Three years ago, Kelvin Banks Jr. didn\u2019t enroll at the University of Texas until the summer.<\/p>\n
This usually wouldn’t be a big deal, but for high-profile recruits, it has become common to graduate high school early and arrive on campus as soon as possible. The coaches can begin coaching, and the kids get more time to acclimate to the program.<\/p>\n
So when Banks finally got the chance to step on the practice field as a five-star freshman that July and work against the other athletes that had a months-long head start, offensive coordinator Kyle Flood went over to chat with coach Steve Sarkisian.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll right, that\u2019s our left tackle,\u201d Flood told him. \u201cIt took about two days.\u201d<\/p>\n
From Day 1 \u2014 or Day 2, to be precise \u2014 Banks was a dominant player who coaches relied on as a program cornerstone. At the start of Banks\u2019 three-year tenure, the Longhorns were coming off a 5-7 season. By the end of it, Texas had made the College Football Playoff.<\/p>\n
That sort of transformation requires a much larger buy-in than just one lineman, but Flood said for that to happen, a team\u2019s best players have to lead the way. And Banks was among Texas\u2019 best players, if not the outright best.<\/p>\n
Banks made the kind of impact the New Orleans Saints are hoping to get by drafting the 21-year-old with the ninth overall pick in this year\u2019s NFL draft on Thursday.<\/p>\n
In terms of filling a need, Banks should help provide immediate answers upfront. That could be at left tackle, a spot that would allow last year\u2019s starter \u2014 Taliese Fuaga \u2014 to move back to his natural position of right tackle. Or it could be at guard, the biggest question mark for the offensive line.<\/p>\n
But don\u2019t lose the significance of Banks becoming the Saints\u2019 first draft pick under new coach Kellen Moore. In New Orleans, Moore will need a new generation of leaders to set a tone and pave the way to help the organization become annual contenders again. And the Saints believe they\u2019ve started that process with Banks, a two-time captain at Texas who Sarkisian called \u201cthe perfect Longhorn.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt gives them somebody who went through it,\u201d Flood said. \u201cKelvin was a big part of what we had to do here in changing this organization.\u201d<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
Banks said he became a man early in his college career.<\/p>\n
Facing Will Anderson and Dallas Turner of Alabama \u2014 two of the nation\u2019s top pass rushers who are now both in the NFL \u2014 in the second game of your collegiate career will do that. Banks didn\u2019t back down.<\/p>\n
It also set the stage of what he\u2019d see over the next few years.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt just meant a lot,\u201d Banks said, \u201chaving to grow up fast.\u201d<\/p>\n
Not many freshmen are thrown into the fire, but perhaps even more rare was the lack of surprise when it happened. Flood said what unfolded in the summer of 2022 made the Texas coaching staff more than comfortable trusting him to hold his own. And even in Banks\u2019 own family, they knew he was up to the task.<\/p>\n
What makes someone ready for that stage?<\/p>\n
\u201cI always told him to perfect his craft,\u201d Kelvin Banks Sr. said.<\/p>\n
He wanted his son to have a normal childhood. He wanted him to have the freedom to explore his interests, which have come to include fishing and reviewing barbecue restaurants.<\/p>\n
But the father, who was an offensive lineman who played indoor football with the Conroe Storm, football was part of their family. So naturally, his took a liking to the sport \u2014 and dad did the best he could to prepare him.<\/p>\n
Those early lessons included studying film. When his son was 9 or 10, the Bankses would pore over film of Banks Jr.\u2019s games, study upcoming opponents and watch the best from the NFL.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe took that and made it his own,\u201d Banks Sr. said. \u201cHe ran with it. And that\u2019s the type of person he is. He\u2019s a professional.\u201d<\/p>\n
Banks Jr.’s physical gifts also allowed him to be ready for the challenge. Flood, who also serves as the Texas offensive line coach, said the lineman has \u201cgreat natural length and power.\u201d But the tackle\u2019s most underrated trait? His core strength, Flood said.<\/p>\n
By having a strong core, Banks is \u201cvery rarely off balance.\u201d And when he is occasionally knocked off his spot, he can recover quickly to sustain contact and finish plays. According to Pro Football Focus, Banks allowed only five sacks in 42 career games.<\/p>\n
Then there\u2019s the mental component.<\/p>\n
