Bigger, better Michigan DT Rayshaun Benny: 'We want to be the best defensive line in the country'

Rayshaun Benny is coming down to the end. A fifth-year senior, Benny has two classes left before graduating from Michigan, and one football season remaining before he’s off to the NFL.
The defensive tackle has been focused all offseason in anticipation for a potential breakout season. The Detroit native has appeared in 41 games with three starts over the prior four years, totaling 71 tackles, including 9 for loss and 2.5 sacks, but no longer has NFL talent ahead of him on the depth chart. He’s the future draft pick ahead of others.
“The biggest thing is excitement,” Benny said on the ‘In The Trenches’ podcast with host Jon Jansen. “It’s almost crazy to think camp is exciting. This might be the first year where it’s super exciting. I’m ready for the challenge that’s to come.
“I’m just ready for the opportunity. The offseason I had to get the most work in, I’m just ready to see everything come full circle.
“This offseason was big. I was able to put a lot of weight on. This is the most I’ve weighed in my career, the best I’ve looked, also. I look good with the weight. Just ready to be powerful and show the work I put in this offseason and just be the best me I can be, be the best leader.”
Benny was listed at 6-foot-4, 296 pounds last season, but by all indications he’s up over 300 pounds and will join five other big bodies that will rotate at defensive tackle.
“It’s very relieving,” Benny said of Michigan having depth on the defensive line. “It just ultimately helps me and the team. The fresher D-linemen are, the better we are.
“It reminds me of the ‘23 unit we had, so I know what it feels like to be a deep team, and I know that was a big part of us making that run [to win the national championship].”
Michigan ranked fifth nationally by allowing only 90.7 rushing yards per contest, but the standard is higher than that. The Wolverines want to top the nation in that category and make life miserable for opposing quarterbacks in the pass game.
“My goal for the defensive line: We want to be the best defensive line in the country,” Benny said. “Fewest rushing yards allowed. We’re trying to have a sack party in the backfield.
“We got a lot of expectations. We don’t want to limit ourselves on anything. But the ultimate goal is a national championship. If we win a national championship, we know we did everything we had to.”
Michigan’s defensive line is unselfish, and the group plans to celebrate together when they make plays.
“We don’t even talk about who’s gonna get the most [sacks],” Benny noted. “We all want to eat. We have celebrations we want to do with each other. We like to have fun. It’s a real brotherhood in that room.”
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Benny is confident that Michigan’s defense as a whole will be strong in 2025.
“We know we need to be hungry at all times throughout the year,” he said of the unit’s identity. “Don’t get satisfied. Always strive for greatness. Even if we are the best, never feel like we are the best. Just keep going.
“If we play together, we’re gonna win together. That’s the biggest thing. If everybody is happy for each other’s success, we’re gonna be in the right spot.”
Fall camp is here for Michigan football, with the first practice slated for Wednesday. Benny will show off some new skills, too, after a regimented offseason of training.
“Yeah, actually going to see trainers, as far as pass rush people and just learning different skills and when to get to different moves,” Benny said of how his offseason differed from years past. “Even getting more in depth with some of my coaches. I had a few different coaches, a few different [sets of] eyes to learn from this year. Everybody kinda played a big part in it, for real. Excited.
“I feel like it’s more so me practicing. I never had the time to actually sit down and go through the step by step and just practice it. I more so saw it and did it. This year, I tried to master everything — the things I felt like I do best.”
The Michigan defensive linemen helped each other out, too.
“We see somebody do something and, ‘Hey, maybe you should do it like this.’ I’m thinking of just recently, [senior EDGE] Derrick [Moore] was just telling me — we were working on some spins or whatever — and he was just breaking down to me like, ‘Slow it down and take your time and learn to actually get it down first.’ Him saying that made it all easy, he made it more smooth for me, after I had actually seen the rep. That helped.”
That process will continue during fall camp, where the focus is all on Michigan to start, before the Wolverines will prepare for the Aug. 30 opener against New Mexico.
“When it’s time to focus on New Mexico, we’ll focus on them. But right now, it’s just trying to get better,” Benny said.