Michael Taaffe
| Texas Longhorns – No. 16 | |
|---|---|
| Position | Safety |
| Class | Junior |
| Major | Physical Culture and Sports |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | February 18, 2003 |
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
| Weight | 195 lb (88 kg) |
| Career history | |
| College |
|
| High school | Westlake (Austin, Texas) |
| Career highlights and awards | |
Michael Joseph Taaffe (born February 18, 2003) is an American football safety for the Texas Longhorns.
High School career
[edit]Taaffe attended Westlake High School in Austin, Texas. He played cornerback and wide receiver in high school. As a senior, Taaffe recorded 60 tackles and five interceptions while catching 18 passes for 297 yards and three touchdown receptions.[1] Taaffe's most notable high school highlight is intercepting Carroll Senior High School and future Texas Quarterback Quinn Ewers twice in their state championship game. Also, Taaffe helped lead Westlake to back-to-back state championship titles.[2] On November 5, 2020, Taaffe committed to Rice.[3] However, Taaffe was offered a walk-on spot at Texas and decided to accept the Longhorns offer.
College career
[edit]Taaffe saw no playing time during his freshman year. However, when Taaffe was a redshirt freshman, he played in 13 games totaling 26 combined tackles. During Taaffe's sophomore year, he had a similar season as the previous one totaling 25 tackles. Prior to the Alamo Bowl, Taaffe was granted a full scholarship by Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian on December 18, 2022.[4] During Taaffe's junior season, he amassed a total of 48 tackles and 3 interceptions.[5] This led to Taaffe earning honorable mention All-Big 12 and a Burlsworth Trophy nominee.[6][7] During Taaffe's senior season, he earned SEC co-defensive player of the week and Burlsworth Trophy walk-on of the week honors.[8][9]Taaffe also earned second team AP All-American honors.[10]
References
[edit]- ^ "Michael Taaffe". Max Preps.
- ^ "Westlake secures third straight state championship after topping Denton Guyer". KVUE.
- ^ "Michael Taaffe". 247Sports.
- ^ "The remarkable rise of Texas former walk-on S Michael Taaffe". Burnt Orange Nation. October 26, 2023.
- ^ "Michael Taaffe". Texas Longhorns.
- ^ "2023 All-Big 12 Football Awards Announced" (PDF). Big 12 Sports. November 28, 2023.
- ^ "No. 7/6 Football's Taaffe nominated for Burlsworth Trophy". Texas Longhorns. October 31, 2023.
- ^ "Texas Longhorns DB Michael Taaffe Named SEC Co-Defensive Player of the Week". Sports Illustrated.
- ^ "Michael Taaffe named Burlsworth Trophy Walk-On of the Week". Inside Texas.
- ^ "2024 AP All-America Team: Travis Hunter snares honors at three positions, SEC leads with six first-team picks". CBS Sports.