Flood said Banks has a \u201cunique ability\u201d to focus on the game, no matter the stakes. The lineman is able to concentrate, whether his team needs a four-minute drive to seal the victory or come from behind with a two-minute drill.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the NFL, every game is competitive,\u201d Flood said. \u201cI mean, all the games. There’s so many games every week to come down to a two-minute drill. Yeah, he’s absolutely ready for that.\u201d<\/p>\n
At Texas, Banks also went through a challenging family situation that he rarely talked about until last season. His mother, Monica, fought a life-threatening illness that caused her to collapse after one of Banks\u2019 games during his freshman year and later put her on a ventilator in 2024. That same year, Monica\u2019s doctors discovered she needed gallbladder surgery, which ended up saving her life.<\/p>\n
These days, she\u2019s doing well. As a result of her illness, Monica had to relearn how to walk and speak. During the saga, Banks Sr. remembers how his son wouldn\u2019t let it \u201cdeter\u201d him. Neither of his parents would have it any other way.<\/p>\n
On draft night, Monica was there on the couch when Banks got the call that he was a member of the Saints.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe was very proud,\u201d Banks Sr. said, \u201cand I\u2019m glad she got to be here to see it.\u201d<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
At an LSU coaching clinic last month, Saints offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier stood in front of a room of high school coaches and spoke about culture. He told them that culture \u2014 football\u2019s favorite buzzword \u2014 isn\u2019t a matter of quotes on a wall or a page in the team\u2019s playbook.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe players have to live it,\u201d Nussmeier said.<\/p>\n
Speaking over the phone, a day after Banks was drafted, Flood reiterated the same idea. And Banks, he said, made that a reality for Texas.<\/p>\n
Flood would often notice how Banks interacted with younger teammates, not afraid to pull them aside to say \u201cthat\u2019s not how we do it here.\u201d The tackle wasn\u2019t loud or boisterous, but he helped set the standard.<\/p>\n
For that standard to take root, Banks had to be reliable. And he was. Banks\u2019 durability was a strength for the Longhorns as the lineman missed only one game for an injury over his last three years, and that is undoubtedly appealing for a Saints team that was ravaged upfront last season.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust through his process, he\u2019s everything you want your organization to represent,\u201d Moore said after the Saints drafted Banks.<\/p>\n
On draft night, Moore left the door open about whether Banks would play tackle or guard at the next level. Scouting reports from The Athletic and the NFL Network suggest Banks, because of his shorter 33-inch arms, may be better suited for the inside. On the broadcast, The NFL Network\u2019s Daniel Jeremiah said he thinks Banks could \u201chold up\u201d at tackle, but that he\u2019d be \u201chell on wheels\u201d at guard.<\/p>\n
Banks said he\u2019ll play anywhere.<\/p>\n
Asked about his thoughts on the debate, Flood said he doesn\u2019t have \u201cany doubt\u201d that Banks could thrive at tackle in the NFL. Just like he saw during Banks\u2019 first two days all those years ago.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know it sounds disingenuous when I describe what Kelvin’s like, but this is really what he’s like,\u201d Flood said. \u201cHe’s a no-flaw kid.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Three years ago, Kelvin Banks Jr. didn\u2019t enroll at the University of Texas until the summer. This usually…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5185,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2076],"tags":[7,4095,896,55,2572,2571,6,397],"class_list":{"0":"post-5184","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-orleans-saints","8":"tag-football","9":"tag-hardwall","10":"tag-new-orleans","11":"tag-new-orleans-saints","12":"tag-neworleans","13":"tag-neworleanssaints","14":"tag-nfl","15":"tag-saints"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/114411905220209360","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5184","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5184"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5184\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5185"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5184"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5184"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5184"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}