Michael L. Boren (born c. 1962) is a former
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
player. A native of
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...
, he played
college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.
Unlike most ...
as a
linebacker
Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...
at the
University of Michigan
, mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth"
, former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821)
, budget = $10.3 billion (2021)
, endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
from 1980 to 1983. He was Michigan's leading tackler as a sophomore and junior during the 1981 and 1982 seasons. He suffered a knee injury in the fourth game of the 1983 season that ended his playing career. He still ranks among Michigan's all-time career leaders in tackles.
Early years
Boren was born in approximately 1962 and grew up in
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...
. He attended high school at
Eastmoor Academy
Eastmoor Academy is a public high school located on the east side of Columbus, Ohio. It is part of Columbus City Schools.
Eastmoor Academy was formerly known as Eastmoor High School. The school's colors are red, white and blue, and its mascot ...
in Columbus.
[ Growing up in the shadow of ]Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...
, Boren noted that he "was born and raised Buckeye" and hating Michigan.
University of Michigan
Not recruited by Ohio State,[ Boren enrolled at the ]University of Michigan
, mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth"
, former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821)
, budget = $10.3 billion (2021)
, endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
and played college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.
Unlike most ...
as a linebacker
Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...
for head coach Bo Schembechler
Glenn Edward "Bo" Schembechler Jr. ( ; April 1, 1929 – November 17, 2006) was an American football player, coach, and athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Miami University from 1963 to 1968 and at the University of ...
's Michigan Wolverines football
The Michigan Wolverines football team represents the University of Michigan in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Michigan has the most all-time wins in college football history. The team is known for its ...
teams from 1980 to 1983. He was a backup at linebacker as a freshman in 1980.
Boren started all 12 games at inside linebacker
Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...
for the 1981 Michigan Wolverines football team
The 1981 Michigan Wolverines football team was an American football team that represented the University of Michigan in the 1981 Big Ten Conference football season. In their 13th season under head coach Bo Schembechler, the Wolverines compiled ...
that compiled a 9-3 record and outscored opponents, 355-162. As a sophomore, he led the 1981 Wolverines with 144 tackles.[(to retrieve information for a particular season, go to "Games & Totals by Season" and select the year for which statistics are to be retrieved)]
As a junior, Boren again started all 12 games at inside linebacker for the 1982 Michigan team that compiled an 8-4 record, won the Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...
championship and outscored opponents, 345-204. Boren registered 142 tackles in 1982, leading the Wolverines in tackles for the second consecutive year.[
As a senior, Boren started only four games, all at inside linebacker, for the 1983 Wolverines. He sustained a career-ending knee injury against ]Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
on October 1, 1983. Boren was limited to 43 tackles in four games as a senior, but his career total of 332 tackles ranks among the top ten in Michigan history.
Boren had seven games at Michigan in which he had at least 15 tackles. His best games at Michigan are as follows:
1. 1981 Navy: 13 tackles, 5 assists, 18 total
2. 1982 UCLA: 12 tackles, 6 assists, 18 total
3. 1982 at Illinois: 14 tackles, 3 assists, 17 total
4. 1982 Michigan State: 12 tackles, 5 assists, 17 total
5. 1981 at Purdue 8 tackles, 9 assists, 17 total
6. 1981 Ohio State: 9 tackles, 6 assists, 15 total
7. 1983 at Wisconsin: 9 tackles, 6 assists, 15 total
Later years and family
Boren had intended to play in the NFL some day, but a knee injury in his senior season ended his football playing career. "I took football for granted, and then when I didn't have football anymore, I about cried," Boren recalled. When he graduated from Michigan, he had a degree in education, but he had no desire to be a teacher or a coach. Instead, he became the owner of three businesses.
Boren returned to Columbus after graduating, a city where natives such as Boren who went north to play Michigan football are referred to (sometimes in jest, sometimes not) as "traitors." On living in Columbus, Boren said: "It's like being in the belly of the beast. In the (1990s) it was a great place to live. Now, it's been a little hectic. Hey, it's humbling."
In 2005, when Michigan offered a scholarship to Boren's son, Justin Boren
Justin Matthew Boren (born April 28, 1988) is a former American football guard. Though a guard in the NFL, Boren played both guard and center during his high school and college football career. In high school, he was widely regarded as one of t ...
, Schembechler thought there was nothing to discuss. "Bo just said, 'He's your son. You tell him where he's going to go,'" Boren said with a laugh. "But I told Bo, 'I'm not going to tell him where to go. He has to make this decision for himself.'"
By the fall of 2006, Justin Boren had joined the Wolverines. On November 16, 2006, Boren was in Ann Arbor with his son where they both attended Schembechler's final address to the team before the Ohio State game. According to Boren, the speech had a sense of urgency. "He pretty much delivered it, and the guys were going nuts. It's a scary thing, and I hate to say it, but I think Bo knew something was wrong." Schembechler collapsed and died of heart failure the next morning. After the 2007 season, Justin Boren quit the University of Michigan and transferred to Ohio State University.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boren, Mike
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
Michigan Wolverines football players
Players of American football from Columbus, Ohio
American football linebackers