2025 Season Countdown: #109 Benny Patterson
Name: Benny Patterson
Height: 6’4″
Weight: 245 lbs.
High school: Newburgh (IN) Castle
Position: Defensive tackle
Class: Freshman
Jersey number: N/A
Last year: Patterson was a senior in high school. He made 70 tackles, 14 tackles for loss, 7 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, and 3 fumble recoveries.
TTB Rating: 78
Patterson was a somewhat late flip in the class of 2025, picking the Wolverines on November 1, 2024, after being committed to Cincinnati. I never did a commitment post for him because I was busy at that time of year and didn’t circle back, so this is basically the first you’re hearing about him much on TTB.
MGoBlue’s commitment bio for Patterson lists him at 6’2″, 240 lbs. while 247 Sports lists him at 6’4″, 245. Maybe I should have gone with a listed 6’3″, 242.5 pounds up above, but the general idea seems to be that he’s in the 240s. Has he added weight since his senior football season ended? That’s likely. How much? Nobody knows.
In general on Patterson’s senior film, I see a quick and athletic defensive lineman who does not have a ton of technique or strength. His stance is inconsistent, he tends to stand straight up on his first step, and he sometimes shocks an offensive lineman with his hands, but he tends not to do much with his hands after that if the initial blow doesn’t work. The bright side is that it often works because he’s a Division I-level athlete, but the down side is that he’ll have a lot to learn at the college level because those guys will keep fighting – and they won’t have to fight very much because Patterson is only 242.5 pounds.
Most guys with Patterson’s skills and body type end up playing defensive tackle. Greg Mattison would take Patterson and turn him into a pretty solid 3-technique by 2027. Whether Patterson lasts that long on Michigan’s roster is a question mark, considering the transfer portal era. Regardless, he has potential if he sticks around, but he’s going to need a couple years to get up into that 290 pound range where he can be a viable option. If he can do that and maintain some of his quickness, he has a chance to be a very good player. But the most likely option for 2025 is for him to eat a high amount of calories and watch from the sideline on Saturday afternoons.
Prediction: Redshirt
