney • 24:21
We just got to play our brand of football. We came out flat and we know what the standard is, so we gotta uphold it. That's it.
Jason Avant • 24:28
There was a lot of plays made by you. Is there something that you saw from the minors offensive line that you knew you can take advantage of?
Tariq Boney • 24:38
I just trusted the game plan. We talked about it all week in practice, and we, you know, repped it all week in practice. So going out and executed was, you know, second injury.
Jason Avant • 24:46
Congratulations on the win.
Tariq Boney • 24:47
Yes, sir. Thank you.
Brian Boesch • 24:48
And we get out of here with an impact. Defensive lineman for the Maize in blue. Enow Etta.
Jason Avant • 24:53
The defense seemed like they just shifted everything the second half. What was the difference between the first and the second half?
Enow Etta • 25:00
I think, you know, it was just mindset. We knew what we were doing wasn't up to par, so we just had to come out, you know, with a different type of mindset, you know, like the team's gonna go as we're gonna go, you know, and when offense needs us to step up, you know, we have to. So, you know, that was the biggest thing.
Jason Avant • 25:15
How exciting was it for you to see Tariq Boney and other guys go out there, Paulie Poly and all those guys go out and make some noise for the defense.
Enow Etta • 25:24
Man, it was great. I mean, these are guys that have been wrecking, you know, all fall camp, you know, freshman guys that have been, you know, getting marks from the coaches. So it's like, man, to see freshmen going out there is, you know, it's rare to play as a freshman, you know, and let alone make plays, you know what I mean? So for them to go out there and do that, you know, made me proud, you know, as a, you know, older guy, you know, that's kind of been on there, you know, busting their shots a little bit, you know what I mean? So, you know, that was definitely great to see.
Jason Avant • 25:49
Last thing. How does A win like this and multiple wins showing together prepare you for the Big Ten season.
Enow Etta • 25:56
You know, I think it just builds confidence. You know, we got a lot of young guys that are playing and, you know, like getting their first, you know, plays in before, you know, we get to the Big Ten, you know, confidence boosters, you know, that's just great. So we just got to keep level heads, you know, three, zero, you know, we got to go one and oh, every week. That's what the coaches tell us. One to know every week. You know what I mean? So we just got to keep doing that and then, you know, we'll continue to keep shining.
Jason Avant • 26:20
Congratulations on the win.
Enow Etta • 26:21
Thank you.
Brian Boesch • 26:22
So the Wolverines get it done. Michigan fifty two, UTEP seventeen Do you want to experience Michigan football like never before? Well, Champion Circle gives Wolverine fans exclusive access to once in a lifetime experiences you cannot get anywhere else. So get closer to the action and support Michigan student athletes at champions. Circleuofm dot com Head to championscircleufm dot com Great stuff, including for this coming Saturday's matchup with Iowa Champions Circle, an official partner of Michigan Athletics. So Michigan three zero getting ready for the Big Ten opener and the Iowa Hawkeyes coming to town Saturday. Another three thirty matchup here at the Big House. Thanks to everybody who made it possible to Jon, Doug, Jack, Jason, our guy, Tony Butler. Thanks to associate producer Zach Daul. Happy birthday to Zach as well, working hard on his birthday.
Brian Boesch • 27:09
We appreciate all those one hundred ten thousand folks who are in the stands on a rainy one. But a victorious day for the maze in blue. Five thousand two hundred seventeen Michigan over UTEP. We got another big week of coverage on M GO Blue Podcast. Can't wait to bring it to you. Thanks for listening and Go Blue.
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Jeff Laurence • 27:23
Thanks for listening to this edition of in the Trenches with Jon Jansen presented by Meijer, presenting sponsor of the twenty twenty six Michigan football season and proud supporter of hundreds of local sports teams across the Midwest. In the Trenches is part of our Michigan Athletics podcast M Go Blue Podcasts. The preceding is a Learfield presentation of the Michigan Sports Network.
