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From walk-on to CFP standout, Michael Taaffe has keyed Texas' turnaround on defense

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Summary
Nutrition label

81% Informative

Texas defensive back Michael Taaffe is a second -team All-America by the Associated Press .

The 6-foot , 195-pound junior defensive back started all 14 games for the Longhorns this season .

Taaffe was a non-scholarship walk-on who endured grueling tryouts just to make it this far.

He has helped Texas turn its secondary into a strength, ranking second nationally in passing yards allowed.

Michael Taaffe helped lead Westlake to Class 6A state championships in his junior and senior seasons.

Taaffe dreamed of becoming the fifth generation of his family to attend Texas .

His grandfather, Eddie Johnson , was an All- American swimmer for the Longhorns in 1957 .

But Taaffe didn't have an easy road to high school success.

Texas walk-on Michael Taaffe is an All-American trying to lead the Longhorns back to a national championship.

Last season , he was honorable mention All-Big 12 , starting nine games, playing in 14 , and helping Texas win a Big 12 championship.

VR Score

84

Informative language

82

Neutral language

78

Article tone

informal

Language

English

Language complexity

30

Offensive language

not offensive

Hate speech

not hateful

Attention-grabbing headline

not detected

Known propaganda techniques

not detected

Time-value

short-lived

Source diversity

2

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